Can you tell if arthritis is “active” from x-rays?
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^^ Wonderful question, VXF. I don’t believe you can. I believe you would need a nuclear medicine bone scan for that.
Way cool that you study joints for a living, Absolut. Absolutely very important!
“All I can tell you is that I’m a scientist that studies joints for a living. I have seen whole body vibration treatment repeatedly and robustly induce articular cartilage and intervertebral joint damage in experimental trials - but this has been modeled in species other than horses.”
Induced cartilage damage in species other than horse? That is certainly close enough for me to stay clear. :no:
An interesting aside is that they believe truck drivers tend to have cartilage problems (discs, knees, etc.) due to truck vibration.
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I did the trial, didn’t see any real results, so I shipped it back.
Did you have any issues in doing so? Did you have to pay the shipping?
nope, no issues, just boxed it back up and they arranged and paid for shipping.
My old barn had one, it seemed okay. I never saw a difference before and after the horse used them nor a difference in the horses that use them vs. those that did not. They seem nice, though. My new trainer likes them but does not have one. I don’t think I would ever get one as it doesn’t seem to help. But the horses seemed fine with them. Probably feels like an unprofessional back massage. Feels good, but doesn’t do anything?
Personally, I have had chiropractic work done on my horses and it did wonders for those having problems. I’ve seen horses do a 180 after getting work done, it always amazes me. But I know not everyone really cares for the idea of chiropractic work done on horses.
Reviving the Theraplate thread again…
been having nothing but trouble from my 3 yo theraplate in the last 9 months. First one plate stopped working (was repaired by theraplate, I paid over $300 for shipping), and now the other plate isn’t working!
Has anyone had issues with their Theraplate? I’m not pleased and am worried as the 5 year warranty is coming up that I’m going to be stuck with a $6k machine that I’m constantly repairing! I’ve had some good results with the Theraplate (mostly resolving colic and helping with back soreness) but there are cheaper options out there.
No science behind it and most vets that I’ve talked to think it could possibly hurt certain horses. Now pemf on the other hand has science behind it. I put my money on science and results.
I’m on the fence about PEMF- would you mind sharing the science you have have that supports it? I had a session done on my guy the other day and the lady who performed it recommended once a week treatments. That will add up pretty quickly cost-wise, and I really can’t commit unless I hear some more convincing evidence.
I use it on myself and can say without a doubt it works. You have to figure out what schedule works for you and your horse, I think someone suggesting it be done every week is just looking to make more money from you. You have to see how your horse responds to it so it may take some time to figure out how often you need to have it done.
I am also interested in science supporting PEMF. I went to a demonstration once and put one of the rings on my shoulder that is always tight, and while I felt it “working” it didn’t relive any discomfort.
It seems like everyone has anecdotal experience with a system that they have stuck with. For example I have had good luck with Bemer, but I saw no benefits when I was using it for the sake of using it. It only seemed to help when my horse or myself had an injury.
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Nobody ever seems to have any real “science” on all this woo woo stuff. Someone just claims they have some and then vanishes without a trace.
It’s been YEARS now, does Tad Coffin have a scientifically structured study to support its claims that its saddle can cure ulcers or whatever other nonsense?
Theraplate currently has my theraplate for the second repair in the barely over 3 years that I’ve had it (purchased new from Theraplate) AND THEY WON’T CALL ME BACK.
I have been SO disappointed in their customer service. Honestly, I’m beginning to think they are hiding something. They won’t send me a price list of repair costs once the warranty runs out so I can make an educated decision about whether I want to keep this thing. After asking questions on Facebook they have blocked me and deleted all my comments. Completely unimpressed with them as a whole. I would steer far, far away! I’m hoping we can come to a resolution without involving lawyers, but considering they have my $6,000 AND my theraplate and won’t call me back I am feeling concerned.
Has any one had a similar bad experience with this company?
Unprovoked92, you might contact the Attorney General’s office in the state Theraplate is from. I’ve used them in the past very successfully to fight long distance battles.
I’ve tried PEMF on two horses and on myself with no results. Costs add up so quick! I don’t understand why everyone loves it so much. Would love to see scientific studies that I keep hearing about.
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Someone else bumped this and then deleted their reply 
But it’s a good reminder! Now it’s been 11 years and our friends who joined COTH just to rave about the theraplate without identifying themselves as financially interested in selling the product still haven’t posted anything else. Including scientific support. If it’s been 11 years and you haven’t managed to prove any therapeutic benefits in an actual study… I’d say that’s pretty strong evidence there aren’t much in the way of benefits.
Also no scientific studies to support Tad Coffin’s saddle and very very scant evidence for PEMF. If the science is there-- do a study and prove your product works.
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So, I don’t sell vibration plates and I don’t own one. But there has been more research into them.
Showing that there is NO effect on hoof growth length (no mention of quality) debunking that claim: https://digitalcommons.otterbein.edu/stu_honor/56/
Vibration therapy improved thoracolumbar pain, but only after 4 weeks of consistent use; anything shorter seemed to have a negative impact: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2949905424000100
But then this study found no difference in back pain https://digitalcommons.otterbein.edu/stu_honor/166/
Somewhat hilariously they found in this study that the plate wasn’t even working as described (which was not the goal of the study) the frequency was lower than advertised and it shook back and fourth instead of up down, which is what the human machines do https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0737080616301125
No help with bone density either https://brill.com/view/journals/cep/16/5/article-p403_9.xml
Quite a few studies noted the horses seemed to like to plate. They relaxed when on it.
What I’d like to see is studies into lower leg issues. Acute Tendon/ligament damage, and ringbone/sidebone/navicular. That’s where I’d expect the plates may help out.
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If I was a horse and sometimes you took me out and did things that were work/unpleasant (tack me up, sheath cleaning, mane pulling etc.) but I learned that when that shaky thing was going you took me out and left me alone to relax for a while and then fed me treats-- I’d like the plate too.
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True. However, completely anecdotally, the human ones are pretty relaxing to be on. I have feet issues and I’m always in pain from it. When I used one of the vibration plates it made the pain completely disappear when I was on it… and for about 5 minutes after. I didn’t want to get off after trying it. But it provided no long term help. My guess is that the vibration just numbs the area while it’s going.
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When I am in FL I stand on the one in the barn- I suspect it works but not by the advertised mechanism, moreso because it numbs your feet for a little while, which is useful if you have sore feet. Not quite sure how useful it is to have a low power temporary hoof block in a horse but if it’s doing something, I think it’s for that reason, not mystical energy frequencies. Seems like some decent evidence for vibration to numb someone pre injection, but beyond that I didn’t dig too deep.
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