Ross Christina, Overholt Tyler, Xu Raymond, Badlani Gopal, Evans Robert J, Matthews Catherine A, Walker Stephen J
Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, 391 Technology Way, Winston Salem, NC, 27101, USA.
Department of Urology/Female Pelvic Health, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.
Int Urogynecol J. 2022 Mar;33(3):487-491. doi: 10.1007/s00192-021-04862-3. Epub 2021 Jun 8.
Patients with interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS) often experience chronic pelvic and even systemic pain that can be difficult to clinically manage. Pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) therapy, a non-invasive strategy that has shown significant efficacy for pain reduction in other chronic pain conditions, may provide benefit for pain management in patients with IC/BPS.
PEMF delivery to patients occurs via a bio-electromagnetic-energy device which consists of a flexible mat (180 × 50 cm) that the patient lies on for systemic, full-body delivery and/or a flexible pad (50 × 15 cm) for targeted delivery to a specific body region (e.g., pelvic area). The duration of individual sessions, number of sessions per day, total number of sessions, and follow-up observation period vary between previously published studies. Positive outcomes are typically reported as a significant reduction in visual analog scale (VAS) pain score and functional improvement assessed using validated questionnaires specific to the condition under study.
The use of PEMF has been evaluated as a therapeutic strategy for pain management in several clinical scenarios. Randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trials have reported positive efficacy and safety profiles when PEMF was used to treat non-specific low back pain, patellofemoral pain syndrome, chronic post-operative pain, osteoarthritis-related pain, rheumatoid arthritis-related pain, and fibromyalgia-related pain. Based on these positive outcomes in a variety of pain conditions, clinical trials to evaluate whether PEMF can provide a safe, non-invasive therapeutic approach to improve symptoms of chronic pain and fatigue in patients with IC/BPS are warranted.
间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征（IC/BPS）患者常经历慢性盆腔疼痛甚至全身性疼痛，临床管理颇具难度。脉冲电磁场（PEMF）疗法是一种非侵入性策略，已在其他慢性疼痛病症中显示出显著的止痛效果，可能对IC/BPS患者的疼痛管理有益。
通过生物电磁能量设备向患者输送PEMF，该设备包括一块柔性垫（180×50厘米），患者躺在上面接受全身照射，和/或一块柔性垫（50×15厘米）用于靶向照射特定身体区域（如盆腔区域）。先前发表的研究中，单次治疗时长、每日治疗次数、总治疗次数以及随访观察期各不相同。阳性结果通常表现为视觉模拟量表（VAS）疼痛评分显著降低，以及使用针对所研究病症的有效问卷评估的功能改善。
在几种临床情况下，已对PEMF作为疼痛管理治疗策略进行了评估。随机、双盲、安慰剂对照试验报告称，当PEMF用于治疗非特异性腰痛、髌股疼痛综合征、慢性术后疼痛、骨关节炎相关疼痛、类风湿关节炎相关疼痛和纤维肌痛相关疼痛时，具有积极的疗效和安全性。基于这些在多种疼痛病症中的积极结果，有必要开展临床试验以评估PEMF是否能为改善IC/BPS患者的慢性疼痛和疲劳症状提供一种安全、非侵入性的治疗方法。
