Energy medicine techniques such as ultrasound have been used to treat back pain. Ultrasound helps to break up local edema as well as local fibrosis where there's been inflammation. Ultrasound can also break any scarring between the muscle layers from an injury. It will also warm the tissues, which helps to relax the muscles. It can also reduce the nerve conduction velocities, which means that the rate at which a pain impulse is conducted along a nerve pathway to the brain is slowed down, causing a pain-relieving effect.
Energy devices such as the TENS unit (Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulator) are also used for the relief of back pain. The TENS, which can be used at home, works by applying an electrical current to the affected nerves in the area of the back pain, causing conduction to be blocked and pain to be relieved. TENS units and other similar energy devices are also believed to stimulate the production of endorphins, the body's own natural painkillers.