A CORBRIDGE physiotherapist is the first in the UK to offer revolutionary treatment for back pain.

Paul Hobrough, who owns Physio & Therapy UK, in Tinklers Yard, was approached to use a newly developed applicator which, for the first time in the country, allows shockwave therapy to be used on the entire spine.

Shockwave therapy is new to the UK after being proven as a hugely successful form of treatment in countries such as Germany, America and Australia for the past 15 years, but it couldn‘t previously been used on the spine in the UK because of risks associated with the lungs.

But the technology now allows it be used from the neck to the lower back with the brand new applicator, a welcome addition to the shockwave therapy Paul provides after recently purchasing a £20,000 machine.

Paul, who works on star sportspeople such as Paula Radcliffe and Steve Cram, said: “Up until now, the reason this hasn‘t been used is because the machines send shockwaves three inches in depth and you couldn’t use it over lung tissue.

”They have come up with this applicator to reduce the depth so it won‘t go anywhere near the lung tissue, so this allows shockwave therapy to be used all along the spine.

“I am seeing a lot of people with long standing back pain, but in 2016 we are offering something new and different and I can‘t wait to see the results.

”If you are trying to stay ahead of competitors, or work with elite athletes, you have to make sure you are up to date with everything.

“I wouldn’t work with technology I didn‘t believe benefited the client and couldn’t be proven with scientific evidence.”

Paul has been amazed by the results since adopting shockwave therapy into his practice in recent months.

The new treatment works on all tendon issues and plantar fasciitis, as it stimulates cell growth to aid a quicker recovery.

Through the therapy, many clients of his have been cleared of pain experienced for decades in a space of four to six weeks.

Paul said: “The results I am getting are unbelievable. I‘ve only had one person say they’re not 100 per cent better after shockwave treatment.

”In the North-East, you have to be a professional footballer for Newcastle United or Sunderland, or a rugby player with Newcastle Falcons, to get access to this kind of treatment otherwise.

“But my aim is to provide this top class treatment at affordable prices and allow more people to benefit from it.”

The arrival of the revolutionary technology comes at a time of great change for Paul, who has been commissioned by Bloomsbury Publishing to write a book on physiotherapy, due to be released in September.

Having established himself as a highly regarded physio in London working with star names, such as Mo Farah, he moved to the Tyne Valley with his family three-and-a-half years ago.

After months of practising in his home, he moved to a unit in Tinklers Yard while keeping his London clinic open.

He sold his business in the capital last May, but trade in Corbridge has kept him constantly busy.

“I was concerned moving up because people who lived here warned me not to expect the same success as London as it‘s a much smaller, rural population here.

”They weren’t trying to be nasty, but were trying to get me to manage my expectations.

“But the way things are going and the results I‘ve been getting in terms of how people are engaging to the technology has gone way beyond expectations and I’ve never been involved in a faster growing clinic.”