Vibration therapy uses vibrating platforms to treat bone loss. Although not a cure, vibration therapy has proven successful at helping slow bone loss.
Research demonstrates that sending mechanical vibration signals directly to your bones and muscles can enhance bone density and strength, helping prevent falls that lead to broken bones.
Benefits
One in three postmenopausal women and two out of five men have broken bones due to osteoporosis. While medication may help slow bone loss, its effectiveness may not always be guaranteed. Vibration therapy provides a natural alternative that could provide help without adverse side effects from medicine.
Scientists have recently found that mechanical vibration signals can significantly influence bone cell functions and promote bone growth. These vibrational waves act similarly to electrical currents running through power grids, sending messages directly to muscles and bones when you walk, swim, bike or weight lift – they are essential in keeping our bodies healthy!
Researchers have studied the impact of vibration on bone cells both in vivo (living organisms) and in vitro (test tubes). Studies conducted show that mechanical signals generated from vibration activate mesenchymal stem cells (MSC), speeding their proliferation and thus aiding bone formation and remodeling processes. Vibration also increases secretion of osteoblasts (bone cells) which promote greater strength for stronger bones.
Stolzenberg and colleagues conducted a clinical trial with 117 participants divided into three groups: vibration group, simulation training (SIM), and control. For eleven weeks the vibration group used a device that vibrated while they stood on it with knees slightly flexed while performing three treatments a week of vibration therapy; SIM and control groups did not receive vibration training. Results indicated that vibration therapy increased total and trabecular bone mineral density (BMD) in tibia while BMD in the femur did not change significantly
Studies proving the efficacy of whole-body vibration therapy on populations and ages that include elderly individuals is also supported by research conducted by Jepsen and colleagues, including postmenopausal women. One such study concluded that whole-body vibration therapy combined with teriparatide reduced rates of osteoporosis progression by 30% for postmenopausal women.
Other benefits of WBV therapy include increased balance and mobility as well as decreased frequency of falls – particularly important for people living with osteoporosis as it can lead to serious fractures. Some of the principles behind WBV can also be applied using lower intensity machines known as low-intensity vibration (LIV) or local muscle vibration (LMV), which transmit lower intensity vibrations that only target your feet and legs rather than your entire body.
Risks
Osteoporosis is a bone disease characterized by weakening of bones, increasing their fragility, and increasing fracture risks, particularly hips and spine. Osteoporosis fractures pose a great burden to society as they result in pain, mobility loss and independence issues, reduced life expectancy and ultimately lost independence and mobility. Osteoporosis risk factors include age, estrogen deficiency in postmenopausal women, lack of exercise, poor diet as well as genetic and racial factors; other contributing factors include endocrine disorders chronic kidney disease long-term glucocorticoid therapy treatment as well as certain medicines used against it.
Walking and running have proven successful in slowing bone density loss in hips, spines, and forearms. Whole body vibration therapy mimics this mechanical stress of these activities by mimicking its effects on bone cells called osteocytes; in turn they signal osteoclasts to remove damaged bone tissue while osteoblasts form new bones. Researchers conducted an investigation that revealed vibration therapy did not slow hip or spine bone loss after one year of treatment; rather fracture rates increased over that time period among women who received vibration treatments.
But this research involved only a limited number of participants; for a more in-depth clinical trial to establish whether this therapy works to prevent fractures elsewhere on the body, more participants would need to participate. At present, however, its promotion and sale via online channels without oversight by FDA remains widespread and unregulated.
Vibration therapy is well-documented to be harmful to many physiologic systems and at higher intensities can even cause fractures it’s meant to prevent. Therefore, until more evidence emerges, it would be prudent only to recommend it to those with minimal risk factors.
These include people who have not experienced broken bones yet and people with a FRAX score below 2.5; this score analyzes 11 risk factors and femoral neck raw bone density to predict the likelihood of breaking one in 10 years. Furthermore, patients who already suffer from vascular disease or hypertension should wait to use treatment until consulting their physician first.
