• Vishnu P Rao, Yoon Kook Kim, Anahita Ghazi, Jean Y Park, and Kashif M Munir.
• University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
• Pain Pract. 2023 Nov 1; 23 (8): 914921914-921.

AimsTranscutaneous magnetic stimulation (TCMS) is successful in decreasing pain in several neurologic conditions. This multicenter parallel double-blind phase II clinical trial is a follow-up to a pilot study that demonstrated pain relief in patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) treated with TCMS.MethodsThirty-four participants with confirmed DPN and baseline pain score ≥ 5 were randomized to treatment at two sites. Participants were treated with either TCMS (n = 18) or sham (n = 16) applied to each foot once a week for four weeks. Pain scores using the Numeric Pain Rating Scale after 10 steps on a hard floor surface and answers to Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System pain questions were recorded by participants daily for 28 days.ResultsThirty-one participants completed the study and were analyzed. Average pain scores decreased from baseline in both the groups. The difference in pain scores between TCMS and sham treatments was -0.55 for morning, -0.13 for evening, and -0.34 overall, below the pre-determined clinically relevant difference of -2. Moderate adverse events that resolved spontaneously were experienced in both treatment arms.ConclusionIn this two-arm trial, TCMS failed to demonstrate a significant benefit over sham in patient reported pain suggesting a substantial placebo effect in our previous pilot study.Trial RegistrationTCMS for the Treatment of Foot Pain Caused By Diabetic Neuropathy, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03596203, ID-NCT03596203.© 2023 World Institute of Pain.

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