A treatment based on electromagnetic principles (Elmedistraal) has been tested on 12 patients with intermittent claudication. What initiated this investigation was the publicity in the media around this treatment and its supposedly positive effect on peripheral circulation. 12 patients received ten placebo and ten active treatments. The patients were thus their own control. We looked for changes in clinical signs, ankle/arm pressure index (ultrasound Doppler) and maximal walking distance (treadmill). The patients reported changes in symptoms by means of a visual analog scale. In this study neither subjective nor objective effects of treatment with Elmedistraal could be documented in patients with claudication.