Mechanics of Shockwave Therapy

Chronic tendinopathy is the silent saboteur of the endurance athlete. It rarely arrives as a sudden injury — it accumulates, layer by layer, mile by mile, until the tissue can no longer adapt to the load being placed on it.

Radial and focused shockwave therapy works by delivering high-energy acoustic pressure waves into the affected tissue. The mechanical stimulus triggers a controlled micro-inflammatory response, restarting the healing cascade that chronic tendinopathy has stalled.

In clinical practice with the Storz Medical platform, I see the strongest results with insertional Achilles tendinopathy, proximal hamstring tendinopathy, and recalcitrant plantar fasciopathy — particularly in athletes who have plateaued on eccentric loading alone.

Treatment is not a substitute for progressive loading. It is the catalyst that makes the loading work again.