Medications have only
limited efficacy in treating neck pain, a common and costly problem, Dr. Roberta
T. Chow, from the University of Sydney, Australia, and colleagues note. Although
a number of studies have looked at LLLT as a treatment for neck pain, its
efficacy remains unclear.
Searching various
computerized databases, Dr. Chow's team identified 16 randomized controlled
trials (with 820 patients) that compared LLLT with placebo or with active
control as a treatment for acute or chronic neck pain.
According to their
report in the November 13th online issue of The Lancet, data from two of the
trials showed that LLLT was 69% more likely than placebo to improve acute
neck pain.
In five trials looking
at chronic neck pain and reporting categorical data, LLLT was roughly four times
more likely than placebo to improve pain. In 11 trials that evaluated changes in
visual analogue scale, LLLT was associated with a mean drop in pain intensity
of 19.86 mm.
Data from seven trials,
with up to 22 weeks of follow-up, showed persistent pain relief for up to 6
months, with a mean reduction in pain intensity of 22.07
mm.
LLLT was well tolerated
and side effects were comparable to what was seen with placebo, the report
indicates.
The evidence from this
analysis that LLLT is effective for neck pain "is more solid than that
for many current interventions," Dr. Jaime Guzman, from the University of
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, writes in an
editorial.
"Although the
mechanisms of action and effects on function and occupational outcomes are not
clearly understood and warrant further impartial study, LLLT is an option worthy
of consideration for management of non-specific neck pain," the researcher
concludes.
Lancet
2009.
Reuters Health
Information © 2009