Effectiveness of photobiomodulation therapy in the treatment of patients with an ankle sprain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) is widely used in the treatment of patients with musculoskeletal and sports disorders with a lack of significance in patients with sprain ankle. PURPOSE: This review investigated the effect of PBMT on pain, oedema, and function in patients with an ankle sprain. METHODS: A systematic search of the databases (MEDLINE, PubMed, EBSCO, Web of Science, Wiley Online Library, Science Direct, Physiotherapy Evidence (PEDro), and the Cochrane Databases) was performed from inception to the end of 2023 to identify any clinical study investigating the effect of PBMT on ankle sprain. PBMT parameters and measured outcomes were extracted. The primary measured outcome was pain and function, and oedema were secondary measured outcomes. Methodological quality was assessed using the PEDro scale. The level of evidence was determined by the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system. A random effect meta-analysis with forest plot was used to calculate standardized mean difference (SMD) at a 95% confidence interval and the overall effect size (ES). RESULTS: Six studies (598 patients) were included in the review and five studies in the meta-analysis. There were two fair-quality and four good-quality studies, with a moderate level of evidence on pain, and a low level of evidence on oedema and function. The meta-analysis revealed a significant overall effect of PBMT on pain with high ES [SMD - 0.88 (-1.76, -0.00), p = 0.05], with a non-significant effect on oedema and function with a medium ES [SMD - 0.70 (-1.64, 0.24), p = 0.14] on oedema and low ES on function [SMD - 0.22 (-0.69, 0.24), p = 0.35]. Significant heterogeneity was observed in all measured outcomes with high heterogeneity (I2 > 75%) in pain and oedema and moderate heterogeneity in function. CONCLUSION: PBMT is quite effective for patients with an ankle sprain. PBMT showed high effect size with a moderate level of evidence on pain intensity. The lack of significant effects of PBMT on function and edema with low level of evidence limit the confidence to the current results and recommend further large high-quality studies with higher PBMT intensity and fluency for standardisation of the irradiation parameters and treatment protocol. REGISTRATION: PROSPERO registration number (CRD42021292930).

Pulsed ND:YAG laser combined with progressive pressure release in the treatment of cervical myofascial pain syndrome: a randomized control trial.

[Purpose] To investigate the effect of pulsed Nd:YAG laser combined with the progressive pressure release technique (PPRT) and exercises in the treatment of myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) in patients with myofascial pain syndrome (MPS). [Participants and Methods] A total of 50 patients with MTrPs in the upper trapezius muscle participated in the study. The patients were randomly assigned to two groups and treated with laser plus PPRT (Laser + PPRT group) or placebo laser and exercises (PL + PPRT group). The laser was applied for eight MTrPs with a 50 J/point. PPRT was applied for 30 seconds for each point. Exercises included strengthening and stretching exercises applied three times per week for four weeks. A visual analogue scale (VAS) and pressure pain threshold (PPT) were used to measure pain and pain threshold, respectively. A cervical range of motion device (CROM) was used to measure the cervical range of motion. [Results] Both treatment groups showed significant improvement in CROM, PPT, and VAS post-treatment with a more significant effect in the Laser + PPRT group compared to the PL + PPRT group. [Conclusion] PPRT and exercises alone or that in combination with laser therapy were effective in the treatment of active MTrPs in patients with MPS.

Effectiveness of Photobiomodulation Therapy in the Treatment of Myofascial Pain Syndrome of the Upper Trapezius Muscle: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Objective: This systematic review aimed to investigate the efficacy of photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) on pain and pressure pain threshold (PPT) in patients with myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) of the upper trapezius muscle. Materials and methods: A total of 17 studies (944 patients) were included; data regarding participants, intervention parameters, outcome measures, time of measurement, and follow-up were extracted. Evaluation of the methodological quality was performed by Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale. Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system was used to assess the quality of evidence. A meta-analysis was performed on 16 studies, and standardized mean difference (SMD), corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI), and overall effect size (ES) were calculated. Results: Meta-analysis using a random-effect model was performed to evaluate the effects of PBMT alone or PBMT plus exercise (EX) compared with placebo, medical treatment, physical therapy (PT) modality, manual therapy, or complementary PT. Assessment according to the PEDro scale revealed 12 high-quality, 3 fair-quality, and 2 low-quality studies. According to the GRADE system, studies exhibited low to medium quality of evidence, with medium ES [SMD -0.54 (95% CI -1.05 to -0.02)] for studies using PBMT alone and large ES [SMD -0.80 (95% CI -1.35 to -0.26)] for PBMT+EX. Conclusions: The present systemic review revealed that PBMT is an effective PT modality for reducing pain and increasing PPT in patients with MPS of the upper trapezius. PBMT, when combined with EX, had more significant effects in reducing pain and increasing PPT compared with controls. The low-quality studies with low to moderate quality of evidence limit the confidence in the effect estimate and recommend further high-quality studies for standardization of treatment protocols and irradiation parameters. PROSPERO registration number: CRD42021241155.