Usichenko Taras I, Ivashkivsky Olexiy I, Gizhko Vasyl V
Anesthesiology & Intensive Care Medicine Department, University of Greifswald, Germany.
Acupunct Electrother Res. 2003;28(1-2):11-8. doi: 10.3727/036012903815901723.
The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of electromagnetic millimeter waves (MW) applied to acupuncture points in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Twelve patients with RA were exposed to MW with power 2.5 mW and band frequency 54-64 GHz. MW were applied to the acupuncture points of the affected joints in a double blind manner. At least 2 and maximum 4 points were consecutively exposed to MW during one session. Total exposure time consisted of 40 minutes. According to the study design, group I received only real millimeter wave therapy (MWT) sessions, group II only sham sessions. Group III was exposed to MW in a random cross-over manner. Pain intensity, joint stiffness and laboratory parameters were recorded before, during and immediately after the treatment. The study was discontinued because of beneficial therapeutic effects of MWT. Patients from group I (n=4) reported significant pain relief and reduced joint stiffness during and after the course of therapy. Patients from group II (n=4) revealed no improvement during the study. Patients from group III reported the changes of pain and joint stiffness only after real MW sessions. After further large-scale clinical investigations MWT may become a non-invasive adjunct in therapy of patients with RA.
本研究的目的是评估电磁毫米波（MW）应用于类风湿性关节炎（RA）患者穴位的疗效和安全性。12例RA患者接受功率为2.5 mW、频段为54 - 64 GHz的毫米波照射。毫米波以双盲方式应用于受累关节的穴位。在一次治疗中，至少2个且最多4个穴位连续接受毫米波照射。总照射时间为40分钟。根据研究设计，第一组仅接受真正的毫米波治疗（MWT），第二组仅接受假治疗。第三组以随机交叉方式接受毫米波照射。在治疗前、治疗期间和治疗后立即记录疼痛强度、关节僵硬程度和实验室参数。由于MWT具有有益的治疗效果，该研究提前终止。第一组（n = 4）的患者在治疗过程中和治疗后报告疼痛明显减轻，关节僵硬程度降低。第二组（n = 4）的患者在研究期间未见改善。第三组的患者仅在接受真正的毫米波治疗后报告疼痛和关节僵硬程度有所变化。经过进一步大规模临床研究后，MWT可能成为RA患者治疗中的一种非侵入性辅助治疗方法。
