Iontophoresis is a therapeutic modality often used by physical therapists.

It is a type
ofelectrical stimulation that is used to administer medication into your body through your
skin.
How Does Iontophoresis Work?
To understand the basic principles of iontophoresis, you should remember some basic
lessons from physics and chemistry class. In general, ionic charges that are alike will
repel one another, while ions that are oppositely charged will be attracted to one
another.
So if you have a medicine in a solution that is negatively charged and you apply a
negative electrical charge to it, the medicine in solution will be pushed away, or
repelled, from the negative electricity. When using iontophoresis, your physical therapist
is using electricity to push medicine into your injured tissues.
The medication used in iontophoresis is ionically charged. So if your physical therapist
decides to introduce medication into your injured tissues via iontophoresis and that
medication is negatively charged, he will use a negative current to drive that medication
into your body.

Common Uses for Iontophoresis

There are many different uses for iontophoresis. These include, but are not limited to:

 Decrease inflammation
 Decrease pain
 Decrease muscle spasm
 Decrease swelling and edema
 Reduce calcium deposits in the body
 Manage scar tissue
Your physical therapist will work with you to decide on the treatment goals and the
rationale for using iontophoresis.

drugs and their physiological effects:

1. Dexamethasone
Dexamethasone is a common anti-inflammatory medication used during iontophoresis treatments
in many physical therapy clinics. It is helpful in decreasing localized inflammation that occurs in
musculoskeletal conditions such as tendonitis or bursitis.
 2. Acetic Acid
If you have a condition such as adhesive capsulitis (frozen shoulder) or calcific tendonitis, your
physical therapist may use acetic acid in solution during iontophoresis. It is used primarily to
decrease calcium deposits in musculoskeletal tissue, such as that which occurs if you
have myositis ossificans.
3. Chlorine
Chlorine is a negatively charged ion used in iontophoresis in the treatment of scar
tissueand keloid scars. Your physical therapist may use this to augment other treatments for your
scar tissue, like stretching and scar tissue massage.
4. Calcium Chloride
Calcium chloride is a medication often used in iontophoresis to help decrease muscle spasm.
5. Iodine
Iodine has been reported to be helpful as a medication to help treat sclerotic conditions such as
frozen shoulder. It has also been shown to help improve local blood flow to tissues when used in
iontophoresis.
6. Magnesium Sulfate
Magnesium sulfate is a medication that is often used to help treat muscle spasm. Iontophoresis
administration of magnesium sulfate may also help decrease localized muscle pain.
7. Hyaluronidase
Hyaluronidase is a medication used to help treat soft tissue edema or swelling. If you have
swelling after injury or surgery, it may be effective in the acute or chronic stages of healing to
help manage edema.
8. Tap Water
Believe it or not, simple tap water has been shown to help treat hyperhydrosis (sweaty palms or
feet) through iontophoresis. The tap water is used on either the positive or negative electrode
during a hand (or foot) immersion bath.
Before administering any medication using iontophoresis, your physical therapist should review
all other medications that you are taking. He or she should also consult your doctor, as many
states in the US require that a prescription is obtained before administering medication via
iontophoresis.

 Magnesium Sulfate: Medication used to treat muscle pain and spasm.

 Iodine: Used to treat sclerotic conditions such as frozen shoulder, and it may help to
increase circulation to tissues.
 Hyaluronidase: Commonly used to treat soft tissue swelling and edema.
 Adverse reaction to the medication
 Adverse reaction to the electrical current.
 Burn lesion to the skin