Therapeutic modalities in hand surgery.

Therapeutic modalities are useful adjuncts in the rehabilitation of many patients commonly seen by hand surgeons. Therapeutic heat, cold, electrical stimulation, and laser and magnetic field treatments are evaluated for their respective mechanisms of action, indications, contraindications, and clinical results. The majority of therapeutic modalities have been extensively investigated and relevant basic science and randomized well-controlled clinical studies addressing the efficacy of therapeutic modalities are emphasized.