Vibration: What It Is and Is Not
Vibration is a shaking, a to-and-fro movement. Yet it is not “merely” that. It is an oscillation, a thrill, a movement over very confined limits. Holding a hand or foot of a patient and moving it up and down as one would a pump-handle may have some value in certain conditions, but it is not vibration. Pressing down into the abdomen and releasing, no matter how rapidly repeated, is not vibration. Vibration consists of an extremely fine tremor that reaches the deeper tissues of the patient, yet in a gentle manner, and the hands and arms and likewise the chest, shoulders, and back of the operator need to be in a state of tension or static contraction for the treat¬ment. When mechanical vibrators are used, the best effects are usually produced by a fine tremor or thrill, though the larger the area to be treated the greater may be the stroke of each vibratory movement. Also, the greater the degree of covering of the bones, either by muscular or fatty tissue, the greater, as a rule, may be the strokes. Pain or the sensitive¬ness of the patient must be carefully considered in vibro¬therapy, especially in mechanical vibrotherapy.