Contact and non-contact techniques
The method is named after the French physiologist Jacques-Arsene d'Arsonval, who described the effect of high-frequency currents at the end of the 19th century. The working part of the device is a glass electrode with a rarefied gas, which glows when voltage is applied.
With the contact technique, the electrode slides directly over the skin, causing a feeling of slight warmth and vibration. It is used for hair loss, seborrhea, sluggish wound healing, and cellulite. With the non-contact method, the electrode is held at a distance of several millimeters, and a spark discharge with a characteristic crackling sound and the smell of ozone flashes between it and the skin. This option provides a more pronounced analgesic and drying effect and is used for neuralgia, acne and local inflammation.
Darsonvalization is a mild method with a small number of side effects, but the contraindications are the same as other types of electrotherapy: cancer, pacemaker, pregnancy, fever, blood clotting disorders, epilepsy. The course is usually 10–15 procedures.
The place of physiotherapy in treatment
Physiotherapy is almost never a stand-alone treatment. Its task is to enhance the effect of medications, accelerate the resolution of inflammation, improve local blood circulation and prepare tissues for movement. Therefore, it is prescribed in conjunction with medications, physical therapy and massage.
The greatest benefit is achieved at the subacute stage: when acute pain and severe swelling have already been relieved, but recovery is not yet complete. In the midst of acute inflammation, many methods are contraindicated.
Why is this course needed?
A one-time procedure gives a short-term effect that is not permanent. The physiological response of tissues - improvement of microcirculation, changes in membrane permeability, activation of enzymes - accumulates from session to session, so the standard course is 8-10 procedures daily or every other day.
A repeat course is usually possible after 1–2 months. The procedures should not be repeated endlessly: the body adapts and the effectiveness decreases.
General contraindications
For most hardware methods, contraindications include malignant neoplasms, fever and acute infections, decompensated heart disease, severe hypertension, bleeding tendency, presence of a pacemaker, pregnancy, active tuberculosis and mental disorders in the acute stage.
Local restrictions - skin damage, purulent processes and metal structures in the affected area. That is why physiotherapy is prescribed by the doctor after an examination, and not chosen by the patient himself.