The effect of surface cooling on intra-articular temperature was examined in dogs’ knees.
We conclude that brief periods of topical cold application to a dog’s knee can induce significant and long lasting depression of intra-articular temperatures and that this is a local effect not dependent on core temperature cooling.
The aim of this study was to investigate if low-level laser therapy (LLLT) can modulate acute inflammation and tumor necrosis factor (TNFalpha) levels.
LLLT can reduce TNFalpha expression after acute immunocomplex lung injury in rats, but LLLT dose appears to be critical for reducing TNFalpha release.
To evaluate the influence of shock wave therapy (SWT) on radiographic evidence of bone healing after tibial plateau leveling osteotomy (TPLO).
Forty-two dogs (50 stifles) were included in the statistical analysis. No major complications were observed and all osteotomies healed uneventfully. The median healing scores were significantly higher at eight weeks postoperatively for the SWT group compared to the SHAM group for the 10-point (p <0.0002) and 5-point scoring systems (p <0.0001).
Ice is applied following a soft-tissue injury on the basis of clinical information. This study investigates the relationship between ice therapy (cryotherapy) and edema by determining microvascular permeability before and after contusion with and without icetherapy and provides data supporting a reduction in edema following cryotherapy.
The application of ice significantly decreased microvascular permeability following striated muscle contusion. The results of this study demonstrated that microvascular permeability is increased following a contusion coincident with significant leukocyte-endothelial interactions. However, microvascular permeability was significantly reduced following cryotherapy, a treatment demonstrated to reduce the number of rolling and adherent leukocytes. This association suggests that the reduction in edema in injured skeletal muscle following cryotherapy may be due to a reduction in leukocyte-endothelial interactions.
Laser phototherapy has been widely used to relieve pain for more than 30 years, but its efficacy remains controversial. To ascertain the overall effect of phototherapy on pain, we aggregated the literature and subjected the studies to statistical meta-analysis.
Fifty-two effect sizes were computed from the 22 articles that met the inclusion criteria. The resulting overall mean effect size was highly significant; d = +0.84 (95% confidence interval = 0.44-1.23). The effect size remained significant even when a high outlying d value was conservatively excluded from the analysis; d = +0.66 (95% confidence interval = 0.46-0.86). The fail-safe number associated with the overall treatment effect, that is, the number of additional studies in which phototherapy has negative or no effect on pain needed to negate the overall large effect size of +0.84, was 348.
The study aims were to evaluate the effects of radial shock wave therapy (RSWT) in dogs with hip osteoarthritis (OA) using clinical assessment and kinetic analysis.
Outcomes of this study suggested beneficial effects of RSWT in dogs with hip osteoarthritis.
To compare 4 therapeutic techniques to reduce soft tissue swelling after cranial cruciate ligament repair in the dog.
Use of cold compresses alone or with a bandage, or using microcurrent electrical therapy in combination with a bandage decreases soft tissue swelling over 72 hours more than a bandaging alone after extracapsular repair of CCLR.
We investigated if low level laser therapy (LLLT) of the joint capsule can reduce pain in chronic joint disorders. A literature search identified 88 randomised controlled trials, of which 20 trials included patients with chronic joint disorders. Six trials were excluded for not irradiating the joint capsule. Three trials used doses lower than a dose range nominated a priori for reducing inflammation in the jointcapsule. These trials found no significant difference between active and placebo treatments. The remaining 11 trials including 565 patients were of acceptable methodological quality with an average PEDro score of 6.9 (range 5-9). In these trials, LLLT within the suggested dose range was administered to the knee, temporomandibular or zygapophyseal joints.
The results showed a mean weighted difference in change of pain on VAS of 29.8 mm (95% CI, 18.9 to 40.7) in favour of the active LLLT groups. Global health status improved for more patients in the active LLLT groups ( relative risk of 0.52; 95% CI 0.36 to 0.76). Low level laser therapy with the suggested dose range significantly reduces pain and improves health status in chronic joint disorders, but the heterogeneity in patient samples, treatment procedures and trial design calls for cautious interpretation of the results.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of extracorporeal radial shock wave therapy on the hindlimb function of dogssuffering from hip osteoarthritis.
In the treated dogs, differences between the ground reaction forces exerted by the right and left hindlegs disappeared four weeks after the treatment, whereas in the control dogs only the peak vertical force distribution changed significantly. The significant improvement in the treated dogs was confirmed by changes in the symmetry indices. Significant improvements in vertical impulse and peak vertical force were observed three months after the treatment.
To evaluate the effect of cold compression therapy (CCT) on postoperative pain, lameness, range of motion of the stifle joint, and swelling following tibial plateau leveling osteotomy (TPLO) in dogs.
CCT decreased signs of pain, swelling, and lameness and increased stifle joint range of motion in dogs during the first 24 hours after TPLO.
