Chronic Pain Intervention Using Pulsed Shortwave Therapy: The Relationship Between Pain Demographics and Central Sensitization Inventory

Abstract

Aim: The central sensitization inventory (CSI) is a validated, patient-reported questionnaire that quantifies symptoms of hypersensitivity disorders such as chronic pain, for which central sensitization (CS) may be the etiology. Objective: To investigate the analgesic effectiveness of ActiPatch and analyze the relationship between baseline CSI scores and demographics of chronic pain sufferers. Methods: Upon completing a 7-day ActiPatch trial, baseline CSI scores along with other assessment measures were obtained via e-mail from 174 chronic pain sufferers. Conclusion: CSI scores were positively correlated with gender (higher for women), baseline visual analog scale scores and pain duration. ActiPatch was found to be effective in reducing baseline pain for all subjects by an average of 4.3 visual analog scale points.

Keywords::

• central sensitization
• central sensitization inventory
• chronic pain
• pain duration
• pain relief
• PSWT
• pulsed shortwave therapy

Financial & competing interests disclosure

S Koneru and I Rawe are paid employees of BioElectronics Corporation. R Staelin is an investor in BioElectronics Corporation. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Ethical conduct of research

The authors state that they have obtained appropriate institutional review board approval or have followed the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki for all human or animal experimental investigations. In addition, for investigations involving human subjects, informed consent has been obtained from the participants involved.

The authors state that they have obtained verbal and written informed consent from the patient/patients for the inclusion of their medical and treatment history within this case report.

Additional information

Funding

S Koneru and I Rawe are paid employees of BioElectronics Corporation. R Staelin is an investor in BioElectronics Corporation. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.