Low Level Laser Therapy for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Background and objective:
The laser acupuncture has many potential therapeutic effects. Currently, they are not evaluated for their therapeutic effects on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients.
Laser Treatment Protocols:
The study was conducted on 30 RA patients and 20 healthy subjects. The patients were subjected to laser acupuncture for 3 days/week for duration of 4 weeks. The acupuncture points of exposure were LI4, TE5, LI 11, DU 14, LIV3, SP6, GB34, and S36.
Conclusion:
Our study results confirmed the effectiveness of laser acupuncture in alleviating oxidative stress and inflammation, improving antioxidant and energy metabolic status, while also suppressing the disease activity in RA patients. Laser acupuncture is a promising treatment modality to reduce the pain and suffering of RA patients because of its efficiency in inhibiting most of the main factors involved in the pathogenesis of this disease. Lasers Surg. Med. 48:490-497, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
