Acupuncture-like Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation for Pain, Function, and Biochemical Inflammation After Total Knee Arthroplasty.

Abstract

CONTEXT:

Clinical studies suggest that AL-TENS, acupuncture-like transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), is effective for treating many types of pain and physical dysfunction. To date, only a few studies have compared the TENS and AL-TENS forms of stimulation, and no studies have compared the efficacy of conventional TENS and AL-TENS in patients who have undergone total knee arthroplasty (TKA).

OBJECTIVES:

The study intended to determine (1) the efficacy of conventional TENS and AL-TENS for TKA patients and (2) which outcomes-pain at rest, movement-evoked pain, and physical function-were most likely to be affected by conventional TENS compared with AL-TENS for people with pain, to inform the design of future studies.

DESIGN:

The research team designed a single-blind, randomized clinical trial with randomized treatment allocation.

SETTING:

The study took place at the Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Hospital of Jeonju (Jeonju, South Korea).

PARTICIPANTS:

Participants were 30 patients at the hospital who had undergone TKA.

INTERVENTION:

Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 groups, TENS or AL-TENS, and received the relevant intervention at selected points for knee pain. Each group received treatment for 30 min per visit, 5 times per wk, for 2 wk during the study.

OUTCOME MEASURES:

Outcome measures were pain intensity, measured with a visual analogue scale; knee functional mobility, measured with the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index and with the Timed Up & Go Test; and inflammation, measured by the C-reactive protein level. Data were collected at baseline and postintervention.

RESULTS:

Changes in pain, knee function, knee mobility, and inflammation between baseline and postintervention were statistically significant for both groups (P < .05). Changes in pain, stiffness, and inflammation between baseline and postintervention were significantly greater for the AL-TENS group compared with TENS group (P < .05).

CONCLUSIONS:

AL-TENS was more effective than TENS with respect to pain, stiffness, and inflammation relief for patients following TKA.

• Authors: BeomRyong Kim, Everett Lohman, JongEun Yim
• Journal: Alternative therapies in health and medicine (Altern Ther Health Med) Vol. 27 Issue 1 Pg. 28-34 (Jan 2021) ISSN: 1078-6791 [Print] United States
• PMID: 32088676 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Randomized Controlled Trial)

Topics

• Acupuncture Therapy
• Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee
• Humans
• Inflammation (therapy)
• Osteoarthritis, Knee (therapy)
• Pain
• Single-Blind Method
• Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation
• Treatment Outcome