SynthesisLasers in medical science2016
Low-level phototherapy to improve exercise capacity and muscle performance: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Lasers in medical science, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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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
23 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 53 citations in OpenAlex.
- Deconstructing the Ergogenic Effects of Photobiomodulation: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of its Efficacy in Improving Mode-Specific Exercise Performance in Humans.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2022Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Influence of photobiomodulation on energy contribution in normoxia and hypoxia conditions in amateur runners: a single-blinded and randomized crossover pilot study.Lasers in medical science · 2024Trial
- Trial
- Acute application of photobiomodulation does not bring important gains for the muscular performance and functionality of diabetic individuals.Lasers in medical science · 2021Trial
- Effects of photobiomodulation on muscle strength in post-menopausal women submitted to a resistance training program.Lasers in medical science · 2020Trial
- Surface electromyography after lower level laser therapy application on skeletal muscles in individuals with heart failure.Lasers in medical science · 2019Trial
- Photobiomodulation (PBM) therapy at 904 nm mitigates effects of exercise-induced skeletal muscle fatigue in young women.Lasers in medical science · 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
- Low-level laser therapy reduces the fatigue index in the ankle plantar flexors of healthy subjects.Lasers in medical science · 2016Trial
- Combined aerobic exercise and photobiomodulation for pain and other symptoms in fibromyalgia: study protocol.Pain management · 2025Article
- Photobiomodulation on vocal training and rehabilitation: Delphi consensus based on experts.CoDAS · 2025Article
- Photobiomodulation as Medicine: Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) for Acute Tissue Injury or Sport Performance Recovery.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2024Review
- In vivo attenuation profile of 660 nm and 830 nm wavelengths on human elbow skin and calcaneus tendon of different phototypes.Lasers in medical science · 2024Article
- Rehabilitation of Peripheral Neuropathies: From Lexical Analysis of the Literature to Identification of Clinical Protocols.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Review
- Whole-Body Photobiomodulation Therapy for Fibromyalgia: A Feasibility Trial.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- A Holistic Perspective on How Photobiomodulation May Influence Fatigue, Pain, and Depression in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Beyond Molecular Mechanisms.Biomedicines · 2023Article
- Low-level laser therapy prevents muscle oxidative stress in rats subjected to high-intensity resistance exercise in a dose-dependent manner.Lasers in medical science · 2020Article
- Photobiomodulation by light emitting diode applied sequentially does not alter performance in cycling athletes.Lasers in medical science · 2020Article
- Acute physiological responses to combined blood flow restriction and low-level laser.European journal of applied physiology · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of pre-exercise low-level phototherapy (Light-Emitting Diode therapy [LEDtherapy] or Light Amplification by Stimulate Emission of Radiation therapy [LASERtherapy]) in increasing exercise capacity and muscle performance of people undergoing exercise when compared to placebo treatment. Randomized controlled trials and crossover studies were sought on CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, SciELO, PEDro and LILACS from its inception up to February 2015. References lists of included studies were sought for additional relevant research. Two authors independently extracted data on study design, treatment parameters, exercise capacity (number of repetitions, time to exhaustion, blood lactate concentration and lactate dehydrogenase activity) and muscle performance (torque, power and strength) using an structured table. Agreement should be reached by consensus or by a third reviewer. Sixteen studies involving 297 participants were included. Improvement of number of repetitions (mean difference [MD] [95 % confidence interval] = 3.51 repetitions [0.65-6.37]; P = 0.02), delay in time to exhaustion (MD = 4.01 s [2.10-5.91]; P < 0.0001), reduction in lactate levels (MD = 0.34 mmol/L [0.19-0.48]; P < 0.00001) and increased peak torque (MD = 21.51 Nm [10.01-33.01]; P < 0.00001) were observed when LASERtherapy was applied. LEDtherapy meta-analyses were performed with two studies and retrieved no between-group statistically significant difference in power, lactate levels or time to exhaustion. Although our results suggest that LASERtherapy is effective in improving skeletal muscle exercise capacity, the quality of the current evidence is limited.
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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.