Blood Flow Restriction Therapy

Kentucky Sports Clinic and Dr Neeraj Egbert are excited to offer Blood Flow Restriction Therapy (BFR). Blood flow restriction therapy is used to help patients gain strength in injured or weak muscles while reducing the stress placed on the recovering limb.

By applying external pressure to an arm or a leg using a specialized cuff, our physical therapists can help patients recover from surgery or injury, regaining strength more quickly and with less work. Blood flow restriction therapy has been used by professional sports teams and the military for some time to help athletes and soldiers heal from injuries more quickly.

When using this treatment, Dr Egbert uses a surgical grade tourniquet to apply a precise amount of pressure to the patient’s arm or leg while exercising the muscle. The goal is to maintain blood flow into the muscle while preventing outflow, thus maximizing strength gains while minimizing stress on muscles and joints. 

Blood flow restriction training has significant benefits including:

• Growth Hormone which aids in recovery through collagen synthesis and muscle; contributes to stem cell activation.
• Optimal muscle strength gain at 30% 1 RM (with BFR) instead of 60-65 % 1 RM (without BFR) decreasing joint and ligament stress.
• Stimulates Bone Formation
• Increase in Insulin-Like Growth
• Venous occlusion has been shown to increase bone density and new bone formation.
• Increased muscle cross sectional area, increased myonuclei, increased capillary to muscle contacts for Type 1 muscle fibers.
• Increased VO2 max
• Neural adaptations increasing muscle power generating capacity in turn evoking broad spectrum of sports specific adaptation.
• Higher oxidative capacity of muscle which is fundamental to blood oxygen extraction >>maintain high aerobic work outputs >> perform and recover from repeated high intensity effort.