Here is all about laser therapy. These slides contain all about laser in the field of healthcare and treatment. Role of laser in the physical therapy field. I hope these slides helps you to learn more about laser therapy and its benefits.

1. THE LASER THERAPY
A MODERN TECHNIQUE IN PHYSIOTHERAPY

2. What is laser therapy?
• "Laser therapies are medical
treatments that use focused light.
Unlike most light sources, light
from a laser is tuned to specific
wavelengths. This allows it to be
focused into powerful beams.
Laser light is so intense that it can
be used to shape diamonds or cut
steel.” NOTE:
LASER stands for: ( Light Amplification
By Stimulated Emission Of Radiation).
FIGURE: It shows lower level laser therapy

3. In medicine, lasers allow surgeons to work at high
levels of precision by focusing on a small area,
damaging less of the surrounding tissue. If you have
laser therapy, you may experience less pain, swelling,
and scarring than with traditional surgery. However,
laser therapy can be expensive and require repeated
treatments.

4. What is laser
therapy
used for?
• Laser therapy may be used to:
• Shrink or destroy tumors, polyps, or
precancerous growths
• Relieve symptoms of cancer
• Remove kidney stones
• Remove part of the prostate
• Repair a detached retina
• Improve vision
• Treat hair loss resulting from alopecia or
aging
• Treat pain, including back nerve pain

5. Uses continue….
Lasers can have acauterizing, or
sealing, effect and may be used to seal:
•Nerve endings to reduce pain after
surgery.
•Blood vessels to help prevent blood
loss.
•Lymph vessels to reduce swelling and
limit the spread of tumor cells.
Laser therapy is also used
cosmetically to:
Remove Warts, Moles, Birthmarks, And Sun
Spots
•Remove Hair
•Lessen The Appearance Of Wrinkles,
Blemishes, Or Scars
•Remove Tattoos

6. USED IN CANCER
TREATMENT:
Lasers may be useful in treating the very
early stages of some cancers, including:
•Cervical Cancer
•Penile Cancer
•Vaginal Cancer
•Vulvar Cancer
•Non-small Cell Lung Cancer
•Basal Cell Skin Cancer
NOTE:
For cancer, laser therapy is
usually used alongside other
treatments, such as surgery,
chemotherapy, or radiation.

7. Some laser surgeries, such as cosmetic skin and eye surgeries, are
considered elective surgeries. Some people decide the potential risks can
outweigh the benefits of these types of surgeries.
For example:
Some health or skin conditions may be aggravated by laser surgeries.
As with typical surgery, poor overall health also increases your risk of
complications.
Who Shouldn’t Have Laser
Therapy?

8. Talk to your doctor before deciding to undergo laser surgery for
any kind of operation.
Based on your age, overall health, healthcare plan, and the cost of
laser surgery, your doctor may recommend that you choose
traditional surgical methods.
For Example:
If you’re younger than 18 years, you should not get Lasik eye
surgery.
CONTINUE…

9. Laser Therapy In Physiotherapy
– A Word Of Caution:
Laser therapy is much used by the therapists for healing pain and treatment of
injuries.
It also frees the patient from the cycle of drugs taken other wise to heal from pain.
But, too much of anything can be bad.
Laser Therapy is also one of those good things. Too much of the treatment can be
harmful for the patient.

10. Thus, the therapist must strictly follow the guidelines given for
treatment.
After all it is laser beams which we are sending inside the body.
It is beneficial only if a controlled amount of rays enter the
body.
It might take a few extra weeks for treatment, but in any case the
time for device application should not exceed the given criteria.

11. How do I prepare for
laser therapy?
Plan ahead to ensure that you have time to recover after the operation. Also make sure
someone can take you home from the procedure. You will likely still be under the
influence of anesthesia or medications.
A few days before the surgery, you may be advised to take precautions such as stopping
any medications that can affect blood clotting, such as blood thinners.

12. How is laser therapy done?
Laser therapy techniques vary based on the procedure.
If a tumor is being treated, an endoscope (a thin, lighted, flexible
tube) may be used to direct the laser and view tissues inside the body.
The endoscope is inserted through an opening in the body, such as the
mouth. Then, the surgeon aims the laser and shrinks or destroys the
tumor.
In cosmetic procedures, lasers are usually applied directly to the skin.

13. Outcome Of Implementation Of
Laser Therapy In Physiotherapy:
Laser therapy is a comparatively new field of treatment. There is not enough
data to suggest the outcomes of Laser Therapy In Physiotherapy.
However, Researches are going on. Daily new and safe experiments are being
carried on the patients to see the results. So far there has not been any bad
incident reported. No harm has been caused by the use of laser therapy over the
patients. By the data we have till now, we can say with confidence that Laser
Therapy is beneficial for the patient. The patients heal much faster compare to
the old exercises of physiotherapy. The need for drugs is also reduced to a great
extent after the use of laser therapy.

