Early History of Compression Therapy

Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) was a concept I became familiar with years ago while listening to people in the heavy weight-lifting and body building communities. I learned they would tie rubber tubing around the upper portion of their arm or leg while lifting. This created a more aggressive anaerobic (state of decreased oxygen) conditioning opportunity for them to gain more muscle. However, this technique was done with no regard for the amount of compression around the nerves and blood vessels which brought about safety challenges.

Evolution of Blood Flow Restriction Therapy

Historically, this concept was used for recreational weight lifting. It was further developed by a Japanese tech company called KAATSU. Six years ago, Johnny Owens, Physical Therapist, began discussions about research done by the Department of Defense. Research showed consistent results of specific chemical changes that occurred during the anaerobic stages of conditioning and fitness. They mimicked these conditions with the use of tourniquets through the lower extremity to create similar chemical changes in the blood stream. As the results were repeatedly proven, the DOD increased funding for the research to create a safe protocol that appreciated the safety of soft tissues and the nervous system.

BFRT at the Center for the Intrepid

Owens led the development of a specialized doppler to treat severely injured soldiers. Owens was in charge of the rehabilitation of all limb salvage patients at the Center for the Intrepid in San Antonio, Texas. Even though their injuries were severe, their motivation was high to regain as much function and strength as possible. With BFR, they were able to successfully reduce the number of amputations required through significant maintenance and restoration of muscle mass. Throughout this experience, Owens led the development of this protocol which eventually moved into a commercial product known as Blood Flow Restriction Therapy (BFRT) through the Owens Recovery Science Center.

Summit Strength Implements BFRT

In 2015, Johnny Owens personally trained our clinical staff. Summit Strength was one of the first clinics in the region to proceed with full comprehensive training and certification by Owens himself. With proper measuring of pressure and cuff sizes, a substantial amount of muscle “burn” generates through the active muscle tissue that moves into an anaerobic state within just one to two minutes. While learning these protocols and safe strategies for implementation, all of our clinical staff became fully certified in BFRT.

BFRT in the Headlines

Recently, it has been fun to witness the exposure Alex Smith’s recovery from a major leg injury has given BFRT. Smith spent time rehabilitating at the Center for the Intrepid working directly with Owens. Smith used BFRT technology to build up lost muscle tissue allowing him to make one of the greatest comebacks in professional sports history. Stories like these provide further justification of the efforts that Summit Strength has made to safely and properly incorporate BFRT into our clinic practice.

How BFRT Helps Our Patients

We are confident using this technology on common post-op conditions such as a total knee replacement or upper extremity surgeries. We also use it frequently in the general musculoskeletal groups with various aches and pains. In addition, neurologically compromised individuals can see substantial maintenance of strength and function while using BFRT. We see this correlation to improvements in gait function, stair navigation function, and most importantly, minimizing falls and injuries. This particular modality provides the most aggressive technique to build tissue capacity with minimal loading of the actual structures, such as joints or muscles. It allows the therapist a way to facilitate strengthening and hypertrophy of muscle without overloading tissues with too much weight.