Electromagnetic field devices have been used therapeutically for over a century to provide safe and efficacious therapy (Stauch et al., 2009).

So if PEMF technology is the future of health & wellness, why have we not heard about it?

Until recently, electromagnetic therapy has been a fragmented industry of small players a wide range of devices and varying amounts of evidence that support each type of device.

FDA Approval – Most of the devices are not FDA approved. Rigorous testing and clinical trials are required to validate the individual PEMF therapies for specific clinical applications which requires deep pockets.  The process is prohibitively expensive and time consuming. Each PEMF device must go through an arduous process to prove the device is safe and electromagnetically compatible with its intended use.  Only over the last ten to twenty years, clinicians and scientists have developed the volume of research required to demonstrate the clinical value of PEMF therapy for a variety of conditions with more approvals in the pipeline.

Barriers to Acceptance – Misaligned healthcare incentives The healthcare industry has traditionally been very conservative in adopting new technologies. Often Medicare is used as a guide for investment so new technologies are dismissed as too experimental for coverage. Without insurance coverage, PEMF treatments are out-of-pocket and can be more expensive than drugs. Sadly, it took the devastating consequences of the Opioid Epidemic to highlight not only the dangers of prescription of opioid medications, but also the conflict of interest between certain physician and industry financial relationships.

Good news – more and more the world is embracing holistic medicine. Advancement of the electromagnetic therapy field in the areas of pain management, mitigation of inflammation, bone healing, and wound healing will accelerate and become the future of health & wellness.

Leaders within the industry founded the Association of PEMF Professionals (www.pemfprofessionals.com) to unite, educate, and support PEMF users, practitioners, distributors, and manufacturers. AOPP offers nationally recognized certifications and professional development opportunities, monitor and advocate for PEMF in legislation, and provide science-based, peer reviewed PEMF research.