14. What are the different
types?
Some common laser surgeries include:
•Refractive eye surgery (often called LASIK)
•Tooth whitening
•Cosmetic scar, tattoo, or wrinkle removal
•Cataract or tumor removal

15. Types continues…
Different lasers are used for different
procedures.
For example:
1. Carbon dioxide (CO2) lasers make
shallow cuts. They’re often used for
superficial cancers, such as skin
cancer.
3. Argon lasers also make shallow cuts and can
be used to activate photosensitizing (light-
activated) drugs during photodynamic therapy.
This type of cancer treatment combines light
with chemotherapy to kill more cancer cells.
2. Nd:YAG lasers can travel along
optical fibers. They’re used in laser-
induced interstitial thermotherapy, a
type of cancer treatment.

16. Low level laser therapy (LLLT):
Low level laser therapy (LLLT) is also called
cold laser therapy. It uses laser light set to
wavelengths between 600 and 980 nanometers.
The laser is used to perform minor surgeries
and promote regeneration in tissue. Programs
exist that offer LLLT as an aid to quit smoking,
but little evidence supports its use for this
purpose. FIGURE: Shows lower level or cold
laser therapy performing at the back of
neck.

17. Classification Of Lasers:

18. What are the risks?
Laser therapy has some risks. The risks for
skin therapy include:
•Bleeding
•Infection
•Pain
•Scarring
•Changes in skin color
Also, the intended effects of treatment may not be
permanent, so repeated sessions may be necessary.
Some laser surgery is performed
while you’re under general
anaesthesia, which carries its own set
of risks. They include:
Pneumonia
• Confusion after waking from the
operation
• Heart attack
• Stroke

19. What are the benefits?
Below are some of the major benefits of Treatment From Laser Therapy devices.
These benefits can be seen in the most of the cases.
Inflammation Is Minimized In The Area Of Injury
• Relief From Severe Pain In Comparatively Less Time
• Increased Mobility Of Tissues As The Heal
• Blood Flow Is Increased In The Area Affected
• Flow Of White Blood Cells Are Increased As Well
• Related Tissues To The Injured Area Becomes Flexible

20. What happens after laser
therapy?
1. Recovery after laser surgeries is
similar to that of typical surgery. You
may need to rest for the first few days
after the operation and take over-the-
counter pain medication until the
discomfort and swelling have gone
down.
2. You should follow any orders
your doctor gives you very closely.
For example:
If you have laser prostate surgery,
you may need to wear a urinary
catheter. This can aid in urinating
right after the surgery.

21. CONT….
3. Recovery after laser therapy varies
based on the type of therapy you
received and how much of your body
was affected by the therapy.
4. If you received therapy on your
skin, you may experience swelling,
itching, and redness around the
treated area. Your doctor may use an
ointment and dress up the area so
that it’s airtight and watertight.

22. Precautions after laser
therapy:
For the first couple of weeks after the
treatment, be sure to do the following:
•Use over-the-counter medications for pain,
such as ibuprofen (Advil) or acetaminophen
(Tylenol).
•Clean the area regularly with water.
•Apply ointments, such as petroleum jelly.
•Use ice packs.
•Avoid picking any scabs.
NOTE:
Once the area has become overgrown
with new skin, you may use makeup
or other cosmetics to cover up any
noticeable redness if you’d like.

23. Time Required For Treatment
Through Laser Therapy In
Physiotherapy:
Time consumed for Laser Therapy
Treatment is different for different
conditions. It really depends of the kind of
injury, amount of pain and other factors. The
minimum time required for laser therapy
treatment in 30 seconds to 2 minutes. The
maximum time can be 15-20 minutes
depending on the severity of the condition.
Condition to be
Treated
Total Time Required
Mild injury 30 Seconds – 2 minutes
Soft Tissue Pain 30 Seconds – 2 minutes
Wound Healing 30 Seconds – 2 minutes
Neck Pain 2 minutes – 5 minutes
Inflammation 2 minutes – 5 minutes
Knee Pain 2 minutes – 5 minutes
Muscle Spasm 5 minutes – 10 minutes
Sprain 5 minutes – 10 minutes
Arthritis > 10 minutes
Chronic Lower back Pain > 10 minutes

24. Where To Avoid Therapy Or
Laser Therapy In Physiotherapy?
Laser Therapy is a very safe therapy procedure.
No harmful event has been reported since the use of laser therapy devices. However, there
are some cases where it might not be advisable to take the risk. These are sensitive
patients who may fall for some unforeseen side effects. Following cases must be avoided
by the therapist for providing laser therapy.

25.  Laser Therapy Must Be Avoided With A Pregnant Woman Especially
Near The Womb.
 Near The Chest Area Of A Heart Patient (Especially When The Patient
Has A Pacemaker Device).
 Laser Therapy Must Be Avoided Strictly Over A Burned Skin As It May
Increase The Pain.
 Patients With Very High Blood Pressure As One Of The Functions Of
Laser Therapy Is To Increase The Blood Flow.
 With Mentally Retarded Patients As They May Fail To Report Any
Unwanted Advances Due To The Laser Treatment.

26. THANK YOU…