A Non-Drug Path to Pain Relief
As the risks of long-term opioid use for chronic pain have become clear, interest has grown in neuromodulation devices — technologies that use electrical or magnetic stimulation to alter pain signaling in the nervous system — as a non-pharmacological alternative or complement for chronic pain that has not responded to conservative treatment. These range from simple wearable devices to surgically implanted systems, spanning a wide spectrum of invasiveness and evidence.
The Spectrum of Technology
At the more accessible end, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) units deliver mild electrical current through skin electrodes and have modest evidence for certain types of pain. At the more invasive end, surgically implanted spinal cord stimulators deliver targeted electrical pulses to the spinal cord to interrupt pain signal transmission before it reaches the brain, reserved for specific chronic pain conditions that have failed more conservative treatments.
Matching Technology to Condition
Neuromodulation is not a universal solution and works better for certain pain conditions and mechanisms than others, with careful patient selection significantly affecting outcomes for the more invasive options. For appropriate candidates who have exhausted conservative options, these devices can provide meaningful pain relief while avoiding the risks of long-term opioid therapy, representing a valuable addition to the chronic pain treatment toolkit. Facilities can source diagnostic equipment and orthopedic and rehab supplies from our catalog.
