Effect of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation on the Pain Intensity During Insertion of Needle in Patients Undergoing Spinal Anesthesia: A Randomized Controlled Study

• Main Authors: Javad AminiSaman, Hasan A. Karimpour, Behzad Hemmatpour, Saeed Mohammadi, Saeed Darvishi, Rasool Kawyannejad
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Medical Association of Pharmacopuncture Institute 2020-06-01
• Series: Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies
• Subjects: Injections Spinal; Pain; Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2005290120300777

Background and objectives: Needle insertion pain during spinal anesthesia is an unpleasant experience for patients. This study aimed to investigate the effects of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) on the pain intensity during the insertion of spinal needles in patients undergoing spinal anesthesia. Materials and methods: In a double-blind clinical trial, 60 candidates for elective Trans Ureteral Lithotripsy surgery under spinal anesthesia were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. The electrodes of the TENS device were placed in the space between L3-L4 and L5-S1 vertebrae. The intensity of pain during insertion of the spinal needle by Visual Analog Scale and the frequency of attempts were recorded. Results: The mean age of the study samples was 34.26 ± 5.07 and 32.8 ± 5.28 in the control and intervention group, respectively. The pain intensity during insertion of spinal needles was less significant in the intervention group compared to the control group (p = 0.001). The number of attempts to insert the spinal needle between the two groups was not statistically significant (p = 0.51). The duration of spinal anesthesia implementation procedure by physician in the intervention group was significantly shorter than that of the control group (p = 0.001). Conclusion: The use of TENS effectively reduced the pain of spinal needle insertion. Considering these beneficial effects, it is suggested that this procedure be used to relive pain in patients with spinal anesthesia.