Abstract

Introduction. Diathermy is one of the stimuli used in treatment of degenerative spine disease. Endogenous heat alleviates the symptoms of the disease. Diathermy treatments differ due to wave size and electromagnetic vibration frequency. Objective. Evaluation of the effectiveness of diathermy generated by short waves and radio waves in the treatment of patients with degenerative disease of the lumbar spine. Material and methods. The research was carried out on a group of 68 people with degenerative disease of the lumbar spine, divided into two groups. The study group consisted of 36 people who underwent therapy with radio waves using the Thermo TK device. The comparison group consisted of 32 people who underwent shortwave diathermy treatments. Therapeutic effectiveness was evaluated on the basis of pain assessment according to the VAS scale and the Laitinen pain scale as well as the range of motion measured with the Schober test and the Thomayer test. Results. In both groups, a statistically significant (p <0.0001) pain reduction after therapy according to the Laitinen pain scale was observed (Me (IQR) before and after therapy , respectively: in the study group: 6.5 (5-9) scores vs. 4 (3-5.5) scores and in the comparison group: 6 (5-8) scores vs. 4 (3-5) scores) and according to the VAS scale – in the study group: 6 (5-7.5) scores vs. 4 (3-4) scores and in the comparison group: 6 (5-7.5) scores vs. 3 (3-5) scores. The Thomayer test and the Schober test results also improved significantly in each group. Conclusions. Regardless of the wavelength generating endogenous heat, both treatments reduce pain and improve the range of motion of the lumbar spine in patients with degenerative spine disease.

Key words:

spine, degenerative disease, diathermy, radio waves