**8. Therapeutic agents for musculoskeletal disorders**

The use of thermal, mechanical, electromagnetic, and light energy for therapeutic reasons is referred to as therapeutic modalities [52]. Physiotherapists frequently use these to assist their patients' or clients' therapy goals:


For many years, physiotherapy has made use of therapeutic methods. Although there is some evidence that different patients may benefit from different modalities, it is suggested that they should not be used as a stand-alone treatment. Instead, they are frequently used in conjunction with other physiotherapy tools, such as exercise, manual techniques, and patient education [55, 56].

To refer to all therapies that have physiological therapeutic effects, the phrases "therapeutic modalities" and "electrophysical agents" are frequently mixed [52].

Therapeutic techniques include, for instance:


According to different grades of evidence, clinical guidelines support the use of therapeutic modalities [57].

However, the decision regarding which modality to use may be influenced by the patient's requirements and goals, the clinician's preferences, and the condition at hand [58].
