Plantar fasciitis / lower extremity tendinopathy
LLLT for lower extremity tendinopathy and plantar fasciitis meta-analysis
Naterstad IF, Joensen J, Bjordal JM, et al. BMJ Open. 2022.
A BMJ Open meta-analysis found short- and medium-term pain and disability reductions in lower extremity tendinopathy and plantar fasciitis.
Evidence grade
moderate
Effect direction
positive
Panel relevance
partially-replicable
Key findings
- LLLT reduced pain at completed therapy and 4-12 weeks later.
- Disability improved at completed therapy and 4-9 weeks later.
- Recommended-dose subgroups showed pain reduction versus placebo and as an add-on to exercise therapy.
Protocol details
| Wavelengths | Not reported nm |
|---|---|
| Irradiance | Not reported mW/cm2 |
| Fluence | Not reported J/cm2 |
| Session time | Not reported minutes |
| Frequency | Varied by trial |
| Duration | Short- and medium-term follow-up; no long-term data |
| Treatment area | Lower extremity tendon or plantar fascia region |
| Device type | Low-level laser therapy |
Caveats
- Long-term data were unavailable.
- Effect-size certainty remains limited by wide confidence intervals and lack of large trials.