ArticleBMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation2021
The effect of low-level red and near-infrared photobiomodulation on pain and function in tendinopathy: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized control trials.
Article in BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 2 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
14 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 20 citations in OpenAlex.
- Umbrella review of low-level light therapy: evidence across clinical conditions.Lasers in medical science · 2026Pooled it
- Effects of photobiomodulation on multiple health outcomes: an umbrella review of randomized clinical trials.Systematic reviews · 2025Pooled it
- Pulsed 830-nm Laser Irradiation Modulates Aδ- and C-Fiber-Mediated Pain Thresholds in Healthy Adults: A Randomized, Sham-Controlled Trial.Lasers in surgery and medicine · 2026Trial
- Light therapy in medicine: where do we stand?Annals of translational medicine · 2026Review
- Parameter-screened LED therapy targets STAT3/IL-6 axis to attenuate tendinopathy via dual modulation of inflammation and ECM remodeling.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2026Article
- Structure of tendon causes highly optical anisotropic properties and transport.Journal of biomedical optics · 2026Article
- Potential and Challenges of Transcranial Photobiomodulation for the Treatment of Stroke.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2024Review
- Photobiomodulation as Medicine: Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) for Acute Tissue Injury or Sport Performance Recovery.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2024Review
- Effect of photobiomodulation on lower urinary tract dysfunction in rat cystitis model.PloS one · 2024Article
- Outcomes of whole-body photobiomodulation on pain, quality of life, leisure physical activity, pain catastrophizing, kinesiophobia, and self-efficacy: a prospective randomized triple-blinded clinical trial with 6 months of follow-up.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2024Article
- Short-Term Effects of Whole-Body Photobiomodulation on Pain, Quality of Life and Psychological Factors in a Population Suffering from Fibromyalgia: A Triple-Blinded Randomised Clinical Trial.Pain and therapy · 2023Article
- Near-Infrared Photobiomodulation of the Peripheral Nerve Inhibits the Neuronal Firing in a Rat Spinal Dorsal Horn Evoked by Mechanical Stimulation.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Article
- Roles of Oxidative Stress in Acute Tendon Injury and Degenerative Tendinopathy-A Target for Intervention.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Review
- Effectiveness of Photobiomodulation and Exercise-Based Rehabilitation on Pain and Functional Recovery in Patients With Rotator Cuff Pathology.Wound repair and regeneration : official publication of the Wound Healing Society [and] the European Tissue Repair SocietyArticle
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 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundTendinopathy is a common clinical condition that can significantly affect a person's physical function and quality of life. Despite exercise therapy being the mainstay of tendinopathy management, there are many potential adjunct therapies that remain under investigated, one of which is photobiomodulation (PBM). PBM uses varied wavelengths of light to create a biological effect. While PBM is used frequently in the management of tendinopathy, high quality evidence supporting its utility is lacking.
methodsA systematic search of the Pubmed, CINAHL, SCOPUS, Cochrane Database, Web of Science and SPORTSDICUS databases was performed for eligible articles in August 2020. Randomized Control Trials that used red or near-infrared PBM to treat tendinopathy disorders that made comparisons with a sham or 'other' intervention were included. Pain and function data were extracted from the included studies. The data were synthesized using a random effects model. The meta-analysis was performed using the mean difference (MD) and standardized mean difference (SMD) statistics.
resultsA total of 17 trials were included (n = 835). When compared solely to other interventions PBM resulted in similar decreases in pain (MD -0.09; 95% CI - 0.79 to 0.61) and a smaller improvement in function (SMD -0.52; 95% CI - 0.81 to - 0.23). When PBM plus exercise was compared to sham treatment plus exercise, PBM demonstrated greater decreases in pain (MD 1.06; 95% CI 0.57 to 1.55) and improved function (MD 5.65; 95% CI 0.25 to 11.04). When PBM plus exercise was compared to other interventions plus exercise, no differences were noted in pain levels (MD 0.31; 95% CI - 0.07 to 0.70). Most studies were judged as low-risk of bias. The outcome measures were classified as very low to moderate evidence quality according to the Grading of Recommendation, Development and Evaluation tool.
conclusionThere is very-low-to-moderate quality evidence demonstrating that PBM has utility as a standalone and/or adjunctive therapy for tendinopathy disorders.
trial registrationPROPERO registration number: CRD42020202508 .
Indexed as
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.