ReviewBrazilian journal of physical therapy
Clinical and scientific recommendations for the use of photobiomodulation therapy in exercise performance enhancement and post-exercise recovery: current evidence and future directions.
Review in Brazilian journal of physical therapy. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 47 papers, 4 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
47 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Photobiomodulation in chronic pain: a systematic review of randomized clinical trials.Frontiers in integrative neuroscience · 2026Pooled it
- A systematic review and meta-analysis of the acute effects of photobiomodulation therapy on the maximum number of repetitions in resistance exercise in young adults.Lasers in medical science · 2025Pooled it
- Can pre-exercise photobiomodulation improve muscle endurance and promote recovery from muscle strength and injuries in people with different activity levels? A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Lasers in medical science · 2024Pooled it
- Comparison between cryotherapy and photobiomodulation in muscle recovery: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Lasers in medical science · 2022Pooled it
- Acute effect of photobiomodulation therapy in quadriceps strength, fatigue and pain of patients with chronic kidney failure: a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled crossover clinical trial.Lasers in medical science · 2026Trial
- Immediate effects of photobiomodulation on maximum tongue pressure: a randomized clinical study.CoDAS · 2025Trial
- 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
- Influence of photobiomodulation therapy on the physical performance of women during the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle: A double-blind Sham-controlled randomized clinical trial.Lasers in medical science · 2023Trial
- Whole-body photobiomodulation improves post-exercise recovery but does not affect performance or physiological response during maximal anaerobic cycling.Lasers in medical science · 2023Trial
- Effect of photobiomodulation therapy on trunk flexor performance after incisional hernia repair: a randomized controlled trial.Lasers in medical science · 2022Trial
- Trial
- Acute application of photobiomodulation does not bring important gains for the muscular performance and functionality of diabetic individuals.Lasers in medical science · 2021Trial
- Photobiomodulation therapy increases functional capacity of patients with chronic kidney failure: randomized controlled trial.Lasers in medical science · 2021Trial
- Acute effects of photobiomodulation therapy and magnetic field on functional mobility in stroke survivors: a randomized, sham-controlled, triple-blind, crossover, clinical trial.Lasers in medical science · 2020Trial
- Infrared Low-Level Laser Therapy (Photobiomodulation Therapy) before Intense Progressive Running Test of High-Level Soccer Players: Effects on Functional, Muscle Damage, Inflammatory, and Oxidative Stress Markers-A Randomized Controlled Trial.Oxidative medicine and cellular longevity · 2019Trial
- Preliminary pre-post changes in neuromuscular performance after application of a wearable photobiomodulation device in young tennis athletes.European journal of translational myology · 2026Article
- Aerobic exercise reduces oxidative damage and improves heart function in diabetic rats with heart failure: No extra effect from photobiomodulation.Journal of diabetes and metabolic disorders · 2026Article
- Is Exercise Enough? Evidence from Controlled Clinical Trials on Rehabilitation with and Without Adjunct Modalities for Musculoskeletal Disorders.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Photobiomodulation Combined with Moderate or High-Intensity Interval Training on Oxygen Consumption and Exercise Tolerance in Patients with Heart Failure.Arquivos brasileiros de cardiologia · 2025Article
- Chronic Intermittent Hypoxia-Induced Neural Injury: Pathophysiology, Neurodegenerative Implications, and Therapeutic Insights.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThere is about ten years since the first randomized controlled trial looking for the effects of photobiomodulation therapy using low-level laser therapy and/or light emitting diodes therapy in athletic performance enhancement was published. Since then, the knowledge in this field has increasing exponentially.
objectiveGiven the fast advance in clinical interest, research and development in the use of photobiomodulation therapy for athletic performance enhancement and also to accelerate post-exercise recovery, as pioneers in this research field we felt the need to establish recommendations to ensure the correct use of the therapy, and also to guide the further studies in this area looking for the achievement of highest scientific evidence. It is important to highlight that the establishment of both clinical and scientific recommendations in this masterclass article were based on the most recent systematic reviews with meta-analysis and randomized controlled trials published in this field. It is important to stress that the recommendations of this masterclass article are based on most recent systematic reviews with meta-analysis and RCTs published in this research field. Future guidelines must follow the same direction and must be based only at the highest scientific evidence, avoiding overstatements and extrapolations based on animal experiments and case-studies.
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Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.