Lateral epicondylalgia: report of noneffective midlaser treatment

This study was carried out to explore the pain-alleviating effect of Ga-As + He-Ne laser (gallium-arsenide + helium-neon) in lateral epicondylalgia. A Space Mid Laser Mix 5-up laser was used. The probe consisted of five Ga-As emitters and one He-Ne emitter in the center. The parameters for Ga-As were wavelength, 904nm; average output power, 4mW, peak power, 10W; pulse frequency, 3800Hz; pulse duration, 180nsec; divergence, 70mrad. The He-Ne parameters were wavelength, 632.8nm; continuous; power output, 5mW, divergence 60mrad. A pen laser (Ga-As) was also included in the equipment. Two machines were available; one of them had no output in the Ga-As diodes, and the He-Ne emitter was replaced with a red light emitter. Fifty-eight patients were consecutively assigned to two groups for laser or placebo. The probe was applied perpendicularly over the painful area for eight minutes, and then the pen probe was applied to two acupuncture points, LI 11 and LI 12, for two minutes per point. The treatments were given three to four times weekly, ten treatments in all. Follow-ups were done after 3, 6, and 12 months. The treatment procedure was performed exactly according to the manufacturer's manual for this diagnosis. No other therapeutic measures were used, and medication use was proscribed during the treatments and the follow-up period. The statistical analysis showed no significant differences in subjective or objective outcome between the laser and placebo treatments after the treatment period. However, the objective outcome indicated a difference in favor of the placebo treatment (p less than .06).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)