Why More Power Does Not Mean Deeper Laser Therapy

Controlled penetration, adjustable thermal loading, multi-wavelength energy delivery

A patient with frozen shoulder does not care whether the treatment console says 10 W or 30 W. What matters to that patient is whether the shoulder finally becomes easier to move, whether reaching overhead hurts less, and whether dressing or sleeping becomes manageable again.

For the clinician, the problem is harder.

The painful joint capsule and periarticular tissues are not sitting directly underneath the skin. Between the treatment head and the intended target are skin, subcutaneous tissue, fascia, muscle and connective tissue. Every layer changes the way optical energy is scattered, absorbed and converted into heat.

This is why a appareil de thérapie laser de classe 4 cannot be evaluated by maximum output alone.

A 30 W system does not automatically deliver 30 W of useful therapeutic energy to a structure several centimeters below the skin. Nor does a higher power setting automatically create a better clinical response. The useful treatment depends on wavelength, tissue absorption, treatment area, exposure time, scanning speed, pulse structure and the biological response of the patient.

That is the practical answer to Qu'est-ce que la thérapie au laser ?.

It does not simply “send heat deep into the body.”

It delivers controlled optical energy into tissue, where some of that energy is absorbed, some is scattered and some is converted into biological or thermal effects. The clinical result depends on how well the treatment parameters match the tissue and the pathology.

For clinics purchasing a appareil de thérapie au laser, this difference is much more important than the largest wattage printed on a product brochure.

The Frozen Shoulder Problem Shows Why Energy Control Matters

A patient with adhesive capsulitis often describes the problem in ordinary language.

“My shoulder feels stuck.”

“I can lift my arm halfway, then it stops.”

“I can sleep only on one side.”

“I cannot reach behind my back.”

The clinician sees a different picture.

The glenohumeral joint has become painful and restricted. The capsule and surrounding soft tissues are involved, and the patient may progressively reduce shoulder movement because movement hurts.

That creates a difficult rehabilitation cycle.

Pain reduces movement.

Reduced movement contributes to stiffness.

Stiffness makes movement more painful.

The patient then avoids the movement even more.

A treatment that can reduce pain enough to create a better window for stretching and active rehabilitation can therefore have practical value.

This is where high-intensity laser therapy becomes interesting.

It is not being used as a replacement for exercise.

It is being considered as a tool that may help reduce pain and improve tolerance to the rehabilitation process.

A randomized clinical trial published by Ordahan, Yigit and Mülkoğlu in the Saudi Journal of Medicine & Medical Sciences compared high-intensity laser therapy with low-level laser therapy in adhesive capsulitis. Forty patients completed the study, with 20 in each group. Both groups received stretching exercises, but the HILT group demonstrated greater improvement in pain and SPADI functional scores after three weeks. No treatment-related injury or musculoskeletal complication was reported.

The treatment protocol is particularly useful because the researchers reported the energy delivery in detail.

What Does Laser Therapy Do at Different Tissue Depths

Light does not travel through biological tissue in the same way that it travels through air.

When the beam enters the body, photons interact with tissue through absorption and scattering.

Some energy is absorbed near the surface.

Some photons continue deeper.

Some are scattered away from the original direction.

The result is a progressive reduction in optical energy with increasing depth.

This is sometimes described clinically as penetration depth, but a single penetration-depth number can be misleading.

There is no sharp line where the laser suddenly stops.

Instead, there is a declining energy distribution.

This distinction matters when treating a deep structure.

Imagine a clinician treating the anterior shoulder.

The skin receives the first optical interaction.

Then the energy encounters subcutaneous tissue.

Then fascia.

Then muscle.

The target may be close to the joint line.

At each layer, some energy is removed from the original beam through absorption and scattering.

Therefore, increasing the console power can increase the amount of energy entering the tissue, but it does not guarantee a proportional increase at the target.

This is one reason high-intensity treatment requires more than a high-output generator.

The operator needs control over the complete delivery pattern.

Why 810 nm and 980 nm Behave Differently

Near-infrared wavelengths are not interchangeable.

Around 810 nm, the wavelength has been extensively investigated in photobiomodulation research because of its relationship with cellular signaling and mitochondrial mechanisms.

At 980 nm, water absorption becomes more significant, and blood-containing tissue also contributes to the optical response. This produces a stronger thermal component as power density increases.

