TENS
TENS has a place among pharmacological and invasive treatments for chronic pain conditions.
TENS (Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) is a handheld device with electrodes that are placed on the skin in or around the area of pain, or over a superficial nerve. Through these electrodes, mild electrical impulses are transmitted via the nerves to the spinal cord and brain. TENS has minimal side effects and is a cost-effective treatment. The goal of TENS stimulation is pain relief and distraction while the stimulation is active.
Photo: Private
How TENS Provides Pain Relief:
-
Gate-Control Theory: This theory suggests that pain signals are inhibited at the spinal cord level through high-frequency stimulation of nerve fibers that compete with pain nerve fibers.
-
Endogenous Pain Relievers: TENS stimulates the production of endogenous pain-relieving substances such as endorphins and enkephalins through low-frequency stimulation.
-
Direct Inhibition of Abnormal Nerve Activity: TENS can also directly inhibit abnormal nerve activity.
TENS also provides indirect pain relief through a sympathetic inhibitory effect, leading to vasodilation and a subsequent reduction in ischemic pain. This mechanism is particularly important for treating angina pectoris with TENS.
In ancient Egypt, around 2500 BCE, pain was treated using electric fish that could deliver electrical shocks of 300 to 400 volts. Knowledge of electric fish was known among ancient scholars, including Aristotle, Theophrastus, and Pliny the Elder.
The first documented medical use of electric fish for pain treatment was recorded by the Roman physician Scribonius Largus in 46 CE (Kane and Taub, 1975).
In the 19th century, the first prototype of a TENS device (Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) was developed (Stillings, 1975). In 1965, Melzack and Wall introduced the Gate Control Theory, explaining how pain can be controlled. In 1974, screening devices for spinal cord stimulation (SCS) were created (Shearley, 1974).