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Tens Device

C

cmdmfr

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
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Location
South Carolina
I am having severe back pain that is going to require surgery. I have had some medical professionals ask me if I wanted to try a Tens device. When I ask other doctors all of them had said that is not very effective. I would like to ask if anyone had used this device or if they know some one that has and what the outcome was
 
My wife used one for several years. Hers was for headaches so two pads were on her lower neck with the corresponding pads near her shoulder-blades. Worked for quite a while but nothing works permanently for her it seems. It does seem to help mask pain in some circumstances as I've used it as well for short periods of time for muscle strains. Pads must be applied to smooth skin however. If there's hair they can loosen and the shock hurts! As long as the pads stay well attached then it just seems to cause a mild 'numbness' or tingling. Not painful and it may help. If you can buy some pads and borrow one for testing it might be worth it. Not sure I'd invest in one just to find out however. Hope something provides relief. Couldn't guess at the number of people I've known who had back surgery and later said it was a mistake. Others however have been satisfied.
 
The biggest suggestion: GET A SECOND OPINION. Not talking about the Tens Device, but what to do about the pain/possible surgery. One orthopedic surgeon may say, "let's do this", but another OS may say, "let's do that".

TS
 
I have one of these devices and although I find it soothing while its working, after wards the pain is the same. The physical therapist I went to first, to try to do without knee surgery and second during my recovery after surgery used a similar, but industrial grade ultra sound machine. that and ice after a session and they suggested the TENS for me to use at home

I found it useless. It felt good while it was running, but I didnt see that it helped in the long term. I use it now on my neck for an ache that comes and goes. It feels good on and running. But no real improvement...the pain still comes and goes.

Regarding the need for surgery. As you know, back pain can be caused by any number of problems physical and mental (ie stress).Sometimes surgery is obviously the only option, sometimes not. In my wifes case, surgery was the last thing on her list of things to try. Last year my wife couldnt walk the pain in her lower back was so bad. The mri showed some arthritis and irritation of the thecal sac. With the help of her family doctor she laid out a treatment plan. Laser surgery then the knife were the last two things on the list, and as it worked out were never needed. Losing 25 pounds, spinal decompression several days a week, Sarapin (pitcher plant) injections physical therapy, including ultra sound (TENS) and exercises in the pool did the trick.
 
My mother and brother have both used them. More effective for my brother (back injury) than Mom who has more all-over chronic issue.
 
cmdmfr said:
I am having severe back pain that is going to require surgery. I have had some medical professionals ask me if I wanted to try a Tens device. When I ask other doctors all of them had said that is not very effective. I would like to ask if anyone had used this device or if they know some one that has and what the outcome was
Click to expand...

Have you looked at how your spine is aligned, what your core strength is like and what your weight is. All three together can work to realign the spine and do a lot of good for chronic back pain.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/fitness/multimedia/core-strength/sls-20076575
 
My husband and I both use one. It works great while it is on. Once removed, the effect is over. My husband bought a battery operated one that cost about $300 for long car trips. He uses it on his neck. Loves it.
 
ronparise said:
I have one of these devices and although I find it soothing while its working, after wards the pain is the same.
Click to expand...

My mom recently got one. She said almost the exact same thing.
 
its a wonderful device to soothe back pain and relax the muscles for me anyway.

I am not sure it does anything in terms of a permanent cure however.
 
I use it on my knees and it is gives me temporary relief that last all day. I don't use it everyday so cannot comment as others have done on its long term benefit. It has saved my day more than once and I am pleased with my unit. It is a small portable one. I don't travel without it.
 
Tens

I have chronic pain due to spinal degenerative disk disease, arthritis, and severe and moderate stenosis. I have not found the Tens unit to be helpful. I did find it to be downright frustrating to keep clipped on to my pocket or waistband and at one setting, I got a metallic taste in my mouth when using it. I currently have found fairly good relief with a combination of wearing a Butran's patch, having Facet Rhizotomy periodically, and rubbing a customized Brown's Compounding lotion on my lower back.
 
I have a small (size of a deck of cards) battery (9V) powered one, and it works great for me. I bought it on either eBay or Amazon for about $100, several years ago.

How effective it is really depends on what is causing the problem. If it's muscular (spams, knotting up, etc.), it does a great job of loosening things up. A hot shower or soaking in the hot tub can also help.