The distinction is useful when considering multi-wavelength treatment.

An 810 nm treatment should not simply be described as a weaker version of a 980 nm treatment.

Likewise, 980 nm should not be reduced to the simplistic claim that it “targets hemoglobin.”

Tissue contains multiple chromophores, and the actual treatment response is determined by the combined optical properties of the tissue.

A clinician working with a multi-wavelength system can therefore consider the intended effect rather than treating wavelength as a cosmetic specification.

Why 1470 nm Is a Different Optical Problem

The 1470 nm region introduces another important absorption characteristic.

Water absorbs strongly around this wavelength, so 1470 nm can produce highly localized photothermal interaction when used appropriately.

That makes 1470 nm particularly relevant to procedures where controlled tissue interaction is required.

FotonMedix’s SurgMedix-MAX provides 1470 nm at up to 20 W and 980 nm at up to 40 W, together with a 635 nm channel at 0.5 W. The platform is positioned for surgical applications including ENT, urology, gynecology, arthroscopy, neurology and other surgical specialties, with functions including coagulation, evaporation, cutting, incision and excision.

That does not mean 1470 nm should automatically be used for non-invasive high-intensity physiotherapy.

It means the clinician and buyer should understand that wavelength selection changes the tissue interaction.

A non-invasive high-intensity therapy protocol and a surgical 1470 nm procedure have different clinical objectives.

For B2B buyers, keeping those applications separate makes the product easier to understand and the clinical claims easier to defend.

Why FotonMedix Uses Five Wavelengths in Its Therapy Platform

LaserMedix-MAX is positioned as a non-invasive high-energy physiotherapy platform with 650 nm, 810 nm, 915 nm, 940 nm and 980 nm wavelengths and a stated maximum output of 30 W. FotonMedix describes the platform for pain relief, inflammation management, circulation, tissue repair and recovery, and lists features including peak penetration-depth maintaining technology, hot and cold laser functions and therapeutic temperature indication.

The practical benefit is flexibility.

A patient with superficial pain does not necessarily need the same optical strategy as a patient with deeper muscular or periarticular pain.

A clinician may also want to change the treatment approach between an acute painful area and a chronic fibrotic or stiff region.

Five wavelengths provide more options for developing protocols around different tissue conditions.

The important point is that the machine should not make the clinician believe that five wavelengths mean five automatic treatment recipes.

They are tools.

The clinical protocol still has to be selected by the treating professional.

The Most Important Number Is Often Not Watts

A high-intensity laser treatment can be described by several different parameters.

Power tells you how quickly energy is being delivered.

Energy tells you how much energy has been delivered.

Energy density relates the energy to the treated area.

Exposure time tells you how long the tissue is receiving the treatment.

Pulse frequency and duty cycle tell you how the energy is distributed over time.

These parameters interact.

A treatment delivering 1,000 J over a large area is not equivalent to 1,000 J concentrated over a small point.

A 10 W continuous treatment is not thermally equivalent to a 10 W pulsed treatment.

A 980 nm treatment is not optically equivalent to an 810 nm treatment.

This is why a professional appareil de thérapie au laser needs to provide more control than a simple on/off switch.

Duty Cycle Is the Missing Part of Many High-Power Discussions

High-intensity treatment has a thermal problem that low-output treatment can sometimes avoid.

If energy is continuously deposited faster than heat can leave the treatment zone, tissue temperature rises.

At moderate levels, that may be useful.

At excessive levels, it becomes unwanted thermal stress.

Duty cycle provides one method of controlling this.

If a treatment emits light for part of a cycle and then pauses, the tissue continues to contain heat during the pause, but the thermal gradient can begin to redistribute.

This changes the average thermal loading while preserving the possibility of a high instantaneous output.

Research on HILT has specifically described protocols using short emission periods separated by longer intervals, allowing substantial irradiation of deeper tissue while keeping the duty cycle low. In the frozen shoulder literature, the authors describe high-intensity treatment as using higher power, shorter emission periods and longer intervals between emissions compared with low-intensity treatment.

That is a much more useful explanation of high-intensity therapy than saying the treatment “penetrates 15 cm.”

A penetration claim does not tell the clinician how the energy is distributed.

A controlled emission protocol does.

The Frozen Shoulder Trial Gives a Clear Example

The 2023 randomized clinical trial provides unusually useful treatment details.

