StemWave therapy in Clarksville for sore muscles

StemWave therapy uses a focused acoustic wave device: an applicator moved over the skin delivers pulses into the tissue underneath. We added it at our Clarksville practice in September 2026, and we use it alongside our other care for muscle and joint complaints.

How we use StemWave at Source Chiropractic

We use StemWave on the plantar fascia as one part of care for plantar fasciitis and heel pain. One of our chiropractors may also add it to a plan for muscle and joint complaints involving the:

• shoulder
• low back
• knee
• elbow
• wrist and hand

It's one part of a plan, added after a history and an examination when it fits what we find. For pain running down the leg, our sciatica page covers the care we use.

What is a StemWave session like?

A session is short. We put gel on the skin over the area and move the applicator across it while the device delivers pulses. Nothing is injected, there are no needles, and no anesthetic is used. The number of sessions is decided after the exam and reviewed against your progress.

Is StemWave FDA approved?

StemWave is listed with the FDA as a Class I therapeutic massager, the lowest-risk of the FDA's three device classes, which is exempt from premarket review. A listing isn't FDA clearance or approval, and the manufacturer says so. Its listed use is the temporary relief of minor muscle aches and pains and a temporary increase in local blood circulation.

Is StemWave the same as shockwave therapy or SoftWave?

Its maker puts StemWave in the shockwave family. In the video above, the manufacturer explains that StemWave creates a spark in water, which sends acoustic waves into the tissue, and its chart of device types labels it "StemWave Shockwave" beside electromagnetic, piezoelectric and radial pressure shockwave. The comparisons in that video are the manufacturer's own.

SoftWave is a different company's device. SoftWave's listed general use is much like StemWave's, relief of minor muscle aches and pains and a temporary increase in local blood circulation, and SoftWave also has FDA clearance for certain wound and burn uses that we don't treat.

Does StemWave use stem cells?

No. Nothing is taken from your body and nothing is injected, so no stem cells are added, your own or anyone else's. The name makes people think of stem cell injections, but the manufacturer doesn't say the device makes stem cells, and neither do we. The idea that shock waves draw stem cells to an area comes from lab and animal studies, not from patients.

What the research on shockwave therapy shows

When we searched PubMed for StemWave by name in October 2026, we found no studies of it. Its maker places it in the shockwave family, and reviews of shockwave therapy, called extracorporeal shock wave therapy or ESWT in research, have found:

• Heel pain. A 2025 meta-analysis of shockwave therapy for plantar fasciitis found it did better than placebo for pain and better than a steroid injection for function, while platelet-rich plasma injection and custom orthotics did better than shockwave on some measures.
• Low back pain. A 2026 network meta-analysis found that shockwave therapy combined with physical therapy did better than physical therapy alone for pain and function in chronic low back pain. The authors call for more high-quality trials.
• Shoulder. A 2020 Cochrane review of shockwave therapy for rotator cuff disease found pain and function slightly better than with placebo, by less than the authors considered clinically important.

These trials used many different shockwave devices and doses, so they describe shockwave therapy as a kind of treatment rather than StemWave itself or how you'll respond.

Before your first session

We need to know if you're pregnant, take blood-thinning medication or have a bleeding disorder, have an implanted electronic device, or have had a steroid injection in the area recently. The same goes for numbness, an open wound or a skin condition where we'd be working. Sometimes the answer is that the device isn't right for you.

Side effects and other options

In a review of 39 plantar fasciitis studies with 2,493 patients, 225 reported pain during treatment and 247 short-lived redness of the skin afterwards. Brief pain afterwards, swelling, bruising and altered sensation were also reported, and there were two complications. The authors concluded shockwave therapy is likely safe for plantar fasciitis, though with follow-up averaging about 15 months, long-term effects aren't known. A Cochrane review of shoulder trials rated the evidence on side effects low quality and called safety uncertain. If anything bothers you during or after a session, tell us.

StemWave isn't the only option. Supportive shoes, insoles and stretching are first steps for heel pain, exercise and staying active are first steps for low back pain, and for a new rotator cuff problem, a large trial found a physiotherapist's advice session with home exercise did as well over a year as a longer supervised exercise program. We'll go over the options that fit you at your exam. We also use laser therapy and dry needling, and a licensed massage therapist works out of our office (massage therapy).

How much does StemWave cost?

The new-patient chiropractic offer has its own terms. For StemWave, ask the office what each session costs, how many sessions we expect, and when we'll review your progress.

Book a visit

If your heel, shoulder, back or another joint has been sore, a first visit is where we'd work out whether StemWave belongs in your plan. If we are not able to help you with your problem or are unable to reduce your pain levels, we will make sure to give you a recommendation to another experienced provider. Contact us to book.