When you’re dealing with pain, inflammation, or an injury, your body has an incredible ability to repair itself. One technology that may help support this natural healing process is MLS® Laser Therapy.
MLS stands for Multiwave Locked System. It uses specific wavelengths of near-infrared and infrared light to deliver energy to targeted tissues. Unlike X-rays or other forms of ionizing radiation, therapeutic laser light is non-ionizing, meaning it does not have enough energy to damage DNA in the way ionizing radiation can.
But how can light actually affect cells?
What Happens When the Laser Reaches the Tissue?
When the laser is applied to an area being treated, photons of light penetrate the skin and interact with biological tissues.
Certain molecules within cells can absorb this light energy. One of the important targets involved in photobiomodulation is believed to be cytochrome c oxidase, an enzyme located within the mitochondria.
The mitochondria are often referred to as the “powerhouses” of our cells because they help produce ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the primary energy currency used by cells.
The basic concept is:
Laser light → cellular photoreceptors → mitochondrial activity → ATP production and cellular signaling
This process is commonly referred to as photobiomodulation (PBM).
What Is ATP and Why Does It Matter?
ATP provides energy that cells need to perform their normal functions, including processes involved in tissue repair and recovery.
When cells receive an appropriate amount of therapeutic light, research suggests that photobiomodulation can influence mitochondrial activity and cellular signaling. This may help support processes involved in:
🔹 Cellular energy production
🔹 Tissue repair
🔹 Normal inflammatory regulation
🔹 Circulation and microcirculation
🔹 Cellular communication
🔹 Recovery of stressed or injured tissues
It’s important to understand that more laser energy isn’t necessarily better. Photobiomodulation follows a dose-dependent response, meaning the wavelength, power, treatment time, and total energy delivered all matter.
How Can Laser Therapy Affect Inflammation?
Inflammation is a normal part of the body’s response to injury. It helps initiate the healing process, but excessive or prolonged inflammatory activity can contribute to pain and swelling.
Photobiomodulation appears to influence several cellular pathways involved in the inflammatory response. Research has found effects on inflammatory mediators and signaling pathways, although the exact response can vary depending on the condition, treatment parameters, and tissue being treated.
The goal isn’t necessarily to “turn inflammation off.”
Instead, therapeutic laser may help modulate the inflammatory response and support the body’s normal progression through the healing process.
What About Pain?
MLS laser therapy may also influence pain through several mechanisms.
Photobiomodulation can affect inflammatory signaling and may influence peripheral nerves and other processes involved in pain perception. By potentially reducing inflammatory activity and supporting tissue recovery, laser therapy may help decrease pain associated with certain musculoskeletal conditions.
Some people describe the treatment as producing little to no sensation, while others may notice a gentle warming sensation depending on the device and treatment settings.
How Does This Complement Chiropractic Care?
This is where laser therapy can be particularly interesting in a chiropractic setting.
Chiropractic care and laser therapy work through different mechanisms.
Chiropractic treatment may focus on factors such as:
👐 Joint mobility
👐 Musculoskeletal function
👐 Movement patterns
👐 Mechanical restrictions
MLS laser therapy, on the other hand, is used to provide photobiomodulation to targeted tissues and may help support the body’s response to pain, inflammation, and tissue stress.
For example, consider someone experiencing low-back pain after a strain.
A chiropractor may evaluate the person’s spinal and pelvic movement, surrounding joints, muscles, and overall biomechanics. Depending on the individual’s condition, chiropractic treatment may be used to address mechanical or musculoskeletal factors.
Laser therapy may then be incorporated as an additional modality to target the painful or irritated tissues.
In this way, laser therapy isn’t necessarily replacing chiropractic treatment. Instead, it can be used as one component of a broader, individualized treatment plan.
What Conditions May Be Treated?
Therapeutic laser has been studied for a variety of musculoskeletal and pain-related conditions. Depending on the specific laser system, treatment protocol, and clinical circumstances, it may be used as part of care for:
- Back and neck pain
- Muscle strains
- Sprains
- Tendon-related injuries
- Joint pain
- Arthritis-related symptoms
- Certain sports injuries
- Soft-tissue injuries
- Some nerve-related pain conditions
However, laser therapy isn’t appropriate for every condition or every patient. The evidence also varies by condition, and treatment outcomes can depend on factors such as the underlying cause of pain, treatment dosage, and individual patient characteristics.
The Bigger Picture: Supporting the Body’s Natural Healing Process
One of the most important things to understand about MLS laser therapy is that it isn’t designed to “fix” the body by itself.
Rather, photobiomodulation is intended to influence cellular activity and support biological processes involved in tissue recovery.
Think of it as providing cells with a signal that may help them perform certain functions involved in the body’s normal healing response.
When combined with appropriate chiropractic care, exercise, stretching, activity modification, and other evidence-based approaches when appropriate, laser therapy may be
a useful component of a comprehensive approach to musculoskeletal health.
Light, Cells, and Recovery
At the most basic level, the concept is fascinating:
Light enters the tissue → cells absorb specific wavelengths → cellular signaling is influenced → biological processes involved in recovery may be supported.
That is the foundation of photobiomodulation and the science behind therapeutic laser therapy.
As research continues, scientists are learning more about exactly how different wavelengths and treatment doses interact with different tissues and biological pathways. The goal is not simply to treat pain, but to understand how light can be used to support the body’s own biological processes.