Cambridge United's physiotherapy staff have been trying out a new piece of equipment which is used by some of the country's leading clubs. Youth Development Physio Greg Reid tells us about the 'Physioacoustic Chair' and how you may be able to help the club to acquire one.

In a small office under the Main Stand, squeezed into space between the desks of Dale Brooks and Greg Reid, is the Physioacoustic Chair - a well-padded blue leather reclining chair which resembles a luxury seat on an airliner. However, underneath the padded exterior are four speakers which produce sound waves in the areas of the neck, the lower back, the knees and the ankles.

"It works on pre-set programmes with various sound frequencies and because the sub-tissues in the body all vibrate optimally at different frequencies, the easiest way to describe what you are getting would be an inside body massage," explained Greg. "Some of the physiological benefits are increased circulation and increased lymphatic drainage, and these types of things are very effective in helping to reduce inflammation and increase the healing process with regard to soft-tissue injuries."

Adam Smith tries out the Physioacoustic Chair

The manufacturers' brochure describes the process as 'Sound Wave Therapy', which focuses on the musculo-skeletal system to produce a 'deep body massage'. The brochure also states that the chair can reduce stress, tension and high blood pressure as well as pain from injury, arthritis, and wear and tear.

These claims seem to be backed up by Steve McLaren, the former assistant manager at Derby County and Manchester United, and now manager at Middlesbrough FC and an England coach. Greg adds, "When he was at Derby, Steve McLaren was one of the first to use this in professional football and the physio there swears by them. We saw it at a medical conference at Lilleshall where it certainly raised a lot of interest, and we have got this one on a four week trial basis.

"It is a considerable amount of money, this model here actually retails at about £3,500, so what we have been doing is following a pretty simple protocol where we are trying to assess the effectiveness of the machine. The types of things that we have been looking for, with an injured ankle for instance, is to measure the ankle circumference before and after, and assess pain levels on a scale of 0 - 10 before and after. So if it was seven on a scale of 0 - 10 before they got on the chair and they feel afterwards that the pain level was at five, then it has obviously had a positive benefit.

"Some of the things we have been able to quantify like that, and there are other things that are very much unquantifiable like someone's emotions or feelings, and if they feel better when they get off it and feel more relaxed. Whilst you cannot actually quantify that statistically, if it actually works for the individual then obviously it has had a positive benefit."

Expanding on the psychological benefits, Greg explained that when United's players use the chair the room is quiet and they can relax by listening to music while they undergo the treatment, but at Derby County the use is not just restricted to injured players: "They have twenty chairs in a room hooked up with earphones and a big screen, and the coach might be giving them trigger words and psychological things like mental rehearsal and stuff like that.

"Mental rehearsal is something we work on here with the youngsters, particularly when they are injured. Dale Brooks will give them something that technically he feels they need to work on and then they will rehearse that in their mind. It is a technique that was used very effectively by Steve Backley, the javelin thrower, when he came back from one of his numerous shoulder problems and one of his first throws was his personal best. He had rehearsed the technique in his mind while he was injured and and gone through it with his coach, and he actually improved his technique without actually physically doing it."

The chair has been used by several players during the trial, from senior pros to the youth team players, and Greg (left) explained that one of the potential benefits is that it can help the recovery time of tired muscles: "It can help remove blood lactate which follows exercise, so it can help increase the speed with which people recover from intense bouts of training and such like. It seems to be quite a useful bit of kit for a variety of different conditions and situations.

"Certainly there a quite a few Premiership clubs that have now got them, and I believe Steve McLaren, who got them in initially at Derby, has done the same at Manchester United and now at Middlesborough."

Use of the chair is most beneficial for soft tissue injuries like sprains and strains, and one of the most noticeable benefits so far has been the recovery of youth team defender Daryl Bourgeois from a torn calf muscle. His treatment was supplemented by regular use of the chair and he returned to training about ten days ahead of schedule.

"It's like all things with physiotherapy, it's not a panacea for everything, it's just another part of the jigsaw," Greg added. "It is just as important for us to get our players back as it is for Man United and everybody else - probably more so because of the squad that we have - so anything that we can get to help us do that is very welcome."

The end of the month's trial is close and Greg has seen enough evidence to believe that the Physioacoustic Chair would be a very useful addition to the equipment at the club: "Whilst a lot of the evidence is anecdotal, the players certainly feel that it has been beneficial in getting them back earlier, and we definitely feel one of the chairs would be of benefit to the club. Even Shaggy and Brooksy think it's marvellous because it's helping them cope with the stresses of management!" he smiled.

"It costs about £3,500 to buy but they're offering a lease option which I think works out at about £140 a month. The company will be in touch about collecting it fairly soon, so if there's anyone out there who thinks they could sponsor us to either buy one outright or lease one we would be delighted to hear from you."

You can contact Greg Reid by asking for him on the main switchboard on (01223) 566500, and leaving a message for him if he is working with the players when you call.

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