LATEST PEMF THERAPY CLINICAL BENEFITS
Elizabeth Alexandra
Chronic low back pain affects approximately 15% of the United States (US) population during their lifetime, with 93 million lost work days and a cost of more than $5 billion per year. Lumbar arthritis is a very common cause of back pain. 35-40 mT PEMFs, for 20 minutes daily for 20-25 days for back pain gives relief or elimination of pain, improves results from other rehabilitation and improves secondary neurologic symptoms. Continuous use over the treatment episode works best, in about 90-95% of the time. Control patients only show a 30% improvement.
PEMF of 5 to 15 G, from 7 Hz to 4 kHz used at the site of pain and related trigger points for 20 to 45 minutes also helps. Some patients remain pain free 6 months after treatment. Some return to jobs they had been unable to perform. Short-term effects are thought due to decrease in cortisol and noradrenaline and an increase serotonin, endorphins and enkephalins. Longer term effects may be due to CNS and/or peripheral nervous system biochemical and neuronal effects in which correction of pain messages occurs and the pain is not just masked as in the case of medication.
Back pain or whiplash syndrome treated PEMF twice a day for two weeks along with usual pain medications relieves pain in 8 days vs. 12 days in the controls. Headache is halved in the PEMF group and neck and shoulder/arm pain improved by one third versus just medications alone.
Permanent magnetic therapy can also be useful in reducing chronic muscular low back pain. Treatment with a flexible permanent magnetic pad for 21 days reduces pain 6 times more than placebo. This has been effective for herniated lumbar discs, spondylosis, radiculopathy, sciatica and arthritis. Pain relief is sometimes experienced as early as 10 minutes or in some cases takes as long as 14 days.
For neck pain, PEMFs may have more benefit, compared to physical therapy, for both pain and mobility.
