ABSTRACT

Background Data:

Chronic low back pain is the most disabling condition under 45 years of age. There have been several studies on the effectiveness and analgesic potency of exercises and electrotherapy modalities which are commonly used in daily practice.

Purpose:

Previous studies with magnetic field therapy showed favorable results in patients with chronic pain. However, many of these studies were non-blinded and nonrandomized. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the effectiveness of magnetic field therapy in a double-blinded randomized manner.

Material-methods:

19 volunteered patients with chronic low back pain were enrolled in the study. The patients were randomized and assessed in a double-blinded manner. The therapy group received magnetic field therapy with a daily treatment program of 20 microTesla for 30 minutes per day for 15 days. The subjects in the control group were at rest in a supine position on the mattress pad without magnetic field for 30 minutes per day for a placebo (sham) application. Both groups received a supervised exercise program for the chronic low back pain. Clinical findings and scores of Oswestry disability index (ODI), visual analogue scale (VAS), Rolland-Morris questionnaire (RMQ) and lumbar schober were assessed before and after the treatment period.

Results:

VAS scores were significantly lower in the placebo group while the RMS and ODI scores were significantly lower in the magnetic field therapy group. Percentage change from baseline values were similar for both groups.

Conclusion:

Although the magnetic field therapy did not show an analgesic effect in patients with chronic low back pain, we observed significant improvement in functional assessment tools which primarily evaluate the activities of daily life.