LAUSR

The data presented in this study suggest that a 12-week program of laser acupuncture in addition to calcium, vitamin D3 and fluoride supplementation yields improvement in bone density and pain levels in osteoporotic postmenopausal women compared to calcium, vitamin D3, and fluoride supplementation alone. Abstract Objective This study aimed to evaluate the value of laser acupuncture (LA) on forearm bone mineral density (BMD) and wrist pain in osteoporotic postmenopausal women. Methods Sixty-eight postmenopausal women diagnosed with osteoporosis were randomly allocated equally to one of two sets. The drug-only group received calcium and vitamin D3 supplement containing fluoride daily for 12 weeks, whereas the drug/LA group received LA therapy for 20 minutes per session, three sessions weekly, in addition to the same supplementation. The primary outcome parameter was assessment of BMD of the nondominant arm. Other outcomes included wrist pain. Results There was a highly significant improvement in the T-score of forearm BMD in both groups (−2.844 ± 0.476 to −2.597 ± 0.478 and −2.944 ± 0.486 to −1.652 ± 0.728 in the drug-only and drug/LA groups, respectively; P < 0.0001) and visual analog scale score (7.50 ± 0.79 to 4.24 ± 1.07 and 7.24 ± 0.82 to 3.09 ± 0.75 in the drug-only and drug/LA group, respectively; P < 0.0001). The improvement of both BMD and pain score was significantly higher in the drug/LA group (−1.303 and 4.15) compared with the drug-only group (−0.247 and 3.26; P < 0.0001). Conclusions LA in combination with calcium and vitamin D supplementation containing fluoride is an effective modality in improving forearm BMD and reducing pain in osteoporotic postmenopausal women.