Shock Waves in Sports Medicine

Nowadays, Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy (ESWT) is a well-established treatment option in sports medicine. Many randomized controlled studies have demonstrated the effectiveness and safety of both focused and radial ESWT – especially for the treatment of musculoskeletal pathologies. Therefore, ESWT today is the scientifically best-proven treatment means for several musculoskeletal disorders. This statement is also true for operative therapy. On the other hand, further studies are needed for a number of indications such as stress fractures. In addition, it has to be discussed how treatment results can be further improved. Written by well-respected international experts, this book offers a compilation of articles about the application of focused and radial ESWT in sports medicine. The authors provide an overview of the current state- of-the-art of musculoskeletal ESWT applications, demonstrate new possible applications in pilot studies, and offer recommendations for research and daily practice.