Lasers!
 

Pew! Pew!

Have you had "cold laser" or "therapy laser" for your TOS? How many sessions? Class 3, class IV or something else? Did it help?

My ART+Chiro guy is recommending it. I'm looking for some unbiased info, preferably from TOS patients.

Two brands I know of are LiteCure and Thor. These things are also called laser diodes.

Yes I had LLLT by my chiro, I can say it DID work very well for my specific sore spots.
He treated my elbow, shoulder, wrist, foot, low back, neck & any other specific area of pain that I had.

I don't have NTOS or if I did it was very mild, so I don't know how it might work for that. I would say I now have mild "disputed" TOS w/mild ATOS sx at times.
If you have a actual /severe compression somewhere I don't think it would be able to make a difference for that.
But for soft tissue, joint pain etc, it should be helpful.

I didn't pay attention to the name or class of the lasr he used and I don't go anymore so I can't check it out. But it did work and quickly too. 20-30 seconds and pain was gone. Most times just the one tx was enough, sometimes the next month he would do a second one if needed.

LED will take 20-30 minutes per tx.

Often they can be confused as they can look alike but the diodes (type of lights) make the difference.

In fact my chiro had tried a new machine early on and called it a laser but I looked at the brand name and # & when I got home googled it , next visit I told him it was not a true laser it was LED.
So next visit he had a new machine that really was a laser..

I don't know if the salesperson was mistaken or if he fibbed about what he was selling..:rolleyes:

When the cost of them comes down I will buy one for here at home...

i had the really fancy more expensive laser tx done and it didnt do crap :(

Hey Everyone-

New here but curious about your opinions of seeing a chiropractor in lieu of a T.O.S. specialist or other professional? I am currently seeing one but just not sure if this is the best route as you look at the list of things they correct and it's basically everything. :)

I do think, whatever works, works. But curious about the success you've all had via Chiro.

Thanks so much!

I saw a chiropractor early on. It was helpful-ish but nothing ever held. I would do it again in conjunction with other things.

My chiro used PT modalities (ultrasound, low level laser, IF stim, nimmo, etc) as well as adjustments and the c1/c2 upper cervical adjustment, also called atlas /axis, and elbow, shoulder, wrist etc...
I did a lot of things on my own as well as some regular PT and an advanced PT that dropped my top ribs down when they had got stuck up due to severe spasms. trigger point w/ tennis ball, Sharon Butler stretching, posture work..

I went to that chiro from 2004- 2010, early on it was 2x a week at first since I was in bad shape at the time.
As I felt better we stretched out the appt spacing and I could have stopped a year earlier but it didn't cost anything out of pocket the way our ins was set up.


So much depends on what traumas you might have had and what brought on the TOS symptoms.

Mine was multiple & chronic RSIs as well as the static postures of assembly work & speed & repetition.

Didn't help me at all.

I've seen several different chiros. Some didn't help at all and others helped a lot. The helpful ones:

-- spend 30 mins with me instead 15

-- do soft tissue work preceding adjustments (A.R.T., myofascial release, etc.)

-- are familiar with TOS and first ribs

You can always try out a new one and switch at any time once you find what you need. After I moved last year, I necessarily tried a new one, but he was of the "15 min appointment; no soft tissue work" variety which did not do it for me. I tried a 2nd one and he's been great.

I have to repeat treatment every 7 - 10 days or my TOS gets bad again, but I'm thankful for the relief. I also had to repeat with PTs. I'm a regresser.

And with MDs, I don't walk out of the office feeling better. MDs give talk, meds or surgery.

On more than one occasion, I have stopped PT and/or chiro and then regressed. I have come to accept that I need a PT with manual therapy or a chiro with soft tissue. Or I need the surgery, which I have not had.

Chiros are like all professions--the folks vary immensely in their skill level and experience. You'll want to look around.

HTH

laser therapy & chiro
 

I love learning about new ideas for possible therapy for TOS-had'nt heard of laser, will be looking into it now though. Thank you for asking the question!
As for chiropractic, no. I've grit my teeth and made myself give 4 different chiropracters a try for weeks at a time and was always left in more pain.
Didn't work for me.

I tried the laser from my chiro. A clinical one where you had to wear goggles just in case. It made the subsequent ART easier, but otherwise didn't do much. I'm not sorry I tried it, but it's not on my "helpful" list.

I'm still interesting in getting that little home one with the combo electrostim to see if it will help my neck calm down on days when it's tight.