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Skin adhesive low-level light therapy for dysmenorrhoea: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, pilot trial
Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 06/04/2012
Clinical Article
Shin Y et al. – The study suggests that skin adhesive low–level light therapy (LLLT) on acupuncture points might be an effective, simple and safe non–pharmacological treatment for dysmenorrhoea.
Methods- Thirty–one women were included in this randomized, double–blind, placebo–controlled, pilot trial.
- Twenty–one women were treated with active LLLT and ten women were treated with placebo one.
- The therapy was performed in a laboratory room for 20 min a day over a period of 5 days prior to the expected onset of menstruation.
- The outcome was measured using a visual analog scale (VAS) for each participant’s dysmenorrhoeal pain severity.
- VAS of each subject was measured every month for 6 months.
- In the active LLLT group, 16 women reported successful results during their first menstrual cycle just after active LLLT and 5 women had successful results from the second menstrual cycle after active LLLT.
- The pain reduction rate was 83 % in the active LLLT group, whereas there was only a slight and temporary reduction in pain in the placebo LLLT group.
- Changes of VAS within 6 months of LLLT showed statistical significance (p = 0.001) over placebo control.