The Effects of Superficial Heating before 1-MHz Ultrasound on Tissue Temperature

• Published in: Journal of sport rehabilitation 2003-05, Vol.12 (2), p.95-103
• Main Authors: Holcomb, William R., Blank, Chris
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Ultrasonic imaging
• ISSN: 1056-6716; 1543-3072
• DOI: 10.1123/jsr.12.2.95

Context: Ultrasound significantly raises tissue temperature, but the time of temperature elevation is short. Objective: To assess the effectiveness of superficial preheating on temperature elevation and decline when using ultrasound. Design: Within-subjects design to test the independent variable, treatment condition; repeated-measures ANOVAs to analyze the dependent variables, temperature elevation and decline. Setting: Athletic training laboratory. Intervention: Temperature at a depth of 3.75 cm was measured during ultrasound after superficial heating and with ultrasound alone. Subjects: 10 healthy men. Main Outcome Measure: Temperature was recorded every 30 s during 15 min of ultrasound and for 15 min afterward. Results: Temperature elevation with ultrasound was significantly greater with preheating (4.0 ± 0.21 °C) than with ultrasound alone (3.0 ± 0.22 °C). Temperature decline was not significantly different between preheating and ultrasound alone. Conclusions: Superficial preheating significantly increases temperature elevation but has no effect on temperature decline during a 15-min cooling period.