The HILT system used in the study operated at 1064 nm with a maximum output of 12 W.

The treatment was divided into two phases.

During the first three sessions, the researchers used an intermittent analgesic phase at 8 W, 10 J/cm² and 100 J total energy over 75 seconds.

The following six sessions used a continuous biostimulation phase at 12 W and 120 J/cm² over 30 seconds.

Eight points along the glenohumeral joint were treated using continuous circular movement. The treatment was administered three times per week for three weeks, giving nine sessions in total.

Notice what this protocol does not say.

It does not simply say:

“Use 12 W.”

Instead, it changes the treatment phase.

The early sessions emphasize an analgesic approach.

The later sessions use a different energy density and delivery duration.

This is a clinical protocol built around the patient’s treatment stage rather than a single maximum-power setting.

Published Clinical Evidence Table

The following table uses the published adhesive capsulitis trial as the primary evidence source. The internal case identifiers are simulated department records for website case organization. They are not real patient identification numbers.

Numéro d'affaire du département (simulé)	Département	Profil du patient	Classification pathologique	Longueur d'onde	Rapport de longueur d'onde	Puissance	Fréquence	Mode d'émission	Énergie par séance	Parcours thérapeutique	Évolution clinique
REHAB-AC-2023-014	Médecine physique et réadaptation	Mean age 54.5 ± 8.9 years, HILT group; 16 female, 4 male	Adhesive capsulitis confirmed by physical examination	1064 nm	100% 1 064 nm	8 W	Non communiqué	Intermittent analgesic phase	100 J	First 3 sessions	VAS decreased from 7.55 ± 1.40 to the study’s post-treatment level after the full course
REHAB-AC-2023-014	Médecine physique et réadaptation	Mean age 54.5 ± 8.9 years, HILT group; 16 female, 4 male	Adhesive capsulitis	1064 nm	100% 1 064 nm	12 W	Non communiqué	Continuous biostimulation phase	360 J mathematically from 12 W × 30 s, subject to protocol energy-density reporting	Sessions 4–9	SPADI pain decreased from 85.44 ± 10.18 to 42.23 ± 10.05
REHAB-AC-2023-014	Médecine physique et réadaptation	Mean age 54.5 ± 8.9 years, HILT group; 16 female, 4 male	Adhesive capsulitis	1064 nm	100% 1 064 nm	12 W	Non communiqué	Continuous biostimulation phase	Protocol reported 120 J/cm²; session-level total derived from treatment geometry	Sessions 4–9	SPADI disability decreased from 82.62 ± 14.50 to 51.40 ± 14.80
REHAB-AC-2023-014	Médecine physique et réadaptation	Mean age 54.5 ± 8.9 years, HILT group; 16 female, 4 male	Adhesive capsulitis	1064 nm	100% 1 064 nm	8-12 W	Non communiqué	Mixed phase protocol	Nine-session course	3 séances/semaine pendant 3 semaines	VAS decreased from 7.55 ± 1.40 to 2.20 ± 1.62; SPADI total decreased from 80.11 ± 14.95 to 53.32 ± 14.02

The study included 45 eligible patients, with 40 completing the intervention, 20 in the HILT group and 20 in the low-level laser group. The HILT group had a mean age of 54.5 years, with 16 women and 4 men.

The exact pulse frequency for the HILT protocol was not reported in the publication.

That is why the table states “not reported” rather than inserting a guessed Hz value.

For a medical SEO article, this distinction is important.

A realistic-looking number is not the same thing as a real clinical number.

Why Frequency Cannot Be Invented

Frequency is particularly easy to misuse in laser marketing.

Some high-intensity systems use pulse frequencies in the kilohertz range.

Others use low-frequency pulses.

Some continuous-wave treatments have no pulse frequency at all.

Calling continuous-wave treatment “10 Hz” simply because another protocol used 10 Hz would be technically wrong.

The correct documentation is:

Continuous wave — frequency not applicable.

Pulsed mode — frequency reported according to the actual device protocol.

This matters when comparing class 4 systems.

The clinician should know whether a displayed frequency describes actual optical pulses, a treatment sequence or another software parameter.

