The effect of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation on post-thoracotomy pain

Abstract

TENS reduced PLT pain and analgesic consumption. Thus, TENS can be recommended as an easy and reliable analgesic method in PLT.

Clinical guidelines on perioperative management strategies for enhanced recovery after lung surgery

“…Both are superior to intravenous morphine and can significantly improve postoperative lung function (86) without central nervous depression. Analgesia by means of other techniques such as transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) or serratus anterior plane (SAP) block may be used as a technical adjunct to control severe pain (87)(88)(89)(90). Furthermore, pain can be alleviated by early removal of chest drain (91).…”

Efficacy of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation for Postoperative Pain, Pulmonary Function, and Opioid Consumption Following Cardiothoracic Procedures: A Systematic Review

“…After duplicates were removed, 30 studies underwent the title and abstract screening. After this screening, ten studies remained for a full text review (14,15,26–32). These results are summarized in the PRISMA flow diagram (Fig.…”

“…Two studies involved cardiac procedures (myocardial revascularizations, aortic and valve replacements, myxoma resections, atrial septal defect corrections, and CABG) (26,31). Six studies involved different thoracotomy approaches for lung cancer and lung nodule resection, pleural effusions, mediastinal adenopathy, emphysema, and pleural thickening (15,27–30,32). In each study, the addition of TENS was compared to pharmacological therapy alone.…”

“…Five studies used a placebo TENS device with modified pulses or an inactive device (15,26–28,31). Three studies did not specify that a placebo device was used (29,30,32). Pharmacological therapy for pain management and the timing of initiation, frequency, and termination of TENS varied in each study.…”

Post-thoracotomy analgesia

“…[ 84 ] In combination with traditional post-thoracotomy analgesia, TENS has been shown to decrease pain and analgesic consumption without significant side effects or prolongation of hospital stay. [ 85 86 87 ] However, these benefits seem to be short-lived and only last while the TENS is in use. [ 88 ] Similarly, cold therapy in the form of ice packs can be used to decrease incisional pain and inflammation and decrease opioid requirements.…”