Far infrared emitting plaster in knee osteoarthritis: a single blinded, randomised clinical trial

Submitted: 22 May 2012
Accepted: 29 September 2012
Published: 20 December 2012
Abstract Views: 3688
PDF: 2111
Publisher's note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Authors

Objective. Therapeutic approach of osteoarthritis (OA) still represents a challenge in clinical practice. The aim of the study is to assess the efficacy of far infrared (FIR) emitting plaster in the treatment of knee OA. Design. This is a randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel group with equal randomization (1:1), clinical trial. Patients affected by knee OA were randomly allocated to 1 of 2 treatment groups, either placebo plaster or far infrared emitting plaster. Primary endpoint was to assess pain improvement from baseline to 1 months posttreatment in the visual analogue score (VAS). Secondary end point was to evaluate pain score after 1 week of treatment and to compare ultrasonographic findings after 1 month of treatment. Results. Each group comprised 30 (in the FIR group) and 30 (in the placebo group) completers. VAS scores of the placebo and the FIR group were significantly lower at 1 week post-treatment (95% confidence interval CI = -1.14 to 0.31; P<0.05) and at the end of the study (95% confidence interval CI = -2.57 to -0.89; P=0.01). Effect size was -0.43 after one week of treatment and -1.38 after one month of treatment. The mean decrease in VAS values was ≥20% in the FIR group. The number of patients from the FIR group with joint effusion was lower (40%) compared to baseline (80%), while no changes were seen among the placebo group. Conclusions. Far infrared emitting plaster could be considered an effective non-pharmacological choice for the therapeutic management of knee OA.

Dimensions

Altmetric

PlumX Metrics

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Citations

Supporting Agencies

none

How to Cite

Bagnato, G., Miceli, G., Atteritano, M., Marino, N., & Bagnato, G. (2012). Far infrared emitting plaster in knee osteoarthritis: a single blinded, randomised clinical trial. Reumatismo, 64(6), 388–394. https://doi.org/10.4081/reumatismo.2012.388