Shock Wave Therapy for Osteoporosis

"Shock waves are acoustical pulses that are characterized by high amplitude (\~500 bar) and short rise time (\~20 ns), which are followed by a longer low-magnitude negative wave (\~-100 bar). Extracorporeal shock waves are widely used to disintegrate kidney stones, which is called lithotripsy. In orthopedics, shock wave therapy, called orthotripsy, is used safely in a variety of musculoskeletal disorders like non unions, osteonecrosis of the hip, Achilles and patellar tendinopathy, lateral epicondylitis of the elbow and fasciitis plantaris.~Until recently extracorporeal shock wave therapy for musculoskeletal disorders was applied with a focused character, in which the waves converge in a focal point similar to lithotripsy. For the prevention of fractures in osteoporosis a focused character is not preferable because large skeletal regions have to be treated, so unfocused shock waves have been developed."