Efficacy of Pulsed Electromagnetic Therapy for Chronic Lower Back Pain: A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Study

This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial studied the effectiveness of pulsed electromagnetic therapy (PEMT) in patients with chronic lower back pain. Active PEMT (n = 17) or placebo treatment (n = 19) was performed three times a week for 3 weeks. Patients were assessed using...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of international medical research 2006-03, Vol.34 (2), p.160-167
Main Authors: Lee, PB, Kim, YC, Lim, YJ, Lee, CJ, Choi, SS, Park, SH, Lee, JG, Lee, SC
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Chronic Disease
Double-Blind Method
Electromagnetic Phenomena
Female
Humans
Low Back Pain - physiopathology
Low Back Pain - therapy
Male
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Request full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial studied the effectiveness of pulsed electromagnetic therapy (PEMT) in patients with chronic lower back pain. Active PEMT (n = 17) or placebo treatment (n = 19) was performed three times a week for 3 weeks. Patients were assessed using a numerical rating scale (NRS) and revised Oswestry disability scores for 4 weeks after therapy. PEMT produced significant pain reduction throughout the observation period compared with baseline values. The percentage change in the NRS score from baseline was significantly greater in the PEMT group than the placebo group at all three time-points measured. The mean revised Oswestry disability percentage after 4 weeks was significantly improved from the baseline value in the PEMT group, whereas there were no significant differences in the placebo group. In conclusion, PEMT reduced pain and disability and appears to be a potentially useful therapeutic tool for the conservative management of chronic lower back pain.
ISSN:0300-0605
1473-2300
DOI:10.1177/147323000603400205