“This is an innovative discovery because, until now, the technique was only used to help with cases of tendinitis”, explained Jordi Calvo, co-author of the study entitled “The effectiveness of extracorporeal shock wave therapy for improving limb spasticity and functionality in stroke patients”. Additionally, the article’s authors confirmed how “this technique is even more efficient when paired with conventional physiotherapy treatments”. 

 

The research entailed studying a range of clinical trials that applied extracorporeal shock waves to the muscles of upper limbs in patients that had suffered a stroke, extracting the relevant data and assessing risk of bias using the PEDro scale.  

 

Dr Rosa Cabanas, Dr Pol Serra, Dr Pere Ramón, Dr Carlos López and Dr Jordi Calvo from UIC Barcelona have all participated in the study alongside researcher Dr Mercè Llauró from Blanquerna University.