Ultrasound Burn

[MjRocklin]

Hi, I recently used my decive (not mendmeshop) on the 157/cm 2 power setting and I think I burned myself.

I used it on my upper trapezius for 15 minutes, with gel, and kept it moving the whole time but when I finished my trap felt like it had a deep sunburn, and it still feels like that 10 hours later.

My questions are
1. what kind of damage can ultrasound burns do
2. Is it best to use the device on a lower setting to heal the burn OR to leave it alone for a while
and
3. What can I do in the future to not get burned.

Thanks for the help, and if anyone else out there has had this problem before I would love to hear from you about what happend and how long it took to recover.
Mike B.

[Allison]

Hello Mike,

It is difficult for me to determine your ideal treatment intensity setting, time setting or even the frequency of treatments you should do for your upper Trapezius because I am not familiar with the unit that you are using. In this case I urge you to contact the company you purchased your ultrasound from to see what (if any) recommendations they will have for you considering your situation, and you should also consult your physician or a medical professional about your burn to determine an appropriate treatment plan.

There are some key questions you should ask this company and your doctor to determine what has caused the burn in hopes of preventing this unfortunate situation from happening again. As I said before, I can only provide some general information about ultrasound and the specifications related to our particular unit.

(1) Is the intensity setting you are using really 0.157W/cm2? You mentioned above that it is

157/cm2

I can only assume from there you meant 0.157w/cm2. If you are in fact using an intensity level that is 0.157W/cm2 then your intensity level should be safe. You generally want to make sure to apply ultrasound only at 0.5w/cm2 or less to avoid irritation in less fleshy/bony treatment areas. In comparison, our device operates anywhere between 0.1 to 0.8W/cm2.

(2) Do you have a 1MHz, 3MHz, or 5MHz ultrasound system? Our unit operates at a 1MHz frequency, and so do most ultrasound units intended to treat soft tissue injuries to muscles, ligaments, tendons, etc… A general rule to remember is that: lower frequency output = higher tissue depth penetration. A 1 MHz unit will penetrate up to 4 inches (10 cm) below the surface of the skin. A 5MHz ultrasound is usually intended for either superficial ultrasound healing during acute phases of an injury or for cosmetic purposes (i.e. cellulite, wrinkles, etc…).

(3) What is the “Pulsed Duty Cycle” of your unit? A clinical ultrasound device will operate in a “continuous” mode, which means that you are getting that 1MHz, 3MHz, or 5MHz ultrasound frequency 100% of the time during treatment. This makes clinical devices very powerful during treatment, but is also the reason why continuous mode ultrasound can only be operated by licensed medical technicians. A “safe-for-home-use” unit will usually operate on a pulsed cycle – meaning you are always getting less than 100% of the energy output from the ultrasound. Our highest setting has the ultrasound pulse at 40% - what is your unit’s highest pulsed setting?

(4) Are you treating your upper Trapezius along the top of your shoulder, at your back around your shoulder blade, near the spine or up near the neck? We generally do not recommend ultrasound treatment above the neck (unless you are treating TMJ) or over the spine – and recommend that you consult a medical professional if you are interested in treating these areas. You always need to keep in mind that your treatment intensity (high, medium, or low) and your treatment time (5, 10, or 15 minutes) should be reflective of the area you are treating. Less fleshy areas should always be treated under lower intensity and timer settings. For our device we recommend that anywhere near the neck should be treated on a medium intensity for a maximum of 10 minutes. For the upper back we recommend a medium or high intensity for a maximum of 10 minutes.

(5) Are you using enough ultrasound gel and is the transducer head flat against the treatment area? You have mentioned that you are using gel and making sure to keep the ultrasound move the whole time – which is great! But are you using enough gel to create a seal between the transducer head of the ultrasound and your skin? If you notice that the ultrasound gel tends to dry up during treatment or that as the ultrasound gel disappears you are experiencing more heat you should be applying more gel. We usually recommend a circle of gel about 1-2 inches in diameter and ¼ inch thick. This is always subjective to the size of the area that you are treating as well.

(6) Are the components of your ultrasound considered to be good quality? Usually ultrasounds operate by having an internal mechanism that causes a crystal in the transducer head to vibrate. Depending on the quality of the crystal or the mechanism in place, the sound waves will either be evenly transmitted through the transducer head or they may only be transmitted to specific spots on the transducer head. The technical term for what I just explained is “ERA” or “Effective Radiating Area”. We have some experience in this field, as we used to offer a less premium ultrasound which sometimes created “hot spots” for our consumers during treatment. Basically the internal mechanisms were set up in a way to generate excessive heat which then could potentially have harmful effects to tissue. We have since developed our own ultrasound which operates in a way that eliminates this problem. Your unit may be constructed in a way that is generating excessive heat or “hot spots” which may be concentrating the energy in one spot during your treatment. One tell-tale sign of a “hot spot” on your unit is a starburst pattern that can be apparent on the transducer head (this may be hard to see).

Again, you consider some of the questions and ideas I have presented above, and use some of this knowledge when contacting that company you have purchased your ultrasound from.

Ultrasound burns can and do happen if some of the above-mentioned procedures aren’t followed (i.e. if you are using the unit on a W/cm2 setting that is too high for the location and nature of your injury, if you are treating on a pulsed duty cycle that is too high, if you are treating for too long, if you are treating over a less fleshy area, if you aren’t using enough ultrasound gel, or if the ultrasound energy output is not being evenly distributed).

In the mean time I would recommend that you stop your ultrasound treatments for the time being until you are able to assess what the true cause of your ultrasound burn is. Unless the root cause is dealt with, there is always a chance that this may happen again.

I hope I have adequately answered your questions, and if you require any further assistance please feel free to call us toll free at 1-866-237-9608 or phone us directly at 705-445-3505.

Best of luck to you Mike in finding out what has gone wrong with your treatment. I sincerely hope you will be able to sort out this issue soon to resume your ultrasound treatments soon.

Best Wishes,

Allison
MendMeShop

[MjRocklin]

Thank you for the help. I meant I used it on high at 1.57/cm 2... I have since been using the unit on low with good, safe results.

I had to buy a cheaper unit, a reliamed 1000. I know the quality is bad and they don't last long, but thats all I could afford.

I have really stiff fingers and was wondering if it's OK to use the ultrasound on lowest setting on the top and bottoms of the fingers and the hand.

Also, can your ultrasound instruction manual be purchased by itself?

thanks! Mike B.

[Allison]

Good Morning Mike,

If you intend to use your ultrasound on your fingers I would recommend that you try to apply treatment in a way that will allow the transducer head to remain flat against your body - i.e. don't spread your fingers apart and treat them individually, put your fingers together and apply treatment to the entire area at once.

I would be more than happy to email you a copy of our treatment manual free of charge Mike - could you just send a quick email to us at: service@mendmeshop.com - then I can reply with the treatment manual attached and also a photo depicting how you should treat your fingers. Just put your forum nickname in the subject so I can find you quickly (-:

We do have a few options available for you as far as financing for the ultrasound, and I will also explain these details in the email I will be sending you.

Looking forward to hearing from you,

Allison
MendMeShop

[dellnk58]

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