Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41803572›Full record

ArticlePain and therapy2026

Pain Relief and Multidimensional Outcomes of Fast-Acting Subperception Spinal Cord Stimulation Therapy for Chronic Pain: The FAST Prospective, Multicenter Study.

Magdalena Anitescu, Eric Loudermilk, James North, Sayed Wahezi, Ajay Antony, Tim Leier, Drew Trainor, John Noles, Gregory Moore, Jennifer Lee and 4 more

Registry-linked trialAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Pain and therapy, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04618471 (Study to Demonstrate the Value of Paresthesia-Free Fast-Acting Subperception), which is not on this map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing 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.

NCT04618471 naactive not recruitingnot on this map

Study to Demonstrate the Value of Paresthesia-Free Fast-Acting Subperception (FAST) and Other SCS Therapies Using WaveWriter™ Spinal Cord Stimulator Systems in the Treatment of Chronic Pain

TypeinterventionalSponsorBoston Scientific CorporationRan2021 to 2029Enrolled177ConditionsChronic PainArmsBoston Scientific WaveWriter SCS System
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. 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

14 authors.

Magdalena AnitescuDepartment of Anesthesia and Critical Care Medicine, University of Chicago Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA. MAnitescu@bsd.uchicago.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0396-648X
Eric LoudermilkPiedmont Comprehensive Pain Management Group, PCPMG Clinical Research Unit LLC, Greenville, SC, USA.
James NorthCarolinas Pain Institute and Center for Clinical Research, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.
Sayed WaheziMultidisciplinary Pain Program, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA.
Ajay AntonyThe Orthopaedic Institute, Gainesville, FL, USA.
Tim LeierVitamed Research, Palm Desert, CA, USA.
Drew TrainorThe Denver Spine and Pain Institute, Denver, CO, USA.
John NolesSpine and Pain Specialists, Shreveport, LA, USA.
Gregory MoorePacific Sports and Spine, Eugene, OR, USA.
Jennifer LeeDepartment of Sports and Spine, Evergreen Health Medical Group, Kirkland, WA, USA.
Julio PaezSouth Lake Pain Institute, Clermont, FL, USA.
Derron WilsonGoodman Campbell Brain and Spine, Ascension St. Vincent's, Carmel, IN, USA.
Virginie Van BelleghemBoston Scientific Neuromodulation, Valencia, CA, USA.
Edward GoldbergBoston Scientific Neuromodulation, Valencia, CA, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionFast-acting subperception therapy in spinal cord stimulation (FAST-SCS) uses low-frequency, subthreshold stimulation to engage the dorsal column-mediated surround inhibition mechanism and thereby relieve pain. Our study was performed to better characterize the multidimensional long-term clinical outcomes of FAST-SCS therapy in patients with chronic low back and/or leg pain.

methodsOur prospective, multicenter, single-arm, open-label trial, conducted at 12 pain management centers across the USA, included male and female patients with chronic low back pain with/without leg pain refractory to conservative therapy. All eligible patients received an SCS implant. Outcomes evaluated included pain relief, disability, mobility, health-related quality of life, sleep quality, depression, pain catastrophizing, and global impression of change.

resultsFifty-six patients received a permanent SCS implant and 55 were activated with FAST-SCS therapy. At 12 months, 89% and 59% of patients achieved ≥ 50% and ≥ 80% pain relief, respectively (p < 0.0001), and pain intensity (verbal numerical rating scale) decreased by 4.9 ± 2.2 points (p < 0.0001). Significant improvements were observed in disability (Oswestry Disability Index - 24 ± 16 points, p < 0.0001) and endurance (6-Minute Walk Test + 73 ± 96 m, p < 0.0001), while mobility and balance improved without reaching statistical significance (Timed Up-and-Go test - 7.5 ± 37.5 s, p = 0.17). All psychosocial measures improved significantly at 12 months compared to baseline, with an increase in the EQ5D-5L index (+ 0.200 ± 0.182, p < 0.0001) and decreases in the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality index (- 3.96 ± 4.31, p < 0.0001), Pain Catastrophizing Score (- 13.3 ± 11.4, p < 0.0001), and Beck Depression Index (- 7.9 ± 10.0, p < 0.0001). At 12 months, 87% of patients reported being "much" or "very much" improved. Responses to FAST-SCS were at or above the minimal clinically important differences across all measured clinical dimensions.

conclusionThis prospective study demonstrated that FAST-SCS provided statistically significant, multidimensional benefits across pain, disability, mobility, and psychosocial outcomes over 12 months in patients with chronic low back and/or leg pain. These findings support the use of FAST-SCS in this patient population.

trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04618471). https://www. CLINICALTRIALS: gov/study/NCT04618471 .

Indexed as

Chronic painFast-acting subperception stimulationFunctional outcomesPsychosocial outcomesSpinal cord stimulationSurround inhibition mechanism

Identifiers

PMID41803572
PMCPMC13172182

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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.