Trial reportMedicine2020
Neuromuscular electrical stimulation and shortwave diathermy in unrecovered Bell palsy: A randomized controlled study.
Trial report in Medicine, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06063954 (A Randomized Trial Comparing Two Electroacupuncture Waveforms for Different Severity Groups of Bell Palsy), which is not on this map. Cited by 22 papers, 3 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.
A Randomized Trial Comparing Two Electroacupuncture Waveforms for Different Severity Groups of Bell Palsy
Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 35 citations in OpenAlex.
- Towards the strategies of return to sport after lateral ankle Sprain: a systematic review.Annals of medicine · 2025Pooled it
- Application of facial neuromuscular electrical stimulation (fNMES) in psychophysiological research: Practical recommendations based on a systematic review of the literature.Behavior research methods · 2024Guideline
- Treatment Approaches for Altered Facial Expression: A Systematic Review in Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy and Other Neurological Diseases.Journal of neuromuscular diseases · 2024Pooled it
- Laser acupuncture and photobiomodulation therapy in Bell's palsy with a duration of greater than 8 weeks: a randomized controlled trial.Lasers in medical science · 2024Trial
- Effects of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation Combined with Exercises versus an Exercise Program on the Physical Characteristics and Functions of the Elderly: A Randomized Controlled Trial.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Trial
- Manual Lymph Drainage Vodder (MLDV) Increases Facial Function in Bell's Palsy Patients.International journal of therapeutic massage & bodywork · 2026Article
- Facial Electrical Muscle Stimulation for Soft-tissue Lifting and Symmetry Enhancement.Plastic and reconstructive surgery. Global open · 2026Article
- Combined ultrasound-guided hyaluronic acid injections, high-power laser therapy and physiotherapy improve hip function in osteoarthritis: A randomized controlled trial.Journal of experimental orthopaedics · 2026Article
- Accessible 2D video-based system for gait kinematic analysis: an inter-rater reliability study.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2026Article
- Article
- Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation and/or Electrical Stimulation in Patients with Peripheral Facial Paralysis: A Systematic Review.Neurology international · 2025Review
- Myofunctional Speech Therapy for Facial Rejuvenation and Orofacial Function Improvement: A Systematic Review.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2024Review
- Effect of neural mobilisation in Bell's palsy: A randomised controlled trial.Hong Kong physiotherapy journal : official publication of the Hong Kong Physiotherapy Association Limited = Wu li chih liao · 2023Article
- Efficacy of adding selective electrical muscle stimulation to usual physical therapy for Bell's palsy: immediate and six-month outcomes.European journal of translational myology · 2023Article
- Cryo plus Ultrasound Therapy, a Novel Rehabilitative Approach for Football Players with Acute Lateral Ankle Injury Sprain: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Selective zygomaticus muscle activation by ball electrodes in synkinetically reinnervated patients after facial paralysis.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciences · 2023Article
- A new method for assessing lung tumor motion in radiotherapy using dynamic chest radiography.Journal of applied clinical medical physics · 2022Article
- Volunteers' concerns about facial neuromuscular electrical stimulation.BMC psychology · 2022Article
- A Telerehabilitation Approach to Chronic Facial Paralysis in the COVID-19 Pandemic Scenario: What Role for Electromyography Assessment?Journal of personalized medicine · 2022Article
- Post-Stroke Treatment with Neuromuscular Functional Electrostimulation of Antagonistic Muscles and Kinesiotherapy Evaluated with Electromyography and Clinical Studies in a Two-Month Follow-Up.International journal of environmental research and public health · 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
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundUnrecovered Bell palsy is difficult to treat, because until now in literature there is not a gold standard. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) and shortwave diathermy (SWD) therapy for chronic Bell palsy.
methodsAfter 5 months of conventional therapy, this 2-arm randomized controlled trial enrolled and randomly allocated 20 patients to a treatment group with NMES+SWD and supervised exercises (n = 10) or a sham group with supervised exercise alone (n = 10). The administration of NMES or sham NMES, as intervention, was performed 30 min/session, 5 sessions/wk, for 4 weeks. The primary outcome was assessed by Sunnybrook scale. The secondary outcomes were evaluated by the Kinovea©, a movement analysis software. All primary and secondary outcomes were measured at baseline (T0), at the end of 4-week treatment (T1).
resultsAt the end of 4-week treatment, the patients in the treatment group did not achieve better outcomes in resting symmetry, but we observed an increase of the perceived a significant improvement (P < .05) for symmetry of voluntary movements by the Sunnybrook subscale, with a score of 55.4 ± 9 compared to 46.4 ± 3.7 to control group and an increase in zygomatic muscle movement symmetry ratio (P < .05) by Kinovea©. No adverse events occurred in either group.
conclusionThe improvements in the symmetry of voluntary movements demonstrated that combining diathermy with neuromuscular electrostimulation is valid and reliable in the treatment of chronic Bell palsy.
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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.