Shockwave for pain

Real trials for heel pain; the branded device untested.

Shockwave therapy sends pressure waves into a painful area over several clinic sessions. Short answer: pooled placebo-controlled trials found it eased chronic heel pain (plantar fasciitis), and back-pain trials found about one point less pain on a ten-point scale. We found no study of StemWave by name, and nothing showing it works on stem cells.

How the evidence flows

Each claim (middle), the studies that tested it (left) — green found it, red found nothing — and the grade they add up to (right). Drawn from the same records as the grades below. Tap to open full size.

Shockwave therapy (StemWave) · evidence checked 2026-10-28

What the research shows

Grades are calculated from the studies listed, by fixed rules.

Shockwave therapy eases chronic heel pain (plantar fasciitis)Established
Pooled placebo-controlled trials found more people improved with shockwave than with a sham. The trials varied a lot, and the authors were firmest about focused, rather than radial, shockwave.
- Pooled analysis of randomized trials, 935 people (2017) — primary outcome: improved. Funder not checked.
Shockwave therapy eases chronic low back painEarly evidence
Pooled trials found about a point less pain on a ten-point scale; one sham-controlled trial in a specific kind of back pain found a larger, lasting drop. Neither abstract says the trials were blinded.
- Open-label randomized trial, 128 people, 52 weeks (2025) — primary outcome: improved. Funder not checked.
- Pooled analysis of randomized trials (some against usual care, not a placebo), 632 people (2023) — primary outcome: improved. Funder not checked.
StemWave — “America’s fastest growing medical technology” — treats neck, back, joint and soft-tissue painNo real evidence
We found no study of StemWave by name. Its page is aimed at clinics (“increase clinic collections”). Shockwave in general has the evidence above for heel and back pain; the device’s name suggests stem cells, and we found nothing showing it acts on them.