The Effects of Magnet Therapy on Pain and Disability in Patients with Shoulder Impingement Syndrome

Background: Shoulder pain felt when performing daily activities is a common complaint at all ages. Shoulder impingement syndrome is one of the most common causes of shoulder pain. Since this disease is relatively prevalent, there is an urgent need to develop a treatment method with fewer complications. Magnet therapy (MT) is one of the therapies that has been recently used to treat various musculoskeletal disorders. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of MT on pain and disability in patients with shoulder impingement syndrome. Methods: In this double-blind clinical trial study, 60 patients diagnosed with shoulder impingement syndrome were randomly assigned to three groups including the "MT 18 Hz" group, the "MT 100 Hz" group, and the "Sham" group. All patients received Magnet therapy three times a week for four weeks in addition to routine treatment. In the sham group, Magnet therapy was used as a placebo. All three groups received routine electrotherapy and exercise therapy. Before and after the treatment, the pain level was evaluated by the NRS scale, the disability level was assessed by the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand Questionnaire (DASH), and the range of motion of the shoulder was measured using a goniometer. The values obtained in the groups and for the groups were compared before and after the treatment. Results: The intragroup comparison of the three groups revealed a statistically significant improvement in all variables (including NRS score, DASH, and shoulder range of motion) (P < 0.05). The intergroup comparison, on the other hand, showed no statistically significant difference for any of the variables (P > 0.05). Conclusions: It was concluded that routine physiotherapy significantly reduced pain and disability as well as improved shoulder range of motions in patients with shoulder impingement syndrome. Moreover, using magnet therapy with two frequencies of 18 and 100 Hz along with the routine electrotherapy and exercise therapy had no additional positive effect on the recovery process of patients with shoulder impingement syndrome.