EFFECTIVENESS OF THE ANALGESIC TENS IN FUNCTION OF THE USED PARAMETERS. A CONTROVERSIAL TOPIC

Abstract

 Introduction: the asymmetric byphasic rectangular current (ABRC) or analgesic TENS is a procedure broadly used by a great number of physiotherapists. In investigations developed by diverse authors we find that they use differents parameters of ABRC. This also happens in the habitual clinical practice, in which a great quantity of physiotherapists uses those parameters that consider as more effective in function of its experience. Objective: we seek to carry out a revision study to find the most appropriate parameters in the ABRC. that should be used to produce an effective analgesia for the different pain types. Material and method: we have carried out a bibliographical review in different databases (Pubmed, Elsevier, Pedro, The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, ENFISPO and Scopus) using as search terms the words TENS, pain, efficacy, parameter, frequency, intensity, pulse duration. We recover investigations developed from 1970 up to 2008. We have included randomized controlled clinical trials and with blind double, investigations in healthy human models and in animal models, reviews and metaanalitics studies and that analyzed analgesic TENS effectiveness in order of the used parameters, excluding those articles that does not present these characteristics. We have analyzed more than 200 articles only including 40. Results and conclusions: great controversy exists among the diverse investigators that analyze the possible effectiveness of the analgesic TENS as for the parameters that recommend using in different pathologies. However, all the authors postulate that the election of the most appropriate parameters for each patient will determine a bigger grade of effectiveness of the applied treatment, being reached a maximum decrease of the pain.