Bioresonance therapy (including MORA therapy) is a pseudoscientific medical practice in which it is proposed that electromagnetic waves can be used to diagnose and treat human illness.
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History and method
Bioresonance therapy was invented in Germany in 1977 by Franz Morell and his son-in-law, engineer Erich Rasche. Initially they marketed it as "MORA-Therapie", for MOrell and RAsche. Some of the machines contain an electronic circuit measuring skin-resistance, akin to the E-Meter used by Scientology, which the bioresonance creators sought to improve; Franz Morell had links with Scientology.
Practitioners claim to be able to detect variety of diseases and addictions. Some practitioners also claim they can treat diseases using this therapy without drugs, by stimulating a change of "bioresonance" in the cells, and reversing the change caused by the disease. The devices would need to be able to isolate and pinpoint pathogens' responses from the mixture of responses the device receives via the electrodes. Transmitting these transformed signals over the same electrodes is claimed by practitioners to generate healing signals that have the curative effect.
Effectiveness
One placebo-controlled study of the effects of bioresonance therapy showed that "MORA bioresonance therapy can markedly improve non-organic gastro-intestinal complaints."
Scientific criticism
Lacking any scientific explanation of how bioresonance therapy might work, researchers have classified bioresonance therapy as pseudoscience. Some scientific studies did not show effects above that of the placebo effect. There are some studies with positive results, like the one shown at Effectiveness.
WebMD states: "There is no reliable scientific evidence that bioresonance is an accurate indicator of medical conditions or disease or an effective treatment for any condition."
Proven cases of online fraud have occurred, with a practitioner making false claims that he had the ability to cure cancer, and that his clients did not need to follow the chemotherapy or surgery recommended by medical doctors, which can be life-saving. Ben Goldacre ridiculed the BBC when it reported as fact a clinic's claim that the treatment had the ability to stop 70% of clients smoking, a better result than any conventional therapy.
In the United States of America the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classifies "devices that use resistance measurements to diagnose and treat various diseases" as Class III devices, which require FDA approval prior to marketing. The FDA has banned some of these devices from the US market, and has prosecuted many sellers of electrical devices for making false claims of health benefits.
According to Quackwatch the therapy is completely senseless and the proposed mechanism of action impossible.