Effects of therapeutic ultrasound on bone marrow in dogs.

With a thermocouple in the medullary cavity of one dog's femur, the increases in bone marrow temperature were demonstrated at five different intensities of ultrasound. The right distal femurs of six dogs were treated ten times, three dogs at 1.5 w/cm2 and three dogs at 2.5 w/cm2 each for five minutes. At a later date, two of these dogs received an additional ten minutes of ultrasound at 2.5 w/cm2 for ten treatments. Histological and hematological studies gave presumptive evidence of bone marrow damage and regeneration. A marked increase in oil was also seen in the bone marrow smears.