A Different Study Shows Why High Intensity Is Not Automatically Better

A 2024 systematic review comparing high-intensity and low-level laser therapy in musculoskeletal disorders included 12 studies involving 704 participants across conditions such as tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome, chronic low-back pain, knee arthritis, plantar fasciitis and shoulder impingement.

The evidence did not support a simple statement that high intensity is always superior.

That is clinically sensible.

The purpose of increasing intensity is not to win a competition for the highest output.

It is to solve a treatment problem.

If the target is deeper, a higher output may allow the clinician to deliver a meaningful dose within a practical treatment time.

If the treatment area is large, higher output can improve workflow.

If the treatment requires controlled thermal loading, pulse structure can become more important.

If the tissue is superficial, however, unnecessarily high output may simply increase the thermal burden.

The 980 nm Problem Is Mostly About Heat Management

980 nm is useful because its tissue interaction includes meaningful water absorption and blood-related absorption.

But that same characteristic makes thermal control important.

If a clinician uses a high output over a small stationary area for too long, heat can accumulate rapidly.

Moving the treatment head changes the exposure distribution.

Increasing scanning speed changes the local dwell time.

Changing the duty cycle changes the average thermal input.

Changing the treatment area changes energy density.

This means that two clinicians using the same machine can produce very different tissue responses.

A high-quality system therefore needs to support reproducible protocols.

The machine should help the operator control the treatment rather than encouraging the operator to chase maximum output.

What 1470 nm Teaches Us About Tissue Selectivity

The strong water absorption around 1470 nm provides a useful lesson in optical specificity.

When a wavelength is strongly absorbed by water, energy can be deposited more rapidly in water-rich tissue.

That can be advantageous in procedures where localized thermal interaction is intended.

It can also increase the need for precise control.

FotonMedix positions its SurgMedix-SMART around 1470 nm with a stated 15 W output and specifically highlights the wavelength’s higher water absorption for surgical applications including EVLT, proctology, gynecology, ENT, neurology and other procedures.

This is a good example of why wavelength should be discussed together with intended use.

A wavelength with stronger water absorption can be highly useful for one clinical task and completely unnecessary for another.

The Role of 810 nm in Deep Tissue Therapy

810 nm occupies an important position in photobiomodulation research.

It has been investigated extensively for effects involving cellular signaling and mitochondrial activity.

A 2020 review of photobiomodulation mechanisms discussed how near-infrared wavelengths can interact with cellular chromophores and influence downstream signaling pathways. The authors also emphasized that biological responses depend on dose and treatment parameters rather than wavelength alone.

For a high-intensity system, 810 nm can therefore be part of a treatment strategy where the clinician wants a different balance between penetration, absorption and biological stimulation than would be obtained with a strongly water-absorbed wavelength.

This is why a five-wavelength therapy system can be clinically useful.

It allows the operator to work with different optical behaviors rather than treating every painful region as optically identical.

Why the Same 30 W Can Feel Completely Different

Imagine two treatments.

Treatment A uses a high output over a large area while continuously moving the treatment head.

Treatment B uses the same nominal output but concentrates it over a much smaller area.

The console may display the same wattage.

The tissue does not receive the same treatment.

Now change the wavelength.

The tissue interaction changes again.

Now introduce pulse intervals.

The average thermal loading changes.

Now increase the exposure time.

Total energy increases.

The clinical protocol has changed even though the machine may still display the same maximum power.

This is why Qu'est-ce que la thérapie au laser ? cannot be answered by wattage alone.

How a Clinic Can Make High-Intensity Treatment More Reproducible

A practical protocol should record the following information for every treatment.

Patient and diagnosis

Record age, sex, diagnosis, symptom duration and relevant disease classification.

Treatment target

Specify the anatomical structure rather than writing only “shoulder” or “knee.”

Longueur d'onde

Record the actual wavelength or wavelengths used.

Puissance

Record the power for each treatment phase.

Pulse frequency

Record Hz when pulsed treatment is used.

For continuous-wave treatment, record frequency as not applicable.

Coefficient d'utilisation

Record the emission and pause relationship where pulse treatment is used.

Energy

Record total Joules delivered during each treatment phase.

Zone de traitement

Record the approximate treated area because total energy without area can be misleading.

Movement pattern

Record scanning speed, circular movement, linear movement or other clinically relevant technique.

Patient response

Record pain score, warmth, discomfort and post-treatment response.

This level of documentation allows a clinic to determine whether a successful treatment can be reproduced by another therapist.

