| Title |
Effect of laser acupuncture on salivary flow rate in patients with Sjögren’s syndrome
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Lasers in Medical Science, May 2014
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s10103-014-1590-8 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Adriana Cafaro, Paolo Giacomo Arduino, Alessio Gambino, Ercole Romagnoli, Roberto Broccoletti |
| Abstract |
Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is a multisystem autoimmune disease characterized by hypofunction of the salivary and lacrimal glands, frequently relieved with symptomatic treatments, such as saliva substitutes, eye lubricants, and cholinergic stimulators. The aim of this pilot randomized placebo-controlled study was to estimate the effects of laser acupuncture on salivary flow rates in patients with severe hyposalivation due to SS. A prospective cohort of 26 female patients affected by SS has been evaluated. The laser therapy equipment used was the Pointer Pulse, emitting light in the red visible spectrum (650 nm), with a power of 5 mW and an irradiation time of 120 s per acupoint, in an area of 3.14 mm(2) (fluence = 19.2 J/cm(2), power density = 0.16 W/cm(2), total dose = 0.6 J). The following acupuncture points were stimulated bilaterally: LI 2 Erjian, ST 5 Daying, ST 6 Jiache, ST 7 Xiaguan, SI 19 Tinggong, and BL 13 Feishu. True laser acupuncture led to a significantly higher amount of saliva production, measured after the end of the protocol (5 weeks), and during the 6-month follow-up period. The results are stable from the end of the protocol until the 3rd month of follow-up; during the last control, a slight but significant decrease in production has also been shown. This preliminary study proposes laser acupuncture as a possible treatment for improving salivary flow rates in patients with SS, but further validation on a larger sample is still necessary. |
X Demographics
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Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | 1 | 33% |
| Sweden | 1 | 33% |
| Unknown | 1 | 33% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 2 | 67% |
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 1 | 33% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 63 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 63 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Master | 15 | 24% |
| Researcher | 7 | 11% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 5 | 8% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 3 | 5% |
| Student > Bachelor | 3 | 5% |
| Other | 9 | 14% |
| Unknown | 21 | 33% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Dentistry | 23 | 37% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 2 | 3% |
| Immunology and Microbiology | 2 | 3% |
| Psychology | 2 | 3% |
| Nursing and Health Professions | 2 | 3% |
| Other | 7 | 11% |
| Unknown | 25 | 40% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 2. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 10 March 2016.
All research outputs
#13,408,565
of 22,755,127 outputs
Outputs from Lasers in Medical Science
#522
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Outputs of similar age
#111,439
of 226,936 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Lasers in Medical Science
#13
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