Yaw
01-17-2005, 07:00 AM
Magnet Therapy for Pain: What's the Attraction?
By Christine Haran
We usually think of magnets as something we put on the fridge to hold up a favorite cartoon. But magnets have been used for centuries to treat pain, and a survey found that almost many Americans with arthritis or fibromyalgia have used magnetic bracelets for pain relief, even though magnet therapy has not been well studied. Now, a British study suggests that magnetic bracelets may provide pain relief in people with arthritis in their knee or hip.
"We are clear that there is a significant reduction in pain with magnetic bracelets," says lead researcher Tim Harlow, a family physician at College Surgery in Devon. "What we cannot say with certainty is if it is due to a placebo effect, an effect of the magnet or a mixture of the two."
This study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), joins a growing group of studies on magnetic therapy and chronic pain, which have had mixed results. Dr. Harlow and his colleagues looked at 194 people with osteoarthritis in their hip or knee over a 12-week period. Participants were divided into three groups. One group received a standard-strength magnetic bracelet, which has a strength of 170 to 200 mTesla, one group wore a weaker bracelet, with a strength of 21 to 20 mTesla, and the third group wore a dummy bracelet with no magnet.
more... http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Healthology/story?id=407219
By Christine Haran
We usually think of magnets as something we put on the fridge to hold up a favorite cartoon. But magnets have been used for centuries to treat pain, and a survey found that almost many Americans with arthritis or fibromyalgia have used magnetic bracelets for pain relief, even though magnet therapy has not been well studied. Now, a British study suggests that magnetic bracelets may provide pain relief in people with arthritis in their knee or hip.
"We are clear that there is a significant reduction in pain with magnetic bracelets," says lead researcher Tim Harlow, a family physician at College Surgery in Devon. "What we cannot say with certainty is if it is due to a placebo effect, an effect of the magnet or a mixture of the two."
This study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), joins a growing group of studies on magnetic therapy and chronic pain, which have had mixed results. Dr. Harlow and his colleagues looked at 194 people with osteoarthritis in their hip or knee over a 12-week period. Participants were divided into three groups. One group received a standard-strength magnetic bracelet, which has a strength of 170 to 200 mTesla, one group wore a weaker bracelet, with a strength of 21 to 20 mTesla, and the third group wore a dummy bracelet with no magnet.
more... http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Healthology/story?id=407219