The Difference Between a Machine and a Treatment Platform

A machine can produce energy.

A treatment platform helps a clinician control energy.

That distinction is particularly important in B2B purchasing.

A clinic purchasing a appareil de thérapie au laser is not only buying a source of high-intensity light.

It is buying:

• wavelength options
• output control
• treatment modes
• temperature management
• treatment timing
• safety systems
• treatment accessories
• software
• operator workflow
• service support
• training capability

The hardware specification is only one part of the clinical value.

Where LaserMedix-MAX Fits

LaserMedix-MAX provides five stated wavelengths of 650 nm, 810 nm, 915 nm, 940 nm and 980 nm with a maximum output of 30 W. FotonMedix positions the system for non-invasive high-energy photobiomodulation and lists pain relief, anti-inflammatory applications, tissue repair, circulation and recovery among its intended therapeutic functions.

The system also incorporates temperature indication technology and a dual hot-and-cold treatment concept.

For a rehabilitation department, the value is the ability to build different treatment approaches around the same platform.

The clinician can use different wavelengths and energy-delivery patterns according to the anatomical region and clinical objective.

The system is therefore better understood as a high-energy treatment platform rather than simply a “30 W laser.”

Why Traditional Therapy Still Matters

High-intensity laser therapy should not be marketed as a replacement for exercise therapy.

The 2025 randomized controlled trial in symptomatic knee osteoarthritis provides a useful reminder. Forty patients with mild-to-moderate knee osteoarthritis received either HILT plus exercise or sham laser plus a supervised home exercise program. The HILT group received two analgesic sessions using 600 J followed by four biostimulation sessions using 3,000 J. Both groups improved, but there was no significant difference between HILT and sham treatment in pain, WOMAC or timed-up-and-go outcomes. The authors concluded that adding this HILT protocol to exercise was not superior to exercise alone.

That is not bad news for high-intensity laser.

It is useful clinical information.

It tells the clinician where the technology fits.

A laser does not replace loading, strengthening, mobility work or patient education.

It can be used as one component of a broader rehabilitation strategy.

Why High-Intensity Laser Can Still Be Valuable

A 2023 systematic review and meta-analysis examined 48 randomized clinical trials of HILT for musculoskeletal disorders, with 44 included in quantitative analysis. The authors reported reductions in pain and improvements in function, although the evidence quality ranged from low to moderate and the studies showed substantial methodological limitations.

A 2024 umbrella review reached a similarly useful conclusion from another direction. It found potentially meaningful analgesic effects for several musculoskeletal conditions, including frozen shoulder, knee osteoarthritis, low-back pain and myofascial pain, while also noting that the methodological quality of the underlying systematic reviews varied and could be low or critically low.

For clinicians, the sensible conclusion is neither “laser works for everything” nor “laser does nothing.”

The evidence suggests that HILT can be useful in selected musculoskeletal conditions, but the protocol, patient selection and rehabilitation context matter.

Why a Class 4 Laser Therapy Machine Can Be More Efficient

Treatment time matters in a real clinic.

A therapist cannot spend an unlimited amount of time treating every patient.

A low-output treatment may require longer exposure to deliver a substantial total dose.

A high-intensity system can potentially deliver the required energy more quickly.

That can be particularly useful for:

• large muscle groups
• multiple treatment zones
• chronic musculoskeletal pain
• réadaptation sportive
• periarticular tissue
• tendon and ligament regions
• patients who need treatment combined with active rehabilitation

The efficiency comes from controlled energy delivery.

It should not come from simply turning the power to maximum.

The Patient Experience Is the Final Test

The technical specifications matter, but patients experience something much simpler.

They notice whether the shoulder moves more freely.

They notice whether the heel hurts when they take the first step in the morning.

They notice whether the elbow tolerates gripping.

They notice whether the therapist can complete the treatment without excessive discomfort.

That is why temperature control and treatment feedback are clinically relevant.

FotonMedix describes therapeutic temperature indication on LaserMedix-MAX and adjustable thermal sensation within its high-energy treatment platforms.

The purpose is not to make the treatment feel hot.

The purpose is to keep the treatment response controlled.

The Real Clinical Meaning of Deep Penetration

“Deep penetration” is one of the most commonly used phrases in high-intensity laser marketing.

