• Javad AminiSaman, Saeed Mohammadi, HasanAli Karimpour, Behzad Hemmatpour, Hengameh Sharifi, and Rasool Kawyannejad.
• Department of Anesthesia, School of Medicine, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran. Electronic address: aminisamanj99@gmail.com.
• J Acupunct Meridian Stud. 2018 Oct 1; 11 (5): 290-295.

Background And ObjectiveElectrical stimulation and acupuncture points as nonpharmacological methods have been the focus of pain reduction in different patients. This study is aimed at determining the effects of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) on the acupuncture points of pain in patients under mechanical ventilators.Materials And MethodsThis randomized double-blind clinical trial study was conducted on 50 patients undergoing mechanical ventilation in intensive care units of Imam Reza hospital in Kermanshah, Iran, in 2017. The patients were randomly allocated into intervention and placebo groups. In the intervention group, TENS electrodes were placed on points Hegu and Zusanli. Pain severity was measured using the Care Pain Observation Tool scale, and the dosages of narcotics and sedation intake were recorded. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software, version 19.ResultsThe level of pain in patients decreased in the intervention group in comparison with the sham group, and this decline was significant during certain hours (p < 0.05). The amount of analgesic and sedation drugs used was less significant in the intervention group than in the sham group (p = 0.01; p = 0.04).ConclusionThe results showed that the use of TENS on acupuncture points can decrease the level of pain and opioid consumption in intubated patients under a mechanical ventilator.Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

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