Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation as adjunct to primary care management for tennis elbow: pragmatic randomised controlled trial (TATE trial).

Abstract

STUDY QUESTION:

Can transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), as a patient controlled adjunct to primary care management for tennis elbow, provide superior pain relief to primary care management alone.

SUMMARY ANSWER:

TENS conferred no additional clinical benefit over primary care management consisting of information and advice on analgesia and exercise for patients with tennis elbow, probably partly owing to poor adherence to treatment recommendations.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS:

A need exists for safe, self administered interventions to provide pain relief for patients with tennis elbow. TENS as an adjunct to primary care management failed to show any additional pain relief compared with primary care management alone.

• Authors: Linda S Chesterton, A Martyn Lewis, Julius Sim, Christian D Mallen, Elizabeth E Mason, Elaine M Hay, Daniëlle A van der Windt
• Journal: British journal of sports medicine (Br J Sports Med) Vol. 48 Issue 19 Pg. 1458 (Oct 2014) ISSN: 1473-0480 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 25213605 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
• Copyright: Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.