Therapeutic ultrasound ignored by science but sold to millions of patients

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Ultrasound is ultra-popular … and apparently ultra-unproven.

Today I’m studying ultrasound therapy for musculoskeletal pain problems. Unfortunately, there’s not a great deal to study! There’s hardly any research on this topic at all.

I didn’t think it would be like this. For years now, I’ve been meaning to get around to delving deeper into the topic, assuming that there had to be a pile of science about it. We’re talking about ultrasound, here: one of the staples of physical therapy! It practically defines the experience of going for physical therapy. Everyone has had that cold gel slapped on an injury, and felt that tingling, penetrating … placebo?

Almost everyone seems to assume that ultrasound is proven — good technological medicine. But that just doesn’t seem to be the case. I’m not issuing a verdict here yet, but I don’t like what I see so far: a pathetically small selection of unimpressive studies showing not a great deal, and plenty of papers commenting on the lack.

A handful of studies is a joke for something worth literally billions in the marketplace! The disconnect between the ubiquity of the service and the more or less total lack of (adequate) research is jarring. How can that much therapy be sold without a satisfactory body of evidence that it works? Bizarre!

Is it an e-book, or a service?

Thanks to reader Chris M. for getting me onto this topic today. I’m working on it because Chris pointed out that my patellofemoral pain syndrome e-book was missing a section on ultrasound that it was supposed to have. So I’m doing what I do: a reader-driven update. I encourage readers to make requests like this: it’s one of the neatest things about publishing online. Ask and ye shall receive!

Meanwhile, although the PFPS e-book isn’t sporting its new ultrasound section yet, it’s still excellent, and the new section will be along very soon …