ReviewJournal of clinical medicine2023
The Efficacy of Electromagnetic Diathermy for the Treatment of Musculoskeletal Disorders: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.
Review in Journal of clinical medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
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
7 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.
- Local hyperthermia therapy for the pain management of knee osteoarthritis: a network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.EFORT open reviews · 2026Article
- Integrated Multi-Sensor Assessment System for Objective Muscle Recovery Monitoring: Application of Isokinetic Dynamometry, Infrared Thermometry, and Multi-Biomarker ELISA in Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage Surveillance.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Short-Term Effects of Capacitive and Resistive Electric Transfer Therapy and Static Splinting in the Management of Trigger Finger: A Non-Randomized Clinical Study.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Article
- Article
- Electromagnetic Fields, Electrical Stimulation, and Vacuum Simultaneously Applied for Major Burn Scars.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Temporomandibular Disorder Treatment With Diathermy Stimulation Technique: A Pilot Study.International journal of dentistry · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThis study aims to establish the effect of electromagnetic diathermy therapies (e.g., shortwave, microwave, capacitive resistive electric transfer) on pain, function, and quality of life in treating musculoskeletal disorders.
methodsWe conducted a systematic review according to the PRISMA statement and Cochrane Handbook 6.3. The protocol has been registered in PROSPERO: CRD42021239466. The search was conducted in PubMed, PEDro, CENTRAL, EMBASE, and CINAHL.
resultsWe retrieved 13,323 records; 68 studies were included. Many pathologies were treated with diathermy against placebo, as a standalone intervention or alongside other therapies. Most of the pooled studies did not show significant improvements in the primary outcomes. While the analysis of single studies shows several significant results in favour of diathermy, all comparisons considered had a GRADE quality of evidence between low and very low.
conclusionsThe included studies show controversial results. Most of the pooled studies present very low quality of evidence and no significant results, while single studies have significant results with a slightly higher quality of evidence (low), highlighting a critical lack of evidence in the field. The results did not support the adoption of diathermy in a clinical context, preferring therapies supported by evidence.
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.