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To turn pain into tingling with electrostimulation?
Chronic pain can have different causes. One of these are the so-called neuropathies (nerve pain). Physicians at the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden use so-called spinal cord-like electrical stimulation (SCS) against this special form of chronic pain - with success.
According to the University Hospital Dresden, the SCS procedure is "only suitable for selected patients with back and nerve pain", but this can be sustainably helped. For more than 20 years, the experts at the Department of Neurosurgery at the Dresden University Hospital have been using SCS systems that use electrodes to stimulate certain nerve fibers along the spinal cord, thereby suppressing the transmission of pain messages to the brain.
Chronic pain in the form of neuropathy can be treated with the help of spinal cord-related electrical stimulation. (Image: reineg / fotolia.com) Targeted stimulation of the spinal cord
For chronic pain that is difficult to treat as a result of neuropathy, targeted stimulation of the spinal cord is a possible treatment option. However, the established therapy is not known to many, according to the announcement of the University Hospital. In addition, the pacemaker-related electrical stimulation remains bound to certain conditions and will only be considered when no improvement can be achieved with other forms of therapy. If the starting conditions are met, electrodes in the spinal cord and a small pulse generator can be implanted as part of a small procedure. With their help, electrical impulses of low voltage can be delivered to the posterior strands of the spinal cord. The impulse transmission takes place epidurally - over the hard meninges of the spinal cord. With a hand-held device, patients can determine the strength of the stimulation themselves.
Tingling instead of pain
The emitted electrical impulses stimulate certain nerve fibers along the spinal cord and these can no longer transmit their pain messages to the brain, explain the Dresden physicians. Discomfort and pain that reach the brain via the nerve tracts are suppressed. "Thanks to the electrical impulses, patients feel a more pleasant tingling or sensation than a massage - the so-called paraesthesia effect, instead of the pain," the message says. Many patients have already been helped with the procedure. So also the today 50-year-old Sylvia Hesse, which reports in the press release of the hospital from their experiences with the treatment.
Long suffering of those affected
According to the hospital, the patient suffered a severe herniated disc more than 15 years ago, and the surgery had resolved the pain for just under three years. Subsequently, severe pain returned, which the treating physicians could "get through neither further therapies nor by strong drugs under control," reports the University Hospital. Changes in a vertebra would have further aggravated the patient's complaints. In a second operation, the pain source was switched off, but then the scar tissue had continued to cause complaints in the patient.
Pain is in the background
"These were burning pain from the lower back to the toes," Sylvia Hesse is quoted in the current press release. Her life had turned only to the fear of even stronger pain attacks. She was no longer able to pursue her job as a geriatric nurse. It was not until six years ago that the patient learned about spinal cord stimulation and at the Dresden University Hospital neurosurgeons determined that she was well on the path to success with this method. The decision to have surgery was made and now the pain is there, but they take a back seat, the woman reports.
Procedure associated with only minor restrictions
Thanks to the SCS procedure, the 50-year-old currently hardly needs any medication and can do her housework and everyday tasks as normal. Since the morning pain sensation is often less than in the evening, the stimulator does not need to stay on all day. Although the electrodes are noticeable in the back, but bring the process hardly any restrictions. Only extreme sporting stress should be avoided and the patient should avoid proximity to stronger electromagnetic fields such as in induction cookers. In addition, the implanted pulse generator must be charged every eight days. After six years, the battery was finally exhausted, which is why the Dresden neurosurgeons of the woman implanted a new device under local anesthesia in early April.
Two steps of implantation
According to the University Hospital Dresden, the initial implantation of the SCS is basically done in two steps. If the physicians have decided that a patient is suitable for the stimulation, the spinal cord stimulation will be tested first. For this purpose, the specialists implant only the electrodes, which is done under continuous X-ray inspection to find the right position. At the same time, a connected external stimulator is used to test whether the electrical stimulation reaches the pain areas of the patient. For the optimal placement of the electrodes, the patients must be fully conscious, reported the Dresden University Hospital further. However, the involved anesthesiologists ensure that implantation is painless. "After a successful test, the battery-powered stimulation device is connected to the electrodes already inserted," explains the University Hospital, completing the second step of the procedure. (Fp)