Percutaneous Surface Stimulation for Chronic Pain
There are so many options for treating chronic pain but finding the right solution and getting the right diagnosis is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Jill is no exception. Living in rural Wisconsin, she lives a very active lifestyle with her husband and three children, enjoying the outdoors and being small business owners. But when her pain started to interfere with her lifestyle, something had to change.
Jill remembers always having aches and pains, even when she was young and raising her children. The chronic pain in her lower back transformed into becoming systemic and she could no longer have a direct cause for the pain such as lifting a child the wrong way or twisting too much while gardening. The pain was constant and she wanted to know why and how to fix it. While in her 30’s she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, but she as not satisfied with that labeling of her pain.
Not having a clear treatment guideline, she began to try various options. First was pharmaceutical. She tried a few but did not like the way she felt and truly opposed taking medications over a long period of time. She then began to see a chiropractor, but that did not help either. She then tried an osteopathy and then physical therapy but neither was effective. Jill’s back pain persisted. She then opted for some cortisone injections into her back. It helped temporarily, but the nagging pain in her lower back would come back before she could schedule another injection. Not finding a solution in the medical field, Jill started to look elsewhere. She tried gadgets sold on-line and over broadcast television. She felt like she was “chasing rainbows” and spending a lot of money trying to find a treatment.
Jill was on the internet searching, hunting for a solution. She found the manufacturer of a percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (PENS) device. While speaking to the company representative, she was cautious at first, even a little skeptical. She was familiar with transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) but not PENS. TENS units use pulsed low frequency electrical current delivered from a small unit through two electrodes placed on the surface of the skin. The electrodes are small pads with a sticky gel to help conduct the electrical activity from the unit through the surface of the skin. A PENS device sends alternating high frequency current signals from the unit through deep tissue electrodes also placed on the surface of the skin. The PENS electrodes are different from TENS electrodes because they have microscopic needle-like probes that penetrate the surface of the skin to deliver the current deep into the tissue. The deep tissue treatments tend to have a long lasting effect. Clinical trials have also demonstrated not only a reduction in pain, but improved range of motion and reduced muscle spasms.
Jill got a prescription for the device from her doctor and ordered the device for home delivery. Upon arrival, Jill set up the small, pre-programmed, portable device and placed the electrodes on her lower back. Trying the device for the first time, she could feel the electrical pulses on her skin but it was not uncomfortable like an electric shock. Instead, it felt more soothing like a massage. More importantly, the pain relief was almost immediate. There was no waiting for a medication or taking time to drive to an appointment. This small, handheld device was giving Jill relief from the pain that has been haunting her for years.
Over time, she has found her body to be flexible again and her movements more fluid. After playing volleyball with her son, her shoulder was bothering her the next day. She placed the electrodes on her shoulder area and with one treatment the shoulder pain extinguished. With consistent use, Jill has found the intensity of her daily lower back pain has decreased and confidence in her motions is back. “I just don’t hurt any more,” she declared.
Not all chronic pain is the same and that warrants the many options that people have for treating it. The key is to try the variety of options to find the right solution. Learn more about neurotechnologies for pain management with our neurotech directory.