Advances of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound for treatment of musculoskeletal disorders in the past decade.
10.12122/j.issn.1673-4254.2025.03.24
- Author:
Liping FU
1
;
Lixia YUAN
2
;
Jie WANG
1
;
Xuelan CHEN
1
;
Guizhi KE
1
;
Yu HUANG
1
;
Xinyi YANG
1
;
Gang LIU
1
Author Information
1. Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China.
2. School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China.
- Publication Type:English Abstract
- Keywords:
clinical application;
fracture and nonunion of bones;
low-intensity pulsed ultrasound;
muscle injury regeneration and repair;
osteoarthritis
- MeSH:
Humans;
Ultrasonic Therapy/methods*;
Musculoskeletal Diseases/therapy*;
Ultrasonic Waves;
Osteoarthritis/therapy*;
Muscle, Skeletal/injuries*
- From:
Journal of Southern Medical University
2025;45(3):661-668
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are characterized by extensive pathological involvement and high prevalence and cause a significant disease burden. Long-term drug administration often causes by adverse effects with poor therapeutic efficacy. Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS), as a specialized therapeutic modality, delivers acoustic energy at a low intensity in a pulsed wave mode, thus ensuring stable energy transmission to the target tissues while minimizing thermal effects. This non-invasive approach has demonstrated significant potential for MSD treatment by delivering effective physical stimulations. Extensive animal and clinical studies have demonstrated the efficacy of LIPUS for accelerating the healing process of fresh fractures and nonunions, promoting soft tissue regeneration and suppressing inflammatory responses. Emerging evidence suggests promising applications of LIPUS in skeletal muscle injury treatment and promoting tissue regeneration and repair. This review outlines the recent advancements and mechanistic studies of LIPUS for treatment of common MSDs including fractures, nonunions, muscle injuries, and osteoarthritis, addressing also the technical parameters of commercially available LIPUS devices, current therapeutic approaches, the existing challenges, and future research directions.
