Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39066557›Full record

Trial reportWomen's health (London, England)

The role of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation for menstrual pain relief: A randomized control trial.

Bailey McLagan, Joshua Dexheimer, Nicole Strock, Shayna Goldstein, Stephanie Guzman, David Erceg, E Todd Schroeder

Registry-linked trialAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Women's health (London, England). The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05178589 (The Role of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation), which is not on this map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

NCT05178589 nacompletednot on this map

The Role of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) for Menstrual Pain Relief: A Randomized Control Trial

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity of Southern CaliforniaRan2022 to 2023Enrolled44ConditionsPrimary DysmenorrheaArmsOne Unit TENS, Two Unit TENS
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Bailey McLaganDivision of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.ORCID 0009-0003-1055-3792
Joshua DexheimerStyku LLC, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Nicole StrockTherabody, Inc., Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Shayna GoldsteinDivision of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Stephanie GuzmanDivision of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
David ErcegDivision of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
E Todd SchroederDivision of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAbdominal pain due to menses (primary dysmenorrhea) is an extremely pervasive and debilitating symptom affecting up to 90% of menstruating individuals.

objectiveThe objective of this randomized control trial was to investigate the effect of a commercial transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation unit, Therabody PowerDot

designThis was a randomized cross-over study.

methodsA total of 47 participants agreed to participate in the study, with 34 completing it. Participants completed treatments across three consecutive menstrual cycles in randomized order: single-unit transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (Uno), dual unit transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (Duo), and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug use (Control). Upon onset of dysmenorrhea, participants applied transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation to their abdomen for a minimum of 30 min. Control participants were instructed to take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as needed. Surveys were used to record pain before and after treatment. We hypothesized that the PowerDot would decrease self-reported pain scores, and decrease non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug consumption during menses.

resultsParticipants experienced a statistically and clinically significant reduction in pain during the Control (-3.52 ± 1.9), Uno (-2.10 ± 1.6), and Duo (-2.19 ± 1.7) cycles (

conclusionsUse of a commercial transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation unit results in significant decrease in pain. Although not as robust as the relief in pain induced by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, the adverse events of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation are minimal in comparison. Therefore, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation appears to be a viable alternative to pain relief from dysmenorrhea. CLINICAL

trial registrationNCT05178589.

Indexed as

Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-SteroidalCross-Over StudiesDysmenorrheaTranscutaneous Electric Nerve StimulationAdultFemaleHumansPain MeasurementTreatment OutcomeYoung AdultAnti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidaldysmenorrheamenstruationtranscutaneous electrical nerve stimulation

Identifiers

PMID39066557
PMCPMC11282568

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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.