Page 60 - July 2016

electrical currents are set at about the same level as the normal electrical exchanges that take place in the body’s own cells. Therefore, the patient (human or animal) doesn’t feel any electrical sensation, yet these currents are able to penetrate the cell walls.
Ordinarily, inflammation creates pain and delays healing because inflamed/injured cells resist the body’s natural electrical currents, blocking the normal supply of blood, oxygen and nutrients to the cells and making the initial injury worse. Microcurrents from this Microlief® unit penetrate the inflamed cells and re-establish the normal cell activity. This is the only electrical therapy in which the currents penetrate the cell wall; the currents of other therapies (such as electro-acupuncture, electro-acupressure, etc.) pass over the cells. They do help with pain relief and assist blood circulation and healing, but are not acting at the cell level.
“The Microlief ® is just another tool, and the next step, in what you want to accom- plish in any healing process. What you can do on a superficial level with liniments, etc., this does on a much deeper cellular level. This is truly horsemanship leg work for the 21st century,” Don says.
“I teach people about liniments and make my own liniments that are used by many top- level horses, but the first thing I tell clients (horses or humans) to use is the Microlief ® because it is so effective. Even if a horse doesn’t over-exert to the point of injury, after
Although there is a lot of science behind the human applications, work is underway to put together studies with veterinarians on the benefits of microcurrent therapy on horses, with the first studies concentrating on tendons and ligaments in the lower legs.
There is a tremendous amount of stress and strain on the tendons and ligaments of racehorses.
a hard workout, the Microlief ® is a good tool for helping relieve minor pain and stiffness. The horse recovers more readily from tired, sore muscles or a strained tendon or liga- ment. If the horse is a little ouchy and you start on this right away, it can help the horse bounce right back instead of having any layup time,” he says.
Prevention of injury is another benefit. “Prevention is a hard sell, however. Everyone seems to wait until the horse is injured before they decide to use something like this. It’s actually much better to be proactive and use it before the exertion as well as afterward.” This can help keep the elite athlete going and per- forming at his peak ability and ready to make it to the next race or competition.
Standing bandages or polo wraps are easy ways to protect the unit while it is working on the tendons and ligaments of the lower legs
“Preparing for the next event starts imme- diately after you finish the current one. If you can avoid a week or two down time after this one, the horse will be that far ahead of the game and more ready for the next one. The racehorses I’ve worked with, using this along with the body work allows them to train and compete at that level and keep it together with- out injuries,” Don says.
With racehorses or any other elite equine athletes, there is a tremendous amount of stress and strain on tendons and ligaments.
“I work with Olympic caliber individuals
and when a person is looking for that kind
of speed or consistently racing, leg problems come up fairly often. That’s where a lot of the leg work comes in, and the Microlief ® can
This modality fits well with
medication policies and
enables the horses to find
relief without the need for anti-inflammatory drugs
that can have side effects and complications
Microcurrent therapy accelerates healing, reduces inflammation and pain, and assists with pain management.
58 SPEEDHORSE, July 2016
EQUINE HEALTH