Shockwave therapy
What is shockwave therapy?
Shockwave therapy, or extracorporeal shockwave therapy, uses a handheld device to send short, high-energy sound pulses through the skin into tendons, bone or other tissue. Clinics use it for heel pain, tendon problems and erectile dysfunction. Some longevity clinics now offer it for general joint and tissue rejuvenation, which no trial has tested.
Listed here because well-known people have tried it on themselves. Trying something is not recommending it; each entry says whether the person tells others to do it.
Who has tried it
Tried by 1 person we can source: 1 kept.
Kept
Bryan JohnsonEntrepreneur, founder of BlueprintBlueprint (Bryan Johnson)
Dates not stated · Does not recommend it to others
Uses 4,500 shocks three days a week on his joints and spine for what he calls proactive rejuvenation; no results reported.
“I’m using it for proactive rejuvenation.”
Bryan Johnson, Bryan's Protocol (checked October 2026) · Status checked October 31, 2026 · Suggest a correction
What the evidence shows
No study has tested shockwave therapy as preventive rejuvenation for healthy joints or spines, which is how some longevity users apply it. The evidence covers specific conditions.
For plantar heel pain, a network meta-analysis of 22 trials found shockwave more effective than placebo, though certainty was low [1]. For rotator cuff disease, a Cochrane review found only small benefits, below what patients would notice, and more side effects than placebo [2].
For erectile dysfunction, a 2025 Cochrane review of 21 sham-controlled trials found a small short-term gain that may not be clinically important, with low-certainty evidence and many device-maker funded studies [3]. One double-blind sham trial found no meaningful effect at all [4]. What repeated shockwave does to healthy tissue over years is unknown.
Safety
- Common effects are pain during treatment, redness, bruising and swelling at the site.
- Clinicians avoid treating over a pregnancy, a tumor, an infection, growth plates in children, or major nerves and blood vessels.
- People on blood thinners or with a bleeding disorder should ask a doctor first, because of bruising and bleeding.
- US urology guidance has treated shockwave for erectile dysfunction as investigational, and devices and settings vary widely between clinics.
Common questions
Does Bryan Johnson use shockwave therapy?
Yes. He uses 4,500 shocks three days a week on his joints and spine for what he calls proactive rejuvenation. He has not reported results and does not tell others to do it.
Does shockwave therapy work for erectile dysfunction?
The best review found a small short-term improvement that many men may not notice, from low-certainty trials. Some sham-controlled trials found no effect.
What is shockwave therapy good for?
The strongest trial support is for chronic plantar heel pain. Results for shoulder and elbow tendon problems are smaller and less certain.
Can shockwave therapy prevent joint aging?
No study has tested it in healthy joints, so there is no evidence either way.
Sources
- 1.Zhao P, He Y, Li M, et al. Comparative efficacy and acceptability of different intensity levels of extracorporeal shock wave therapy in adults with plantar heel pain: A systematic review and network meta-analysis. PM R, 2025. doi:10.1002/pmrj.13417
- 2.Surace SJ, Deitch J, Johnston RV, Buchbinder R. Shock wave therapy for rotator cuff disease with or without calcification. Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2020. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD008962.pub2
- 3.Ergun O, Kim K, Kim MH, et al. Low-intensity shockwave therapy for erectile dysfunction. Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2025. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD013166.pub3
- 4.Fojecki GL, Tiessen S, Osther PJ. Effect of Low-Energy Linear Shockwave Therapy on Erectile Dysfunction-A Double-Blinded, Sham-Controlled, Randomized Clinical Trial. J Sex Med, 2017. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2016.11.307