Objective: To determine the clinical effects of the treatment of lumbar disc herniation with herbal magnetic corsets.
Design: A randomized control trial.
Setting: The outpatient and inpatient departments of the Rehabilitation Center of the West China Hospital.
Patients: Sixty patients with clinically diagnosed lumbar disc herniation were included in the study.
Interventions: Both groups received lumbar traction, medium frequency electrotherapy and massage, whereas the experimental group wore herbal magnetic corsets in addition.
Main outcome measures: Pain and lumbar function were assessed before treatment and at one week, two weeks and four weeks after intervention.
Results: Both groups reported improvements in pain and lumbar function after treatment (P 0.05 or P 0.001). However, the experimental group reported gradually increasing relief over time leading to a better curative effect than observed in the control group (P 0.05 for visual analogue scale or P 0.001 for lumbar function).
Conclusion: Herbal magnetic corsets can facilitate the reduction of pain caused by lumbar disc herniation and can improve lumbar function. This is a safe and effective non-operative therapeutic option for treatment of lumbar disc herniation.