VOLUME 6 - NUMBER 1 - 2026
Biophysical stimulation in the regeneration of musculoskeletal tissue: interesting, but... are we there yet? A narrative review.
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Giuseppe Falcone
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Concise reviews, 36-39
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Full text PDF
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Purpose: This paper aims to evaluate the scientific evidence on the role of biophysical stimulation in the regeneration of musculoskeletal tissue and its current clinical applications, and to discuss potential future directions in this field.
Methods: A narrative review of electronic databases was conducted focusing on research articles dealing with biophysical stimulation and regeneration of musculoskeletal tissue published in English within the decade ending 1 February, 2026.
Results: Inclusion and exclusion criteria yielded a final selection of 273 sources: 151 in vitro studies and 122 original articles and clinical trials. The data from these sources are evaluated and discussed, highlighting the main results of a set of the most relevant and representative papers in order to provide an overview of the state of the art on the topic.
Conclusions: Biophysical stimulation, supported by an increasing number of studies that describe its pro-regenerative effects on both skeletal and extra-skeletal tissue, is emerging as a potentially useful therapeutic tool in numerous musculoskeletal disorders. However, examination of the scientific literature shows that in vivo studies on the use of biophysical stimulation for pro-regenerative purposes continue to yield heterogeneous results. Accordingly, biophysical tissue stimulation remains a challenge for the research community and an evolving horizon for the future of regenerative medicine.
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KEY WORDS: Biophysical stimulation, regenerative medicine, physical therapy, orthopedic rehabilitation.
