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Fig. 1 | Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery and Research

Fig. 1

From: Return to play after treating acute muscle injuries in elite football players with radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy

Fig. 1

Protocols of radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy (rESWT) (A–S) or focused extracorporeal shock wave therapy (fESWT) (T) of all acute muscle injuries type 1a (A–H), 2b (I-M), 3a (N–Q) and contusions (R–T) suffered by the players of an elite football team during one of the previous seasons (first/second German Bundesliga), arranged in order of increasing lay-off times. All rESWT treatments were performed with a Swiss DolorClast device (Electro Medical Systems, Nyon, Switzerland) equipped with EvoBlue handpiece and 36-mm applicator; radial extracorporeal shock waves (rESWs) were applied at 20 Hz. Air pressure data are marked by red dots (between 2 and 3.5 bar) and the number of rESWs per treatment session by blue dots (between 6.000 and 12,000 per treatment session). The fESWT treatment shown in T was performed with a Swiss PiezoClast (Electro Medical Systems) and 15-mm gel pad; focused extracorporeal shock waves (fESWs) were applied at 8 Hz. Energy level data are marked by red dots (Level 10) and the number of fESWs per treatment session by blue dots (between 2.500 and 3.000 per treatment). In each case, Day 0 was the day of injury. Every pair of red and blue dots indicates a single treatment session. When the player’s status was 4 on the day of the last treatment (explained in Fig. 2), return to play was achieved on this day. In contrast, when the player’s status was 3 on the day of the last treatment (explained in Fig. 2), return to play was achieved on the following day. Delays in starting with rESWT were due to away games and traveling

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