Photobiomodulation Therapy (PBMT) And/or Cryotherapy In Skeletal Muscle Restitution, What Is Better? A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial.
Research Summary
This trial compared light therapy, ice packs, combinations of the two, and a placebo after demanding knee-extension exercise. Researchers tracked strength, soreness and a blood marker of muscle damage for 96 hours.
Who Or What Was Studied?
Fifty healthy male volunteers were randomly allocated to five groups. The treatment used a specific device combining 905 nm laser light with 875 nm and 640 nm LEDs.
What Did The Research Show?
- Light therapy alone improved strength recovery and reduced soreness and creatine kinase activity compared with placebo, ice alone and ice followed by light, from 24 to 96 hours.
- Ice alone and ice followed by light did not differ significantly from placebo. Treatment order mattered.
Limitations And Interpretation
- The small, male-only sample and four-day follow-up limit generalisation to other populations, injuries or long-term training outcomes.
- This protocol does not establish equivalent effects for other light devices. One author lists an affiliation with the device manufacturer.
Based on the published abstract and author affiliations; full-text methods and limitations were not assessed.