Evaluation
Vibration therapy‘s effectiveness depends on several variables. These include frequency, amplitude and duration of mechanical stimulation as well as whether vibrations are delivered over an entire body or individual joints; pivotal oscillating or linear vibrations are usually generated using an elastic mat suspended above a platform which vibrates; vibrations may also be applied using hands or feet or belt around waist/hips.
Studies conducted on mice have demonstrated that vibration stimulation increases collagen synthesis and bone formation. Furthermore, vibration stimulates skeletal muscle activity by activating proprioceptive sensors more readily; additionally it triggers growth hormone production as well as activating muscle spindles which transmit stretch signals directly into the neuromuscular system and increase muscle contraction frequency.
Another study conducted on postmenopausal women demonstrated that nine months of combined balance training incorporating either whole-body vibration or resistance exercises significantly increased both lumbar spine and hip bone density, similar to results achieved when vibration alone was used.
Vibration therapy may also be combined with medications like bisphosphonates and teriparatide to reduce bone fractures and improve musculoskeletal health. Research has proven that vibration therapy combined with these medications produces synergistic effects that far surpass using medication alone as treatments.
A 2024 study examined the efficacy of vibration therapy versus conventional treatments on elderly people with osteoporosis. Researchers discovered that low-amplitude vibration therapy was well tolerated by older adults, leading to significant improvements in bone density and hip fracture rates as well as lower amplitude/duration impact shocks on tibia bones. Additionally, low amplitude vibration therapy treatment led to decreased low energy impact shocks on tibia bones due to vibration treatment.
Research to date regarding vibration therapy has been limited, so more studies must be completed in order to demonstrate its efficacy for people living with osteoporosis or sarcopenia. Still, general consensus holds that vibration therapy can help with these conditions if frequency, amplitude and duration of vibration are carefully managed – so consult your physician prior to beginning an exercise program that utilizes vibration. He or she will likely recommend specific frequencies and intensities that would be safe for you.
Precautions
Vibration therapy‘s effectiveness in treating postmenopausal osteoporosis remains debatable. Some studies have demonstrated its ability to increase bone density; other research indicates otherwise. Treatment frequency and duration can have an impactful impact on its outcomes. Vibration therapy should not be used alone but alongside diet, pharmacological treatments and physical activity programs as additional ways of providing relief; its use should also not be undertaken alone as severe fractures, cardiovascular disease or diabetes may impede results; nor has its efficacy been extensively explored among non-Caucasian women or those at high risk for osteoporosis.
Vibration therapy has quickly become an effective treatment option for postmenopausal osteoporosis due to its ability to increase muscle strength, reduce falls and fractures, improve balance and gait and offer a safer alternative than pharmaceutical interventions which may have side effects or are difficult for elderly users.
Vibration therapy research began after scientists realized that astronauts who spent extended time in space experienced bone mass loss and muscle weakness, which lead to reduced bone density and strength. Following vibration therapy treatment on returning astronauts they observed both improved bone density and an increase in strength.
Studies involving animals have also illustrated the positive impact of vibration therapy on bone density. For instance, placing reproductive-age sheep on a platform vibrating vertically at 30 times per minute and an acceleration equal to one third of gravity significantly increased bone density in their hind legs. Humans who stood on vibration platforms five days per week for one year reported higher hip bone density compared with those who did not stand on them.
Studies show that vibration therapy increases bone mineral density and improves skeletal muscular function, with some studies even showing it helps increase femoral bone density, biomechanical function and suppressing RANKL expression and osteoclast formation in ovariectomized rats. Furthermore, gap junction communication between osteocytes amplified which supports healthy bone metabolism and the musculotendinous system.
An effective way to find out if vibration therapy is right for you is to consult with a doctor or health care provider experienced in working with vibration therapy treatments. They will be able to advise if its benefits outweigh its risks, as well as recommend an optimal dosage of vibration therapy treatments.
