Trends in the availability and usage of electrophysical agents in physiotherapy practices from 1990 to 2010: a review

Shah, Syed Ghulam Sarwar; Farrow, Alexandra

doi:10.1179/1743288x12y.0000000007

Cited by 34 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…These concerns became stronger as a result of the announcement from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) that EMFs should be classified as possible carcinogens to humans (Group 2B) in both the power frequency 10) , and the radiofrequency range 11) . In addition, a considerable decline in the use of therapeutic diathermy in particular MWD and continuous SWD (CSWD) has been reported in several countries 12) . There are reports of cessation of MWD usage in physiotherapy departments in government sector hospitals in south-eastern and south-western England 13) .…”

Section: Diathermy Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fieldsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Systematic Literature Review of Adverse Reproductive Outcomes Associated with Physiotherapists' Occupational Exposures to Non‐ionising Radiation

Shah

Farrow

2014

Journal of Occupational Health

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Systematic Literature Review of Adverse Reproductive Outcomes Associated with Physiotherapists' Occupational Exposures to Non‐ionising Radiation: Syed Ghulam Sarwar SHAH, et al. School of Health Sciences and Social Care, Brunel University London, UK— Objectives To review empirical research on adverse health and pregnancy outcomes associated with physiotherapists' occupational exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF EMFs) from shortwave (SWD) and microwave (MWD) diathermy devices. Methods A systematic review of peer reviewed literature published from 1990 to 2010 in the English language searched in eight online bibliographic databases: CINAHL, EBSCOhost, ISI Web of Knowledge, Medline, OSH UPDATE, PubMed Central, Science Direct, and Scopus. Results Findings suggest that physiotherapists' occupational exposure to SWD was statistically significantly associated with delayed time to pregnancy (>6 months), still birth, altered gender ratio (low ratio of boys to girls), congenital malformations and low birth weight (<2,500 g) among physiotherapists' offspring. Physiotherapists' exposure to MWD was also found to be statistically significantly associated with spontaneous abortion. However, causal mechanisms for these statistical associations are unknown. The present systematic review has found these adverse reproductive outcomes and health effects associations with RF EMFs from therapeutic diathermy devices to be inconsistent. Conclusions A number of studies did not find statistically significant results to replicate associations with such adverse outcomes, and therefore further research, preferably prospective studies of cohorts of physiotherapists, is warranted.

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Section: Diathermy Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fieldsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Systematic Literature Review of Adverse Reproductive Outcomes Associated with Physiotherapists' Occupational Exposures to Non‐ionising Radiation

Shah

Farrow

2014

Journal of Occupational Health

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“…27 According to some authors, unlike other heating modalities such as ultrasound or heat packs, MWD has lost its popularity in clinical practice in the last 20 years. 28,29 MWD devices are no longer manufactured in the US. 22 One survey in Australia revealed that the use of MWD was the least frequent compared to other electrophysical agents, where 99.4% of physiotherapists responded as 'not at all' to its frequency of use.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Effects of microwave diathermy on signs and symptoms of delayed onset muscle soreness: a systematic review of Japanese primary studies

Mine

Nakayama

Milanese

et al. 2015

Physical Therapy Reviews

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Background: Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is a common problem experienced after exercise. The use of heat has been proposed to relieve symptoms. Microwave diathermy (MWD) is a physical modality that produces deep heat in the tissues. Although its use in the Western world has become less common since the 1980s, it is still frequently used in Japan. Objective: The purpose of this systematic review was to collect and assess Japanese language experimental research regarding the effect of MWD on signs and symptoms of DOMS. Methods: Three Japanese databases (CiNii, Ichushi and Medical*Online) and five English databases (CINAHL, Embase, MEDLINE, Scopus and Web of Science) were searched until 2 March 2015. Only Japanese-language experimental studies were included. Two Japanese native speakers independently assessed the methodological quality of included studies using the McMaster Critical Review Form. Data were synthesised qualitatively. Results: Three non-randomised experimental trials investigating the effects of MWD at 2450 MHz on DOMS in elbow flexors were included. All studies had moderate methodological qualities. Two studies reported significant positive effects on active range of motion (ROM) after eccentric exercises. No significant effect was identified in pain, circumference, maximal isometric strength and biochemical markers. Conclusion: Our systematic review found limited formal evidence about the effect of MWD to improve active elbow ROM for subjects with DOMS. Real effects were difficult to assess due to the potential lack of statistical precision in data derived from small sample sizes. Future research should address the methodological flaws identified in this review, to provide more conclusive evidence.

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“…Within this range the main EPA used is shortwave therapy (SWT), which commonly operates at 27.12 MHz, either in continuous (CSWT) or pulsed (PSWT) mode although it is 4 largely limited to PSWT in contemporary practice (25,27). SWT is also the most widely researched radiofrequency-based EPA.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The clinical use of CSWT has decreased significantly in the western world over the recent decades (25,27). Currently, no data is available from the literature comparing the two EPAs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Continuous-mode 448 kHz capacitive resistive monopolar radiofrequency induces greater deep blood flow changes compared to pulsed mode shortwave: a crossover study in healthy adults

Kumaran

Herbland

Watson

2017

European Journal of Physiotherapy

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Trends in the availability and usage of electrophysical agents in physiotherapy practices from 1990 to 2010: a review

Abstract: Background: The use of electrophysical agents has a historically important role in

Cited by 34 publications

References 42 publications

Systematic Literature Review of Adverse Reproductive Outcomes Associated with Physiotherapists' Occupational Exposures to Non‐ionising Radiation

Systematic Literature Review of Adverse Reproductive Outcomes Associated with Physiotherapists' Occupational Exposures to Non‐ionising Radiation

Effects of microwave diathermy on signs and symptoms of delayed onset muscle soreness: a systematic review of Japanese primary studies

Continuous-mode 448 kHz capacitive resistive monopolar radiofrequency induces greater deep blood flow changes compared to pulsed mode shortwave: a crossover study in healthy adults

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