Effects of radiofrequency, electroacupuncture, and low-level laser therapy on the wrinkles and moisture content of the forehead, eyes, and cheek.
Hee-Kyoung Kim, Jung-Hyun Choi
PMID 28265160WHAT IT FOUND
Women aged 30 to 55 had fewer under-eye wrinkles and more cheek moisture after six weeks of radiofrequency, electroacupuncture, or low-level laser therapy.
The study was small and short, so it does not show lasting benefit.
Key findings
01Under-eye wrinkles decreased after radiofrequency, electroacupuncture, and low-level laser therapy.
02Right eye-rim wrinkles decreased after all three treatments; left eye-rim wrinkles did not show a significant decrease.
03Cheek moisture increased after all three treatments, and the paper reports a between-group difference.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study had only 30 participants, all women aged 30 to 55 years, so it cannot be applied to men or to older or younger adults. Follow-up was only 6 weeks, so long-term effects were not tested. The paper did not describe randomisation or how participants were assigned to groups. All groups received active treatment, so the study cannot show whether any treatment was better than doing nothing. The Discussion proposes mechanisms such as collagen formation, but this study did not measure collagen or test those mechanisms.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these results as proof that any one of these treatments works better than the others or that the effects last. The study was small, short, and did not report randomisation or a no-treatment control.