Using TENS to Relieve Pain and Potentiate the Rehabilitation of Pain Patients

Summary

Introduction: Chronic pain affects more than half of elderly individuals. Past studies have shown that pain can interfere with motor learning and rehabilitation. It was suggested that relieving pain before physical therapy sessions might be an interesting strategy to potentiate the rehabilitation of older patients suffering from pain.

Objective: This study aims to determine if the analgesic effect induced by TENS can be used to maximize the rehabilitation of elderly patients suffering from chronic pain. More specifically, the objectives are to: 1) compare functional outcomes of patients from the Day Hospital receiving rehabilitation with either active TENS treatments or simulated TENS treatments, and 2) determine if there is an association between the analgesic effect of TENS and the clinical evolution of patients following their rehabilitation.

Methods: In this RCT, patients will be assigned randomly to either the: 1) experimental group receiving active TENS treatments or 2) the control group receiving simulated TENS treatments. Thirty-six patients will be recruited according to the following criteria: 1) will receive physiotherapy rehabilitation at the Day Hospital of the CSSS-IUGS, 2) be at least 65 years of age, 3) suffering from chronic pain (pain lasting for more than 6 months), 4) presenting pain during the rehabilitation at the Day hospital. For security reasons, patients with a cardiac simulator will be excluded from the present study (TENS contraindications). Patients with cognitive alterations (score of \< 24/30 at the Folstein test) will also be excluded. Sociodemographic information will be retrieved from medical records by the research assistant at baseline (T1). Moreover, various questionnaires will be administered at T1, after half of the rehabilitation period (i.e. 4 to 6 weeks) (T2), and after the 8- to 12- week rehabilitation period (T3) to measure the qualitative aspects of pain, mood, and physical function. Functional outcomes will as well be collected directly from the medical record at each assessment times (T1, T2 and T3).The measures include exercise tolerance, balance, mobility and balance, and functional ability.

Anticipated results: We believe that: 1) use of active TENS during the rehabilitation sessions will potentiate rehabilitation of patients suffering from chronic pain at the CSSS-IUGS Day Hospital, and 2) there is a relationship between the analgesic effect induced by TENS and the clinical evolution of patients.

Conditions

• Chronic Pain

Interventions

DEVICE

Active transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)

TENS is a technique use to relieve pain in an injured or diseased part of the body in which electrodes applied to the skin deliver intermittent stimulation to surface nerves and block the transmission of pain signals. In this research, the frequency will be set at 100 Hz, implusion duration at 60 μsec and intensity will be increase until having strong but confortable stimulations.

DEVICE

Simulated transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)

A modification of the TENS connexion parameters will prevent the current from reaching the electrods (once a first sensation will be perceived).

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Fondation Vitae

  collaborator OTHER

• Université de Sherbrooke

  lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

65 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2015-09-30

Primary Completion

2016-06-30

Completion

2016-06-30