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How effective is transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation in reducing pain in adults with chronic pain (excluding headache or migraine)?
This overview was unable to derive any conclusions regarding the efficacy/effectiveness of: (1) TENS versus sham; (2) TENS versus usual care, no treatment or waiting list control; (3) TENS plus active intervention versus active intervention alone; (4) different types of TENS or TENS delivered using different stimulation parameters in people with chronic pain, for pain intensity, disability, health‐related quality of life, analgesic medication use or participant impression of change. It was not possible to make any statement regarding risk of adverse events with TENS.
The methodological quality of the reviews was good, but the quality of the evidence within them was very low due to small study sizes and lack of data.
Chronic pain (pain for longer than 3 months) is associated with a range of common conditions and can be difficult to treat effectively. TENS is a common treatment for pain conditions and involves using a small battery‐operated unit to apply low‐intensity electrical current to the body via electrodes attached to the skin.
Gibson W et al. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) for chronic pain – an overview of Cochrane Reviews. Cochrane Reviews, 2019, Issue 4. Art. No.: CD011890. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD011890.pub3. This review contains 8 reviews involving 51 randomised controlled trials representing 2895 participants.
Otolaryngologist, head and neck surgeon Francis T. Hall discusses the evaluation of thyroid nodules, which primarily aims to determine the likelihood of malignancy. He then reviews the treatment of thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer, including recent advances in management
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