Use the Back button in your browser to see the other results of your search or to select another record.

Detailed Search Results

Effect of helium-neon laser on musculoskeletal trigger points
Snyder-Mackler L, Bork C, Bourbon B, Trumbore D
Physical Therapy 1986 Jul;66(7):1087-1090
clinical trial
6/10 [Eligibility criteria: Yes; Random allocation: Yes; Concealed allocation: No; Baseline comparability: No; Blind subjects: Yes; Blind therapists: Yes; Blind assessors: No; Adequate follow-up: Yes; Intention-to-treat analysis: No; Between-group comparisons: Yes; Point estimates and variability: Yes. Note: Eligibility criteria item does not contribute to total score] *This score has been confirmed*

Cold lasers have been proposed recently as a therapeutic tool for treating a wide variety of pathological conditions, including wounds, arthritis, orthopaedic problems, and pain. These proposed therapeutic effects largely have been unsubstantiated by research. A randomized, double blind study was undertaken to ascertain the effect of a helium-neon (He-Ne) laser on the resistance of areas of skin overlying musculoskeletal trigger points. These areas usually demonstrate decreased skin resistance when compared with the surrounding tissue. Thirty patients with musculoskeletal trigger points were assigned randomly to either an experimental or a placebo group. In addition to standard physical therapy, each patient received three 15-second applications of a He-Ne laser or placebo "stimulation" from an identical unit that did not emit a laser. The results of a two way analysis of covariance with one repeated measure showed a statistically significant increase (p < 0.007) in skin resistance. This increase in an abnormal skin resistance pattern may accompany the resolution of pathological conditions.

Full text (sometimes free) may be available at these link(s):      help