TENS Device for NMOSD Pain
A transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation device for the relief of neuropathic pain in NMOSD: A randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
The fake device worked almost as well as the real one
Most people assume that actual electrical stimulation is needed to block pain signals. This study shows that just believing you're getting treatment can produce nearly identical results.
Practical Takeaways
If you have chronic nerve pain, a TENS device might help you feel better — even if it's mostly the placebo effect
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
The fake device worked almost as well as the real one
Most people assume that actual electrical stimulation is needed to block pain signals. This study shows that just believing you're getting treatment can produce nearly identical results.
Practical Takeaways
If you have chronic nerve pain, a TENS device might help you feel better — even if it's mostly the placebo effect
Publication
Journal
Multiple Sclerosis Journal - Experimental, Translational and Clinical
Year
2024
Authors
Anastasia Vishnevetsky, Gabriela Romanow, Michael Levy
Related Content
Claims (8)
In a study testing TENS devices for pain, people used the real device and the fake (sham) device for almost exactly the same amount of time—about 2.9 hours daily—so the researchers could rule out that different usage levels explained why both groups had similar pain relief.
A study found that using a TENS machine for nerve pain doesn't work any better than using a fake (sham) TENS machine - the pain relief was basically the same after 4 weeks.
People using real TENS machines and people using fake (sham) TENS machines both reported feeling better after 4 weeks, with similar improvements in their quality of life - but there's no proof that the real TENS actually worked better than the fake one.
When people get treatment for pain, sometimes they feel better just because they expect to feel better - not because the treatment actually changed anything in their body.
A study found that people with a nerve disease called NMOSD who have pain felt less pain after using either a real TENS machine or a fake one for 4 weeks. The real TENS reduced pain by about 2.2 points on a 0-10 scale, while the fake one reduced pain by about 1.3 points.