[escepticos] BMJ y las terapias magnéticas

["Víctor R. Ruiz" <rvr@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

  Hola:

  BMJ publicó una editorial sobre terapias magnéticas:
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=scienceNews&storyID=2006-01-06T002813Z_01_YUE601677_RTRUKOC_0_US-MAGNETS.xml

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Scientists say magnet therapy is a waste of money
Thu Jan 5, 2006 7:28 PM ET17
   
By Matthew Jones

LONDON (Reuters) - The use of magnetic devices to cure a variety of ills has 
soared in recent years but there is no evidence they work, according to an 
editorial in the British Medical Journal.

The market for magnetic bracelets, knee pads and the like may now be worth 
about one billion dollars a year, but two American scientists argue in the 
journal on Friday that many people are being fooled as to their therapeutic 
benefits.

"Money spent on expensive and unproved magnet therapy might be better spent on 
evidence-based medicine," professors Leonard Finegold and Bruce Flamm wrote.
They said the many studies that purport to show magnets do work are suspect 
because a magnet's main characteristic -- to be attracted or repelled by 
metals -- would betray it compared with placebos.

But they said magnet wearers may feel better even if there is no supporting 
evidence.

"Perhaps subjects with magnetic bracelets subconsciously detected a tiny drag 
when the bracelets were near ferromagnetic surfaces (which are ubiquitous in 
modern life), and this distracted or otherwise influenced the perceived 
pain".

The pair warned the sophisticated marketing of magnetic devices could result 
in underlying medical conditions being left untreated.

"Magnets are touted by successful athletes, allowed to be widely advertised, 
and sold without restrictions, so it is not surprising that lay people think 
that claims of therapeutic efficacy are reasonable," they said.

Finegold is professor of physics at Drexel University in Pennsylvania and 
Flamm is a professor at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in California.

They said that even theoretically, magnet therapy appeared unrealistic given 
that human tissue does not appear to be affected when it is subject to the 
massive fields generated by resonance imaging (MRI).

Finegold and Flamm said that if there were any healing effects of magnets they 
were apparently small since published research, both theoretical and 
experimental, weighed heavily against their being any therapeutic benefit.
"Patients should be advised that magnet therapy has no proved benefits," they 
said. "If they insist on using a magnetic device they could be advised to buy 
the cheapest -- this will at least alleviate the pain in their wallet."


 © Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved. 
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  Saludetes,

-- 
Víctor R. Ruiz           | - Todos estos momentos se perderán
http://infoastro.com/rvr |   como lágrimas en la lluvia