In 1995 the Institute for Sports Medicine (SMI) Frankfurt am Main was the ‡first centre to apply and investigate the effects of shock wave in sports injuries. Since then, it is our mission to implement shock waves as a useful therapeutic agent without negative side effects into sports medical care not only for the Olympic or elite but also for the recreational athlete.

After proo‡fing its efficiency to prevent surgery in the treatment of kidney stones in the 1980^th, orthopaedic applications became more and more popular in the 1990^th. Consequently, until now, a large body of scientific literature has been published in urology and orthopaedics and the method has proven its evidence in numerous level 1 studies.

Today, several further medical disciplines have started to adopt shock waves to manage different soft tissue disorders. Of course, these initial reports rely on subjective experience and are anecdotic. However, as long as a higher level of evidence is missing, these expert opinions represent the current "state of the art". So, 200 scientists of different expertise from 20 different countries are brought together at the first international and interdisciplinary conference meeting for shock wave treatment.

SHOCK WAVE FRANKFURT is constituted as a forum to understand and discuss the principles and rationales behind the indications to implement shock waves in different areas, to see the application techniques, and to personally do the application in the workshops.

The success of the 1^st SHOCK WAVE FRANKFURT Conference 2011 gives us every cause to be confident of establishing the conference among the experts and thus extracorporeal shock wave therapy as well.

We were very happy to host you all in Frankfurt and we would like to warmly thank you for joining this conference.

Prof. Dr. med. Heinz Lohrer
Conference President

ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Institute for Sports Medicine