Longano Cláudia, de Faria Coelho Carly, Buslik Sandra Alencar, Foguel Cicelina, Katsuragi Camila, Leonardo Patrícia Sardinha, Lopes-Martins Rodrigo Álvaro Brandão
Bioengineering - Universidade Brasil, Rua Carolina Fonseca 235, Itaquera, São Paulo, SP, Brasil.
Laboratory of Biophotonics and Experimental Therapeutics, Universidade Evangélica de Goiás, Unievangélica. Av. Universitária Km 3,5, Anápolis, Goiás, Brasil.
Lasers Med Sci. 2024 May 2;39(1):120. doi: 10.1007/s10103-024-04068-1.
Cellulite, a perceived alteration in skin topography, is predominantly found in adipose tissue-rich body regions such as the hips, buttocks, thighs, and abdomen. Contrary to common belief, the etiology and pathophysiology of cellulite are not well-established or universally agreed upon. This lack of understanding about the actual etiology of cellulite directly influences the selection of suitable treatments that can address both the aesthetic and inflammatory aspects of the condition. Various treatment methods, including electrophysical agents like electric currents, radiofrequency, ultrasound, and photobiomodulation, have been tested. However, the questionable methodological quality of many studies complicates the determination of effective treatments for cellulite. In this study, we conducted a systematic review of clinical studies that utilized electrophysical agents in cellulite treatment.
We employed the PICO (population, intervention, control, and outcome) process to develop our search strategy and establish inclusion/exclusion criteria. We searched five databases: Medline, Central, Scopus, Lilacs, and PEDro, for studies conducted between 2001 and July 2021 that involved cellulite treatment with electrophysical agents. To ensure systematicity and guide study selection, we adhered to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) guidelines.
Our initial search yielded 556 articles: 379 from Medline, 159 from Central, and 18 from Lilacs. After applying our inclusion criteria, only 32 studies remained. Of these, only two (6.2%) were evaluated as having strong and good methodology via the QualSyst tool.
Our findings indicate that the quality of evidence from clinical studies on the use of electrophysical agents for cellulite treatment remains subpar. Further studies with robust experimental designs and more precise assessment techniques are necessary. While our study does not refute the effectiveness of the techniques used for cellulite treatment, it underscores the need for additional well-designed trials.
橘皮组织是一种可察觉到的皮肤表面形态改变，主要出现在臀部、大腿、腹部等富含脂肪组织的身体部位。与普遍看法相反，橘皮组织的病因和病理生理学尚未完全明确或得到普遍认可。对橘皮组织实际病因的这种认识不足直接影响了合适治疗方法的选择，这些治疗方法既要解决该病症的美学问题，也要解决炎症问题。已经对包括电流、射频、超声和光生物调节等电物理因子在内的各种治疗方法进行了测试。然而，许多研究的方法学质量存疑，这使得确定有效的橘皮组织治疗方法变得复杂。在本研究中，我们对使用电物理因子治疗橘皮组织的临床研究进行了系统评价。
我们采用PICO（人群、干预措施、对照和结局）方法来制定检索策略并确定纳入/排除标准。我们检索了五个数据库：Medline、Central、Scopus、Lilacs和PEDro，以查找2001年至2021年7月期间涉及用电物理因子治疗橘皮组织的研究。为确保系统性并指导研究选择，我们遵循了系统评价和Meta分析的首选报告项目（PRISMA）指南。
我们的初始检索产生了556篇文章：379篇来自Medline，159篇来自Central，18篇来自Lilacs。应用我们的纳入标准后，仅剩下32项研究。其中，通过QualSyst工具评估，只有两项（6.2%）被认为具有强有力且良好的方法学。
我们的研究结果表明，关于使用电物理因子治疗橘皮组织的临床研究的证据质量仍然较差。需要采用更稳健的实验设计和更精确的评估技术进行进一步研究。虽然我们的研究并不反驳用于治疗橘皮组织的技术的有效性，但它强调了进行更多精心设计试验的必要性。
