E.A. Ghoname

Use of percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (PENS) in the short-term management of headache

Objective.–To evaluate the short‐term effects of percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (PENS) in the management of three types of chronic headache.

Percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation: an alternative to antiviral drugs for acute herpes zoster.

A ntiviral drugs decrease the pain and enhance the resolution of acute herpes zoster lesions in immunocompetent patients (l-6). However, the effect of antiviral therapy on postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) remains controversial. Whereas some studies reported a lower incidence of prolonged pain with antiviral therapy (4), others found no benefit with respect to prolonged pain (5). In an attempt to improve patient comfort and long-term outcome with respect to PHN, combinations of different drugs have also been evaluated (5-7). Anecdotal reports have suggested that electroacupuncture may be helpful in the management of herpes-related pain (8,9). Clinical experience with a novel form of electroanalgesia known as percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (PENS) in the treatment of patients with acute herpes zoster suggested that it is effective in decreasing herpes-related pain and is associated with rapid resolution of the cutaneous lesions (Craig WF, Taylor SM, Fort Worth Center for Pain Management, personal communication, 1997). Therefore, we designed this clinical study to compare PENS therapy with a standard antiviral regimen with respect to the severity of the associated pain, impact on the patient’s physical activity and quality of sleep, resolution of the herpes lesions, and incidence and severity of PHN.

Use of percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (PENS) for treating ECT-induced headaches.

Five patients who experienced migrainelike attacks associated with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) were treated using a novel nonpharmacologic therapy known as percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (PENS). In this sham‐controlled preliminary evaluation, PENS therapy proved to be a useful alternative to opioid analgesics for the acute treatment and/or prevention of ECT‐induced headache.