Neuromodulation : journal of the International Neuromodulation Society
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Background. Buerger disease is a nonatherosclerotic, segmental, occlusive and recurrent inflammatory vascular disorder that affects small and medium-sized arteries and veins of the upper and lower extremities. Case reports. We report two cases of Buerger disease. Medical History. Smoking habit. ⋯ Following all of the above treatments, Synergy(®) spinal cord (ECP) stimulator with two electrodes (Quad PISCES(©) ) placed at the level of T9-T10. Results. There has been a reduction in pain of about 80% and an improvement of intermittent claudication (one of the patients no longer claudicates, whereas the other patient claudicates at 400 m). Conclusion. Neurostimulation of the posterior funiculi could be considered not only as palliative care but also as a therapeutic option.
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The history of the use of electrical stimulation for pain is a cavalcade of research and innovation of many great scholars, scientists, and physicians over centuries that continues up to the present day. The legacy of this philosophy, research, and innovation is the field of neuromodulation for pain control. Today, patients with chronic pain from damage to the nervous system and chronic pain of the extremities, the axial low back, and neck, the face, and the viscera, all derive benefit from these early pioneers that have led to the expanding field of neuromodulation ... "on the shoulders of giants." We present here a history of the understandings of pain from the ancients to the present, which has led to our understandings of the use of electricity to cure disease and release patients from their suffering, generating the new, exciting, and expanding field of neuromodulation.
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Introduction. Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) is an effective treatment option for neuropathic pain. However, because of the obvious procedural issues, SCS is unable to reach certain areas, such as the face, thorax, coccyx, the cervico-dorsal and lumbar areas, and the sacral, abdominal, and inguinal regions. On the other hand, these areas are easily reached by subcutaneous field stimulation. ⋯ As a result of pain reduction, the patients' quality of life improved. There were no adverse events reported except for early electrode array displacement in two of our patients. Conclusion. When SCS is not appropriate for certain neuropathic pain syndromes, subcutaneous field stimulation may be used with some degree of efficacy.
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Objectives. This study aims to assess the efficacy of intrathecal infusion in different types of pain. A number of different variables were assessed to analyze their effect on therapy and to determine in which patients intrathecal infusion is more effective. Materials and Methods. A retrospective study was conducted with data obtained from 1983 to 2002. ⋯ The multivariate analysis (logistic regression analysis) revealed a significant difference with regard to gender, with an odds ratio of 2.78 in favor of male gender. When the efficacy and safety of the infusion was compared to the dose of morphine used, no significant differences were observed, with p = 0.65 for efficacy and p = 0.69 for safety. Conclusions. Pain relief was obtained with this technique in approximately 70% of patients, with no differences between pain types, but with a significant difference in favor of male gender.
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Objective. This study aims to investigate the movements of hyolaryngeal structures during the surface electrical stimulation of suprahyoid muscles and to compare these with movements during liquid swallowing. Materials and methods. Twelve volunteers without dysphagia participated in this study. Volunteers swallowed 5 mL of diluted barium liquid, which was recorded videofluoroscopically. ⋯ Trajectories of the hyoid and larynx during electrical stimulation were smaller than but similar to those that occurred during liquid swallowing. Conclusion. This study suggests that surface electrical stimulation of suprahyoid muscles causes the elevation and anterior excursion of hyolaryngeal structures, as is observed during normal physiologic swallowing, although the movements involved were smaller. Further studies are required to determine the effect of synchronized electrical stimulation on dysphagia patients with reduced laryngeal elevation to allow the development of a swallow-assisting neural orthosis.