ReviewDiagnostics (Basel, Switzerland)2022
Efficacy of Radiofrequency as Therapy and Diagnostic Support in the Management of Musculoskeletal Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Review in Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland), 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07727551 (Enhancing Functional Outcomes in Total Knee Arthroplasty), which is not on this map. Cited by 25 papers, 1 of them a synthesis 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.
Enhancing Functional Outcomes in Total Knee Arthroplasty: the Role of Preoperative Genicular Radiofrequency
Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Efficacy of Conservative Approaches on Pain Relief and Function in Patients With Rotator Cuff Calcific Tendinopathy: Which Is the Best Option? A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.Orthopaedic surgery · 2025Pooled it
- Evaluating the Efficacy of Capacitive Resistive Monopolar Radiofrequency Combined With Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation in Managing Chronic Low Back Pain: A Randomised Controlled Trial.Physiotherapy research international : the journal for researchers and clinicians in physical therapy · 2025Trial
- Hemp Seed Oil in Association with β-Caryophyllene, Myrcene and Ginger Extract as a Nutraceutical Integration in Knee Osteoarthritis: A Double-Blind Prospective Case-Control Study.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2023Trial
- Effectiveness of Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation Compared with Standardized Exercise-Based Physiotherapy for Chronic Shoulder Pain Treated with Ultrasound-Guided Corticosteroid Injections: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026Article
- Non-Invasive Radiofrequency Therapy for Musculoskeletal, Neurological, and Vascular Conditions of the Lower Limb: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- The evolving landscape of minimally invasive procedures in musculoskeletal diseases-Part II.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Review
- Non-contact radiofrequency stimulation to the olfactory nerve of human subjects.APL bioengineering · 2025Article
- Radiofrequency Currents Modulate Inflammatory Processes in Keratinocytes.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Article
- Efficacy and Accuracy of Ultrasound Guided Injections in the Treatment of Cervical Facet Joint Syndrome: A Systematic Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Review
- How to Evaluate the Efficacy of Manipulations in Spine Disorders-A Comprehensive Review of New and Traditional Outcome Measures.Clinics and practice · 2024Review
- Intramuscular Pulsed Radiofrequency Upregulates BNDF-TrKB Expression in the Spinal Cord in Rats as an Alternative Treatment for Complicated Pain.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Article
- The Efficacy of the Smartphone App for the Self-Management of Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review and Assessment of Their Quality through the Mobile Application Rating Scale (MARS) in Italy.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Anxiety, Depression, and Quality of Sleep Vary in Their Correlation to Postoperative Outcomes of Rotator Cuff Repair: A Prospective Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- The effect of dextrose prolotherapy on patients diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis: A comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis of interventional studies.Health science reports · 2024Review
- Article
- Determining the Most Suitable Ultrasound-Guided Injection Technique in Treating Lumbar Facet Joint Syndrome.Biomedicines · 2023Article
- Article
- Clinical and Biochemical Implications of Hyaluronic Acid in Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation: A Comprehensive Review.Journal of personalized medicine · 2023Review
- Treatment of Lumbar Degenerative Disease with a Novel Interlaminar Screw Elastic Spacer Technique: A Finite Element Analysis.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Is Radiofrequency Ablation Superior to Intra-Articular Injections for the Treatment of Symptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis?-A Systematic Review.Journal of personalized medicine · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Radiofrequency (RF) is a minimally invasive procedure used to interrupt or alter nociceptive pathways for treating musculoskeletal pain. It seems a useful tool to relieve chronic pain syndromes, even if, to date, solid evidence is still needed about the effectiveness of this therapy. By this systematic review and meta-analysis, we aimed to evaluate the efficacy of RF in treating musculoskeletal pain. PubMed, Medline, Cochrane, and PEDro databases were searched to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) presenting the following: patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain as participants; RF as intervention; placebo, anesthetic injection, corticosteroid injection, prolotherapy, conservative treatment, physiotherapy, and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation as comparisons; and pain and functioning as outcomes. Continuous random-effect models with standardized mean difference (SMD) were used to compare the clinical outcomes. Overall, 26 RCTs were eligible and included in the systematic review. All of them analyzed the efficacy of RF in four different regions: cervical and lumbar spine, knee, sacroiliac (SI) joint, shoulder. The outcomes measures were pain, disability, and quality of life. A medium and large effect in favor of the RF treatment group (SMD < 0) was found for the shoulder according to the Visual Analogical Scale and for the SI joint according to the Oswestry Disability Index. A small effect in favor of the RF treatment group (SMD > 0) was found for the spine according to the 36-item Short Form Survey. Non-significant SMD was found for the other outcomes. RF represents a promising therapy for the treatment of chronic musculoskeletal pain, especially when other approaches are ineffective or not practicable. Further studies are warranted to better deepen the effectiveness of RF for pain and joint function for each anatomical region of common application.
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.