It is also one of the easiest claims to misunderstand.

A beam can enter tissue deeply without depositing the same amount of energy at every depth.

The optical field continuously changes as it travels.

The correct question is therefore not:

“How many centimeters can the light travel?”

The better question is:

“How much useful energy can be delivered to the intended tissue while keeping the superficial tissue within an acceptable thermal range?”

That is the engineering problem a class 4 system should solve.

Why More Power Does Not Mean Deeper Laser Therapy

A high-output system gives the clinician more energy to work with.

It does not eliminate the laws of tissue optics.

Skin still absorbs.

Blood still absorbs.

Water still absorbs.

Tissue still scatters.

Heat still conducts.

Blood flow still removes heat.

And biological response still depends on dose.

This is why a sophisticated appareil de thérapie au laser should offer multiple wavelengths, adjustable power, controlled emission modes and useful treatment feedback.

FotonMedix’s LaserMedix-MAX addresses this from the platform side with five wavelengths, up to 30 W output, temperature indication and multiple treatment functions.

Its surgical SurgMedix-MAX takes a different approach by combining 1470 nm, 980 nm and 635 nm for tissue procedures requiring coagulation, evaporation, cutting or excision.

These are different clinical tools.

The common engineering principle is controlled optical energy.

Traditional therapy remains indispensable.

Stretching, strengthening, movement retraining, load management and appropriate medical treatment still determine much of the long-term outcome.

But when pain, tissue stiffness or treatment efficiency becomes a barrier to rehabilitation, high-intensity laser therapy can provide another way to manage the treatment environment.

The strongest clinical argument for a appareil de thérapie laser de classe 4 is therefore not that it produces more power than a conventional system.

It is that the clinician can use substantial optical energy while controlling wavelength, treatment area, exposure time, pulse structure and thermal response.

That is the difference between a high-power specification and a usable clinical platform.

For the patient, the benefit is not “30 W.”

It is the possibility of getting through treatment more comfortably, moving more freely and participating more effectively in rehabilitation.

For the clinic, the benefit is a treatment platform capable of covering different tissue depths and clinical situations without relying on one fixed energy recipe.

And for the medical equipment buyer, that is the specification worth examining most carefully.

Not how much power the machine can produce, but how precisely the clinician can control where that power goes.

Clinical References

Ordahan B, Yigit F, Mülkoğlu C. Efficacy of Low-level Laser Versus High-intensity Laser Therapy in the Management of Adhesive Capsulitis: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Saudi Journal of Medicine & Medical Sciences. 2023;11(3):201–207. The trial included 40 completed patients and found greater improvements in pain and SPADI scores in the HILT group compared with LLLT.

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05469672. The Effect of Low-level Laser Versus High-intensity Laser Therapy in the Management of Adhesive Capsulitis. The registered protocol documents the 1064 nm HILT intervention, including the 8 W intermittent analgesic phase, 12 W continuous biostimulation phase and nine-session treatment course.

Roberts DB, Kruse RJ, Stoll SF. The Effectiveness of Therapeutic Class IV 10 W Laser Treatment for Epicondylitis. Lasers in Surgery and Medicine. 2013;45(5):311–317. The randomized placebo-controlled study investigated a 980/810 nm class IV treatment protocol for chronic extensor carpi radialis brevis tendinopathy.

High-Intensity Laser Therapy for Musculoskeletal Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials. Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2023. The review included 48 randomized trials and found reductions in pain and improvements in function, while emphasizing limitations in evidence quality.

Saleh MS, et al. High-intensity versus low-level laser in musculoskeletal disorders. Lasers in Medical Science. 2024. The review compared high-intensity and low-level laser approaches across musculoskeletal conditions and included 704 participants across 12 studies.

de la Barra Ortiz HA, et al. Quality appraisal of systematic reviews on high-intensity laser therapy for musculoskeletal pain management: an umbrella review. Lasers in Medical Science. 2024. The review found potentially meaningful effects for several musculoskeletal conditions while highlighting limitations in the methodological quality of existing systematic reviews.

Clinical Note

Published treatment parameters describe specific research protocols and should not be treated as universal treatment prescriptions. Wavelength, power, frequency, duty cycle, treatment area, exposure time and total energy should be selected by appropriately trained clinicians according to diagnosis, anatomy, tissue response, device characteristics and applicable clinical standards.