With a commitment to improving lives and building futures, leading healthcare product manufacturer, Niagara Healthcare has donated some of their NHC Cyclo-Therapy vibration massage products to a Lincolnshire school that specialises in caring for young people with a variety of physical conditions.

St Francis School located in Wickenby Crescent, Lincoln was recommended to Niagara through an existing relationship the company has with the Ryan Smith Foundation. Eighteen year old Ryan, from Skegness was involved in a cycling accident in July 2013. Ryan sustained a serious brain injury and now attends the St Francis School as part of his ongoing rehabilitation.

NHC Cyclo-Therapy works on a three-dimensional “cycloidal vibration” which is non-invasive, giving a gentle and relaxing experience while stimulating the blood flow and muscles. This helps to relieve the pain and sometimes debilitating associated symptoms for sufferers of a number of medical and physical conditions.

At the presentation, Niagara Healthcare donated two Cyclopads and two portable hand units, with a total value of £3000 to the school. The hand held device allows users to instantly target troublesome areas while the pad is portable and versatile allowing therapy to be applied across a larger area of the body.

Commenting on the donation, Ann Hoffman, head teacher at St Francis School said:
“We were delighted to accept the generous donation from Niagara Healthcare. We hope that these products will benefit some of our young people whose conditions mean they can experience discomfort through muscle tension. We’d like to thank Ryan Smith and his family for suggesting our school and raising awareness of the work we do here.”

Ben Payne, Group Marketing Manager at Niagara Healthcare said: “Following our product donation to Ryan Smith last year, we were only too pleased to help St Francis School. The school has a reputation for excellent practice offering education, therapy, medical support and independence training for young people with physical disabilities. We hope that our NHC Cyclo-Therapy products can provide muscle relaxation and freedom of movement for a wide range of pupils at the school. We look forward to monitoring their progress.”

Independent studies conducted by universities, research institutes and teaching hospitals show that vibration therapy can help to relax and rest muscles, soothe most rheumatic pains, ease nervousness and stress, raise pain thresholds and improve blood circulation.

It also helps to increase venous drainage and can assist in the reduction of swelling caused by excess tissue fluid. In addition, it can improve joint mobility and ease back pain.

All of Niagara Healthcare’s products contain the original, unchanged therapy and the company has helped over 85,000 people feel better through a range of products.

Recently, Niagara Healthcare announced that following a successful trial, its NHC Cyclo-Therapy products have now been adopted at all twelve of the UK’s spinal cord injury centres. During the trial that took place at the London Spinal Cord Injury Centre, part of the Royal National Orthopaedic NHS Trust (RNOH), the therapy units enhanced the way Occupational Therapists performed treatment, with patients feeling the benefit within just 10 minutes.