I would be very reluctant to try surgery. I've known many, many people who have had back surgery. Some have ended up worse. Some had no major change. Very few that I've known have had an improvement after back surgery.
 
Sounds like a great device for sitting, driving on a long trip or for a Trans Atlantic airplane trip.
 
I don't think you would want to run it for an extended period of time. I think most of them have an automatic shutoff after 15 or 20 minutes.
 
My DD has RDS in her knee which is a chronic pain condition. She used one for the better part of the day.....every day and it helped her signifigantly. I have used one for muscle spasms in my back and it works very well for that. I think alot of how well it works depends on the source of the pain
 
I've got one similar to what MichaelColey describes. Came with 2 sets of pads you stick on like an EKG machine.

My experience is like what many others said, it feels good while it's going but doesn't cure anything from what I can tell. It's essentially sending pulses of electrical current through you between the two pads and your muscles contract as the pulse builds.

Mine has several patterns and adjustment for intensity. I recall having PT quite awhile ago for tennis elbow and I think it was a similar machine they used for that.

I paid $100 at a trade show booth for mine & it charges from a USB port/charger.
 
I got mine from Woot for twenty dollars. Woot has them every so often. It is battery operated and the batteries last a long time. Mins is severl years pld and still works great. I do not use it for extended periods of time. Don't really want to do anything to encourage a heart attack.. These things have been around for over fifty years and were taken of the market a few times because of the increased risk of a heart attack. Some of you may remember that they use to be sold to get your body in great shape without exercising. Now they can be sold only as a medical device. HSN had to pull one of their products a few years ago for this same reason.
 
Yes and its use has led to pain relief. HOWEVER, it's hard to say whether it's the buzzy electrical current or lying still (and presumably relaxing) for 15-20 minutes :)

We got ours quite inexpensively around 15-20 years ago from a chiropractor who used it on me. When I asked how to get one he said he could prescribe one and insurance would be billed hundreds of $, or he could sell me the same thing for $30. I opted to pay the $30. Perhaps now they are more readily available.
 
Just bought a tens unit for my trochanteric bursitis, and I remembered there was a thread about it.

There is real science behind the tens tingling. It does help my bursitis, which burns in my right hip a fair part of the day. I have used this thing twice, and I have had incredible relief after being on my feet all day mopping floors.

I am very pleased. I combine this with an ice pack. The ice is in a dry cloth, sitting on top of my hip at this moment, and the tens contacts are surrounding the area of pain. The ice always helps, but this tens unit provides additional relief. I always need ice after being on my feet for more than about 30 minutes.
 
rickandcindy23 said:
Just bought a tens unit for my trochanteric bursitis, and I remembered there was a thread about it.

There is real science behind the tens tingling. It does help my bursitis, which burns in my right hip a fair part of the day. I have used this thing twice, and I have had incredible relief after being on my feet all day mopping floors.

I am very pleased. I combine this with an ice pack. The ice is in a dry cloth, sitting on top of my hip at this moment, and the tens contacts are surrounding the area of pain. The ice always helps, but this tens unit provides additional relief. I always need ice after being on my feet for more than about 30 minutes.
Click to expand...

I would think a better approach would be to have someone else mop the floors
 
ronparise said:
I would think a better approach would be to have someone else mop the floors
Click to expand...

I have no one here to do it but me. Rick has only mopped a floor when I had surgery and couldn't do it for six weeks.

Are you saying to hire someone? Nah, couldn't do it. :rofl:
 
Glynda said:
I have chronic pain due to spinal degenerative disk disease, arthritis, and severe and moderate stenosis. I have not found the Tens unit to be helpful. I did find it to be downright frustrating to keep clipped on to my pocket or waistband and at one setting, I got a metallic taste in my mouth when using it. I currently have found fairly good relief with a combination of wearing a Butran's patch, having Facet Rhizotomy periodically, and rubbing a customized Brown's Compounding lotion on my lower back.
Click to expand...

I have the same issues. 3 knees replaced, left hip replaced, left ankle replaced. Severe neck pain, similar diagnosis. I've used Tens units, ultra sound, steroid shots, decompression, laser, on and on. Am allergic to opiates. Which are always prescribed as a last resort. Even tried marijuana had hallucinations.
I'm back to seeing an acupuncturist who claims he has a 95% cure rate for neck pain. We will see. So far the best result is keeping busy and ignore the pain.
 
simpsontruckdriver said:
The biggest suggestion: GET A SECOND OPINION. