Effects of different swing patterns of interferential currents on patients with low back pain: a single control trial

Address correspondence to: Rufus A. Adedoyin, Department of Medical Rehabilitation, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria E-mail: radedoyi@yahoo.com Purpose: The effect of interferential current (IFC) swing patterns in pain modulation is currently unknown. This study was therefore designed to examine the effects of IFC swing patterns in the management of low back pain. Subjects and methods: Thirty-nine subjects with clinically and radiographically confirmed degenerative low back pain were recruited for the study. Subjects were randomly assigned into three intervention groups based on three patterns of IFC: 1 integral 1, 6 integral 6, 6 wedge 6. Each patient received 40 minutes of one out of three IFC interventions two times a week for a period of three weeks. The currents were administered via two electrodes using amplitude-modulated frequencies of 50 to 100 Hz. Results: The results of two-way repeated measures analysis of variance showed a significance of time (p<0.001), but no statistical effect of experimental groups (p=0.89) or interaction (p=0.79). Conclusion: All three swing patterns decreased pain perception over a 3-week treatment. However, none of the three treatment parameters has superiority in pain modulation over each other.