A Ten-Year Review of Treatment of Delayed Union and Nonunion With an Implanted Bone Growth Stimulator

Bioelectricity and microcurrent therapy for tissue healing – a narrative review

“…A 10-year follow-up assessment of 37 of the patients enrolled in this trial found normal bone remodelling, continued union and no side effects of the electrodes that were left in situ (the remaining participants were unavailable for review). 78 Microcurrent pulsed at 20 Hz has also been evaluated and found beneficial with a mixed caseload of non-uniting fractures, congenital pseudarthroses, osteotomies and leg-lengthening procedures. 79 DC of pulse amplitude 20-25 mA and duration 30 ms was applied via a cathode wrapped around or threaded through the fracture site and with the anode implanted in the medulla (as opposed to the subcutaneous positioning used in other trials).…”

Consensus Conference on the Use of Electrical and Magnetic Stimulation in Orthopedics and Traumatology International Symposium, Electromagnetic Fields and Bone Healing, Bologna, June 1997

“…Other more limited series have recorded success rates ranging from 70 to 90% (59)(60)(61)(62)(63). The faradic systems have been used to treat patients with delayed union and pseudoarthrosis.…”

Visceral and Somatic Disorders: Tissue Softening with Frequency-Specific Microcurrent

“…7 To ensure patient compliance, many orthopedic surgeons have returned to electricity, supplied by small implantable stimulators for treating nonunions. 8 Another approach to electrical stimulation is to use electrode patches on the skin to pass currents into the body (e.g., the transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation device for treating pain). 9 Electrotherapy and bioelectromagnetic therapies are different forms of energy medicine, which recognizes that the human body utilizes various forms of energy for the internal communications that maintain and organize vital living systems and for powering processes such as nerve conduction, digestion, circulation, and movement.…”