Published by: Ingrid King. Last Updated on: June 25, 2023 by Crystal Uys
Over the past year, you’ve seen multiple accounts here on The Conscious Cat of how the Assisi Loop helped cats with issues ranging from arthritis to lymphoma to lameness to post-surgical recovery. The Assisi Loop, created by Assisi Animal Health, is a non-pharmaceutical, non-invasive device provides targeted pulsed electromagnetic field therapy (tPEMF™). tPEMF uses low-level pulses of electromagnetic energy to stimulate the body’s own healing mechanisms to help relieve pain and swelling.
Assisi Animal Health researchers have been studying the benefit of PEMF technology on animals since 2014. Previous studies demonstrated the Loop’s positive results in humans, earning it FDA clearance in treating people. Veterinary professionals and pet owners have long reported positive results in managing pain and inflammation.
Two-year double blind clinical trial
Now there is a positive report from a “gold standard” double-blind clinical trial in animals.
The two-year study was conducted at NC State College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Natasha Olby, VetMB, PhD, MRCVS, DACVIM (specialty Neurology), led the trial. The results have been reported in the Journal of Neurotrauma.
The study employed the Assisi Loop as part of pre-to-post-operative treatment to reduce pain and accelerate recovery in dogs undergoing spinal surgery. The surgery sought to resolve the most advanced stage of degenerative spinal disc damage and related paralysis on these patients.
Study results that are statistically significant:
- The Assisi Loop lowers pain at the incision site after surgery.
- The Assisi Loop accelerates recovery and healing following surgery.
- The Assisi Loop enhanced the biomarker levels associated with post-surgical nerve protection.
“This has huge implications for the use of the Assisi Loop on our pets,” said Assisi’s Clinical Studies Director Dr. Deirdre Chiaramonte, DVM, ACVIM, CCRT, CERP, CVA. “The results of this study undeniably show the Loop’s ability not only to reduce pain, but also to help the injured nerve tissue recover faster. This enables the pet to return more quickly to normal function.”
Assisi Animal Health is dedicated to making an animal’s journey as pain free as possible. A second trial using the Loop is completed and in peer review now. They also have four other studies underway for canine and feline patients. We will keep you informed as results become known.
Why this is exciting news for cats
Even though this study was done with dogs, and cats are not small dogs, this is still very exciting news for cats. Pain control options that are both effective and safe are few and far between, and the Assisi Loop has been a lifesaver for so many cats already. However, as with many non-conventional therapies, skepticism tends to get in the way of wider acceptance, and this clinical trial is an important step forward in bringing safe pain control to more cats.
Stay tuned for more information about ongoing clinical studies.
For more information about how the Loop could help your cat, visit http://www.assisianimalhealth.com or contact Assisi Animal Health at [email protected], 866-830-7342.
Featured Image Credit: Kzenon, Shutterstock
About the author
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
Got an aging clowder and I’m certain there’s more pain in our future – this would be nice to have
Can you give me the actual reference for the double blind study? I would like to read the full study for myself.
Here’s the link to the study, Alice: https://cvm.ncsu.edu/the-effect-of-electromagnetic-fields-on-postoperative-pain-and-locomotor-recovery-in-dogs-with-acute-severe-thoracolumbar-intervertebral-disc-extrusion-a-randomized-placebo-controlled-prospective-c/
The link did not work, do you have another? Thank you.
Frankly, our experience with cats in our rescue work has always seemed to indicate that they are excellent judges of what is doing them good — with the exception of our having to force feed Sir Butterscotch during his recovery from hepatic lipidosis, necessitating keeping the dose of raw fish/liver small enough that his struggling liver, aided by samE and B12, could process it in the 2 hours til next needed feeding.. so we are looking forward to testing a new device — a bio-photonic LED pen — that calms the patient and relaxes them when applied per the accupressure type instructions… because we’ve seen how wonderfully they want to have that treatment once they’ve had it once… The developer was a Dr Brian McLaren of Australia, whose work is being continued by Eva Servais, as rescuer and manufacturer in Spain where we will be studying the application routines, plus the usual anatomy etc… She has a facebook group and was featured in one of the wellness summits for veterinary issues. That’s where we saw how effective her acupuncture based techniques are and their owner-friendly successes were..
I’m glad the Loop is starting to get more recognition. Hopefully one day soon we’ll see it used more often than not.
When my human can get Boodie to sit still for a loop session, it really does help her… the only problem is she almost always gets up, even if she was sleeping when my human puts it on her. It’s frustrating because we know it does her good.