ArticlePain medicine (Malden, Mass.)2021
Percutaneous Peripheral Nerve Stimulation of the Medial Branch Nerves for the Treatment of Chronic Axial Back Pain in Patients After Radiofrequency Ablation.
Article in Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.), 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 29 papers, 2 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
29 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 50 citations in OpenAlex.
- Peripheral Nerve Stimulation for Chronic Neuropathic Pain: A Health Technology Assessment.Ontario health technology assessment series · 2024Pooled it
- Peripheral Nerve Stimulation for Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review.Current pain and headache reports · 2023Pooled it
- Peripheral Nerve Stimulation for Low Back Pain: A Review of the Recent Literature.Current pain and headache reports · 2025Review
- Temporary Peripheral Nerve Stimulation (PNS) of the Cervical Medial Branch Nerve (CMBN) for Chronic Axial Neck Pain-A Literature Review and Case Series.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- Patient-Reported Outcomes with Peripheral Nerve Stimulation for Low Back Pain from Vertebral Plana Deformities: A Case Series.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Four-Year Follow-Up from a Prospective, Multicenter Study of Percutaneous 60-Day Peripheral Nerve Stimulation for Chronic Low Back Pain.Pain and therapy · 2025Article
- Consensus Guidelines for the Use of Peripheral Nerve Stimulation in the Treatment of Chronic Pain and Neurological Diseases: A Neuron Project from the American Society of Pain and Neuroscience.Journal of pain research · 2025Article
- An Evidence-Based Consensus for the Use of Neurostimulation for the Treatment of Non-Surgical Low Back Pain: The NEURON Group.Journal of pain research · 2025Review
- 60-Day Peripheral Nerve Stimulation in Chronic Knee Pain: A Retrospective Analysis.Orthopedic reviews · 2025Article
- A Call for Reckoning and Reform in Interventional Pain Medicine and Neuromodulation Research.Journal of pain research · 2025Article
- Consensus Guidelines from the American Society of Pain and Neuroscience for the Use of 60-Day Peripheral Nerve Stimulation Therapy. A NEURON Living Guideline Project.Journal of pain research · 2025Article
- Sequential Bilateral Peripheral Nerve Stimulation of Lumbar Medial Branches Following Laminectomy: A Case Report.Cureus · 2024Article
- Precision Rehabilitation After Neurostimulation Implantation for Multifidus Dysfunction in Nociceptive Mechanical Chronic Low Back Pain.Archives of rehabilitation research and clinical translation · 2024Article
- Potential Role of Focal Microvibration (EquistasiPain and therapy · 2024Article
- A review of prospective studies regarding percutaneous peripheral nerve stimulation treatment in the management of chronic pain.Pain management · 2024Review
- Pathophysiology of Pain and Mechanisms of Neuromodulation: A Narrative Review (A Neuron Project).Journal of pain research · 2024Review
- Multifidus dysfunction and restorative neurostimulation: a scoping review.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2023Article
- Peripheral Nerve Stimulation for Pain Management: A Review.Current pain and headache reports · 2023Review
- Durable patient-reported outcomes following 60-day percutaneous peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) of the medial branch nerves.Interventional pain medicine · 2023Article
- Sciatic nerve stimulation alleviates acute neuropathic pain via modulation of neuroinflammation and descending pain inhibition in a rodent model.Journal of neuroinflammation · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
11 authors at 9 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveLumbar radiofrequency ablation is a commonly used intervention for chronic back pain. However, the pain typically returns, and though retreatment may be successful, the procedure involves destruction of the medial branch nerves, which denervates the multifidus. Repeated procedures typically have diminishing returns, which can lead to opioid use, surgery, or implantation of permanent neuromodulation systems. The objective of this report is to demonstrate the potential use of percutaneous peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) as a minimally invasive, nondestructive, motor-sparing alternative to repeat radiofrequency ablation and more invasive surgical procedures.
designProspective, multicenter trial.
methodsIndividuals with a return of chronic axial pain after radiofrequency ablation underwent implantation of percutaneous PNS leads targeting the medial branch nerves. Stimulation was delivered for up to 60 days, after which the leads were removed. Participants were followed up to 5 months after the start of PNS. Outcomes included pain intensity, disability, and pain interference.
resultsHighly clinically significant (≥50%) reductions in average pain intensity were reported by a majority of participants (67%, n = 10/15) after 2 months with PNS, and a majority experienced clinically significant improvements in functional outcomes, as measured by disability (87%, n = 13/15) and pain interference (80%, n = 12/15). Five months after PNS, 93% (n = 14/15) reported clinically meaningful improvement in one or more outcome measures, and a majority experienced clinically meaningful improvements in all three outcomes (i.e., pain intensity, disability, and pain interference).
conclusionsPercutaneous PNS has the potential to shift the pain management paradigm by providing an effective, nondestructive, motor-sparing neuromodulation treatment.
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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.