Trial reportThe journal of spinal cord medicine2011
Efficacy of cranial electrotherapy stimulation for neuropathic pain following spinal cord injury: a multi-site randomized controlled trial with a secondary 6-month open-label phase.
Trial report in The journal of spinal cord medicine, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 49 citations in OpenAlex.
- The effect of neuropathic pain treatments on pain interference following spinal cord injury: A systematic review.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2024Pooled it
- Efficacy and Tolerability of Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation in the Treatment of Anxiety: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Pooled it
- Non-invasive brain stimulation techniques for chronic pain.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2018Pooled it
- Non-invasive brain stimulation techniques for chronic pain.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2018Pooled it
- Non-pharmacological interventions for chronic pain in people with spinal cord injury.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2014Pooled it
- Short Form health surveys and related variants in spinal cord injury research: a systematic review.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2014Pooled it
- Feasibility and efficacy of remotely supervised cranial electrical stimulation for pain in older adults with knee osteoarthritis: A randomized controlled pilot study.Journal of clinical neuroscience : official journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia · 2020Trial
- Effects of repeated cranial electrotherapy stimulation on physiological and behavioral responses to acute stress: a double-blind randomized clinical trial.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2025Article
- Investigating the therapeutic efficacy of microcurrent therapy: a narrative review.Therapeutic advances in chronic disease · 2025Review
- Efficacy of cranial electrotherapy stimulation in patients with burning mouth syndrome: a randomized, controlled, double-blind pilot study.Frontiers in neurology · 2024Article
- Brain stimulation for chronic pain management: a narrative review of analgesic mechanisms and clinical evidence.Neurosurgical review · 2023Review
- Observational Study to Assesses the Efficacy and Safety of Microcurrent Therapy with a Portable Device in Patients Suffering from Chronic Back Pain, Skeletal System Pain, Fibromyalgia, Migraine or Depression.Medical devices (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2023Article
- Evaluation of the Effectiveness of a Novel Brain-Computer Interface Neuromodulative Intervention to Relieve Neuropathic Pain Following Spinal Cord Injury: Protocol for a Single-Case Experimental Design With Multiple Baselines.JMIR research protocols · 2020Article
- Management of Neuropathic Pain Associated with Spinal Cord Injury.Pain and therapy · 2015Article
- Moving towards multiple site outcomes in spinal cord injury pain clinical trials: An issue of clustered observations in trial design and analysis.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2014Article
- Invasive and non-invasive brain stimulation for treatment of neuropathic pain in patients with spinal cord injury: a review.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2014Review
- Effects of cranial electrotherapy stimulation on resting state brain activity.Brain and behavior · 2012Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 7 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundChronic pain is a significant problem for many individuals following spinal cord injury (SCI). Unfortunately, SCI-related neuropathic pain has proven to be largely refractory to analgesic medications and other available treatments. Cranial electrotherapy stimulation (CES) has been effective in managing some types of pain. It involves the application of a small amount of current through the head via ear clip electrodes.
objectiveExplore the effectiveness of CES for neuropathic pain in persons with SCI and chronic pain. STUDY
designMulti-site, double-blind, sham-controlled study.
participantsAdults with SCI and chronic neuropathic pain at or below the level of injury were randomized to receive active or sham CES.
interventionApplication of active CES or sham CES 1 hour daily for 21 days. Six-month open-label phase to assess 'as-needed' CES use. OUTCOME MEASURES: Change in pre- to post-session pain ratings as well as change in pain intensity, pain interference, pain quality, pain beliefs and coping strategies, general physical and mental health status, depressive symptomatology, perceived stress, and anxiety pre- to post-treatment.
resultsThe active group reported a significantly greater average decrease in pain during daily treatments than the sham group (Kruskal-Wallis chi-square = 4.70, P < 0.05). During the 21-day trial, there was a significant group × time interaction for only one outcome variable; the active group showed larger pre- to post-treatment decreases in pain interference than the sham group did (F = 8.50, P < 0.01, d = 0.59).
conclusionsOn average, CES appears to have provided a small but statistically significant improvement in pain intensity and pain interference with few troublesome side effects. Individual results varied from no pain relief to a great deal of relief.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.