ABSTRACT
Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy (ESWT) has had a wide use in rehabilitation, and has presented positive effects in the treatment of unaesthetic affections. The objective of the present study was to search, in the literature, the mechanisms of action and the physiological aspects of shockwaves acting on the biological tissue to improve the condition of cellulite and localized fat. The systematic review of the literature was carried out in the period of September 2016 to February 2017 based on the bibliographic databases such as Lilacs, Medline, PubMed, and SciELO. Fifteen articles were identified in that systematic review, three of which were excluded as they did not make the complete access to the article available or the theme investigated did not encompass the objective of the study. The revision demonstrated that extracorporeal shockwaves present relevant effects on the biological tissue, which leads to the restructuring of skin properties and subcutaneous tissue, thus clinically improving the aspects of cellulite and localized fat.
Conflicts of interest
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Débora A. Oliveira Modena
MSc. Débora A Oliveira Modena, search of articles in the database, articles analysis, and manuscript writing.
Caroline Nogueira da Silva
PT. Caroline Nogueira da Silva, search of articles in the database, article analysis, manuscript revision, and contributions in writing the manuscript.
Clovis Grecco
PhD. Clovis Grecco, manuscript revision, and contributions in writing the manuscript.
Renata Michelini Guidi
PT. Renata Michelini Guidi, manuscript and revision, contributions in writing the manuscript.
Renata Gomes Moreira
PT. Renata Gomes Moreira, manuscript revision, and contributions in writing the manuscript.
Andresa A. Coelho
Andresa A Coelho, manuscript revision, and contributions in writing the manuscript.
Estela Sant’Ana
PhD. Estela Sant’Ana, manuscript revision, and contributions in writing the manuscript.
José Ricardo de Souza
José Ricardo de Souza manuscript revision, and contributions in writing the manuscript.