Neuromodulation : journal of the International Neuromodulation Society
-
Until now, the vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) treatment in epilepsy has consisted of two different modes: normal and magnet stimulation. A new vagus nerve stimulator model (106 AspireSR®, LivaNova, Houston, TX, USA) also allows automatic stimulation (AutoStim). The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of autostimulation on seizure frequencies together with energy consumption. ⋯ VNS with AutoStim achieves maintenance of prior-established seizure control with markedly less energy consumption and can also improve seizure control as compared to former stimulator model.
-
Occipital nerve stimulation (ONS) is widely used for headache syndromes including chronic migraine (CM) and chronic cluster headache (CCH). The paraesthesia associated with tonic stimulation can be bothersome and can limit therapy. It is now clear in spinal cord stimulation that paraesthesia-free waveforms can produce effective analgesia, but this has not been reported in ONS for CM or CCH. ⋯ Paraesthesia is not necessary for good quality analgesia in ONS. Larger studies will be required to determine whether the efficacies of the two stimulation modes differ. Burst ONS is imperceptible and therefore potentially amenable to robustly blinded clinical trials.
-
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) and peripheral nerve field stimulation (PNFS) may be proposed to patients with chronic lumbar pain refractory to conventional treatment. Aim of this study was to assess the importance of preoperatively treatment with TENS as a predictive value for later successful PNFS and impact of PNFS in follow-up of 12 months. ⋯ In this retrospective analysis, TENS has no predictive value in the selection of patients with low back pain for the PFNS treatment. PNFS is effective and safe to relieve significantly symptoms of chronic low back pain.
-
To investigate whether peripheral electrical stimulation (PES) of back extensor muscles changes excitability of the corticospinal pathway of the stimulated muscle and synergist trunk muscles. ⋯ Results indicate that, unlike previous reports that show increased corticospinal excitability of limb muscles, PES of back muscles does not modify the corticospinal excitability. This difference in response of the motor pathway of back muscles to PES might be explained by the lesser importance of voluntary cortical drive to these muscles and the greater role of postural networks. Whether PES influences back muscle training remains unclear, yet the present results suggest that potential effects are unlikely to be explained by the effects of PES at corticospinal level with the parameters used in this study.
-
Current perception threshold (CPT) measurement is a noninvasive, easy, and semi-objective method for determining sensory function using transcutaneous electrical stimulation. Previous studies have shown that CPT is determined by physical characteristics, such as sex, age, physical sites, and presence of neuropathy. Although the CPT reported in males is clearly higher than that in females, the reason for this difference remains unclear. This study investigates the cause of sex-based differences in CPT and suggests an adjustment method, which may suppress the sex difference in CPT. ⋯ We conclude that sensitivity for perceiving electrical stimulation can be influenced by the subjects' characteristics, such as body fat or body water percentages.