磁石對退化性膝關節炎之療效

Background and purpose: Magnets had been applied in the relief of musculoskeletal pain
for years. We conducted a double blind study to assess the efficacy of magnets on knee
osteoarthritis. Methods: Twenty subjects were recruited in our study. All patients wore
braces over the painful knee areas all day long for 1 week except the time of bathing.Ten
bands containing magnets and the other 10 bands containing placebos were used in our
study. 4 times of measurements were performed before application, 1 hour, 1 day, and 1
week after application. Measurements were obtained by using Visual Analogue Scale
(VAS) and Lequesne's Index. No NSAID was given but superficial infrared ray therapy
was given 1 week before and the week during the study. Results: Nine patients in the
magnet group and 10 patients in the placebo group were included, as 1 patient dropped out
due to the knee swelling caused by over walking in the walking test of the first and second Lequesne＇s Index evaluation. There was no significant difference between the magnet
group and placebo group 1 hour and 1 day after the application. However, the magnet
group showed a significant improvement in the VAS and Lequesne's Index compared with
placebo group 1 week after the application. Conclusion: Magnets had a significant effect of
pain reduction on the knee osteoarthritis.