Objectives
Fibromyalgia symptoms have a significant impact on the quality of life and respond poorly to medications. It has been hypothesized that the use of low-energy pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) induces neuroprotective effects that may interfere with pain perception. We explored the efficacy of PEMF in patients affected by fibromyalgia.
Methods
Twenty-one females (median age 59 years, interquartile range [IQR] 16.5) affected by fibromyalgia were randomized to receive pulsed electromagnetic field-triple energy pain treatment (PEMF-TEPT) or placebo at T0 and at 4 weeks and 8 weeks. Fibromyalgia impact questionnaire (FIQ), widespread pain index (WPI), visual analog score (VAS) pain, symptom severity (SS) scale, and short form 36 (SF-36) health survey questionnaire have been evaluated.
Results
Patients in the PEMF-TEPT group had a significantly higher reduction of WPI compared to placebo (mean difference −12.90 ± standard deviation [SD] 5.32 vs. −1.91 ± 4.55, difference in difference [DD] of −10.99; P < 0.001), of SS score (−4.10 ± 4.85 vs. −2.00 ± 2.32; DD = −2.1; P < 0.05), of VAS pain (−48 ± 30.75 vs. −16.82 ± 23.69; DD = −31.18; P < 0.01). They also reported a higher improvement of FIQ and SF-36, albeit not reaching statistical significance.
Conclusion
In our pilot controlled study, PEMF-TEPT appeared to be safe and improved fibromyalgia symptoms.
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