Recruiting

PEMF Therapy

Sponsor:

Stanford University

Code:

NCT04109638

Conditions

Knee Injuries

Shoulder Injuries

Pain, Postoperative

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

Endonovo SofPulse

Study Details

Brief summary:

The primary objective of this study is to prospectively determine, at 10 days after orthopedic shoulder or knee surgery, if pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) therapy is beneficial in reducing patient-reported post-operative pain, as measured by visual analog scale (VAS). The amount of pain medication taken daily and the physical function outcome scores after surgery and PEMF treatment will also be measured.

Conditions

Knee Injuries

Shoulder Injuries

Pain, Postoperative

Study ID

NCT04109638

Start date

Feb 1, 2021

Status verified date

Jan, 2026

Completion date

Feb, 2027

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Feb, 2027

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Subjects may be male or female greater or equal to 18 years of age (≥ 18) at the time of consent.
2. Subjects who will be having shoulder or knee surgery are permitted.
3. Subject must not have used NSAIDs for one (1) week prior to surgery.

a. a. Low-dose aspirin (81 mg) is permitted.
4. Subject must be willing and able to participate in post-operative physical therapy exercises.
5. Subject must understand and be willing to sign the IRB-approved Informed Consent Document.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Subject has a known collagen disorder such as, but not limited to, osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) or Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS).
2. Subject has a known inflammatory or autoimmune connective tissue disease such as, but not limited to, gout affecting the shoulder, scleroderma, SLE, rheumatoid disease, or calcific tendonitis of the shoulder.
3. Subject has a metabolic bone disease such as Paget's disease or osteomalacia as documented in the medical record.
4. Subject has a deltoid defect, deltoid palsy or any other pseudoparalysis.
5. Subject is diabetic.
6. Subject has HIV or hepatitis.
7. Subject has a diagnosis of fibromyalgia or other chronic pain syndrome.
8. Subject has shoulder or knee pain of unknown etiology.
9. Subject has had an active malignancy in the past 5 years OR has an active or on-going neoplastic disease, except for benign skin cancer(s).
10. Subject has undergone administration, within 30 days prior to surgery, of any type of corticosteroid (with the exception of asthma medications and ophthalmic medications), antineoplastic, immunostimulation or immunosuppressive agent.
11. Subject is septic, or has a local or systemic infection.
12. Subject has an admitted active substance abuse problem which includes recreational drugs and/or narcotics or a history of substance abuse where history is defined as "not under the care of a physician" for more than 5 years.

a. Prescriptive medical marijuana is not permitted, including CBD oils.
13. Subject consumes more than 14 (men) or 7 (women) standard drinks (alcoholic units) per week where a drink equals a 12 oz. beer, or a 5 oz. glass of wine, or a 1.5 oz. shot of liquor.
14. Subject is currently seeking or receiving worker's compensation for this injury or for an injury that has occurred more than 12 months prior to enrollment in this study or subjects who are currently in litigation or who have a history of litigation related to musculoskeletal diagnoses.
15. Subject has major mental illnesses including major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or dementia that would prevent them from following the protocol and/or independently completing the patient reported outcomes measures.
16. Subjects who have coexistent cervical spinal pathologies such as radiculopathies or myelopathies.
17. Subject has a mental or physical condition that would prevent them from complying with the study protocol.

Study Design

Enrollment

76 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Treatment

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

active comparator: Active PEMF Group

Participants will have a 1 in 2 chance to get the active treatment device post-operatively. The device will be attached to the post-operative dressing. The device is an Endonovo SofPulse that emits a pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF). Single blind randomization.

sham comparator: Placebo PEMF Group

Participants will have a 1 in 2 chance to get the placebo treatment device post-operatively. The device will be attached to the post-operative dressing. The Endonovo SofPulse placebo device does not emit a pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF). Single blind randomization.

Interventions

Endonovo SofPulse

The active device emits PEMF signal whereas the placebo device does not emit a PEMF signal. The active device is on for 15 minutes at a time, every two hours, for 10 days.

Primary outcome measure

  • Mean change from baseline in pain scores on the visual analog scale (VAS) at 10 days [ Time Frame: 10 days ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Locations

Stanford University

Recruiting

Redwood City, California, United States, 94063

More Information

Sponsor

Stanford University

Last update posted

Jan 21, 2026

Last verified

Jan, 2026

Keywords

  • PEMF

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-10. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by Stanford University on 2026-01-21.