How Infrared Light Helps to Heal Fractures

Horses perform many different jobs and functions for equestrians today.  Some are used to pull carriages, or for trail riding and others are ridden in high performance classes.  No matter what discipline the horse is involved in, a bone fracture is a “show stopper.” 

The most common type of fracture on a horse is a fracture of the splint bone.  This occurs when an external trauma has taken place like a kick, interference or even continual impact, such as what young horses experience on a race track.

Heat, swelling, and pain are evident at the site, and of course, often a lengthy lay-up is necessary to heal the injured area.  A great deal of time and energy will be spent on healing the fracture as well.   Cold hosing, wrapping and other necessary measures will be important in order to ensure that it mends properly.

 Infrared light therapy can help to heal the fractured bone more quickly.  The energy transporter in the cells is adenosine triphosphate, otherwise known as ATP.  When a bone becomes injured, the ATP is interrupted.  The sudden lack of energy causes the cells to begin to die, however, in order for the bone to heal, ATP must begin transporting energy to create new and healthy cells.     When light is placed on the site, the cells absorb the photons, and the bone cells begin to produce excess ATP.  The light also helps enhance the immune system, increases blood supply, and reduces inflammation.  All of these factors help to heal the fracture more quickly.

Light has been used to heal for hundreds of years.  Even the Greeks understood the importance of it and used sunlight to help heal ailing patients.  Hippocrates encouraged his patients to sit in a roofless building so that they could soak up the light from the sun.   

Light therapy has become so popular amongst athletes that many professional teams are utilizing it.  The San Diego Padres baseball team, the Philadelphia Eagle’s football team and countless others rely on light therapy to acquire dramatic healing results and get their athletes back on the field in record time after they have suffered an injury.

So if your horse sustains a fracture, think about using infrared light therapy to obtain faster healing results and get back in the saddle more quickly.