SynthesisPhotomedicine and laser surgery2012
Meta-analysis of pain relief effects by laser irradiation on joint areas.
Synthesis in Photomedicine and laser surgery, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 42 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
42 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 121 citations in OpenAlex.
- Is high intensity laser therapy more effective than other physical therapy modalities for treating knee osteoarthritis? A systematic review and network meta-analysis.Frontiers in medicine · 2022Pooled it
- Effects of different energy density low-level laser therapies for temporomandibular joint disorders patients: a systematic review and network meta-analysis of parallel randomized controlled trials.Lasers in medical science · 2021Pooled it
- Low Level Laser Therapy in Knee Osteoarthritis: A Narrative Review.Advances in therapy · 2020Pooled it
- The dark art of light measurement: accurate radiometry for low-level light therapy.Lasers in medical science · 2016Pooled it
- Effect of phototherapy (low-level laser therapy and light-emitting diode therapy) on exercise performance and markers of exercise recovery: a systematic review with meta-analysis.Lasers in medical science · 2015Pooled it
- Is low-level laser therapy in relieving neck pain effective? Systematic review and meta-analysis.Rheumatology international · 2013Pooled it
- Evaluation of Adjunctive Photobiomodulation (PBMT) for COVID-19 Pneumonia via Clinical Status and Pulmonary Severity Indices in a Preliminary Trial.Journal of inflammation research · 2021Trial
- Evaluating the effect of photobiomodulation with a 940-nm diode laser on post-operative pain in periodontal flap surgery.Lasers in medical science · 2018Trial
- Comparative study of shockwave therapy and low-level laser therapy effects in patients with myofascial pain syndrome of the trapezius.Rheumatology international · 2018Trial
- Muscle fiber conduction velocity and EMG amplitude of the upper trapezius muscle in healthy subjects after low-level laser irradiation: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study.Lasers in medical science · 2018Trial
- Efficacy of pulsed Nd:YAG laser in the treatment of patients with knee osteoarthritis: a randomized controlled trial.Lasers in medical science · 2017Trial
- Effects of low-level laser therapy applied before or after plyometric exercise on muscle damage markers: randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.Lasers in medical science · 2016Trial
- Comparative clinical study of light analgesic effect on temporomandibular disorder (TMD) using red and infrared led therapy.Lasers in medical science · 2015Trial
- Article
- A retrospective comparative study of helium-neon laser combined with ultrasonic debridement in improving healing of chronic non-healing wounds.American journal of translational research · 2025Article
- High Versus Low-Energy Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy for Chronic Lateral Epicondylitis: A Retrospective Study.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2024Article
- Photobiomodulation ameliorates inflammatory parameters in fibroblast-like synoviocytes and experimental animal models of rheumatoid arthritis.Frontiers in immunology · 2023Article
- The Clinical Effects of Laser Acupuncture on Hospitalized Patients With Severe COVID-19: A Randomized Clinical Trial.Journal of lasers in medical sciences · 2023Article
- The use of LED therapy to treat synovial joints disorders: scoping review.Lasers in medical science · 2022Article
- The Functions and Mechanisms of Low-Level Laser Therapy in Tendon Repair (Review).Frontiers in physiology · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundLaser therapy has been proposed as a physical therapy for musculoskeletal disorders and has attained popularity because no side effects have been reported after treatment. However, its true effectiveness is still controversial because several clinical trials have reported the ineffectiveness of lasers in treating pain.
methodsIn this systematic review, we investigate the clinical effectiveness of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) on joint pain. Clinical trials on joint pain satisfying the following conditions are included: the laser is irradiated on the joint area, the PEDro scale score is at least 5, and the effectiveness of the trial is measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS). To estimate the overall effectiveness of all included clinical trials, a mean weighted difference in change of pain on VAS was used.
resultsMEDLINE is the main source of the literature search. After the literature search, 22 trials related to joint pain were selected. The average methodological quality score of the 22 trials consisting of 1014 patients was 7.96 on the PEDro scale; 11 trials reported positive effects and 11 trials reported negative effects. The mean weighted difference in change of pain on VAS was 13.96 mm (95% CI, 7.24-20.69) in favor of the active LLLT groups. When we only considered the clinical trials in which the energy dose was within the dose range suggested in the review by Bjordal et al. in 2003 and in World Association for Laser Therapy (WALT) dose recommendation, the mean effect sizes were 19.88 and 21.05 mm in favor of the true LLLT groups, respectively.
conclusionsThe review shows that laser therapy on the joint reduces pain in patients. Moreover, when we restrict the energy doses of the laser therapy into the dose window suggested in the previous study, we can expect more reliable pain relief treatments.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.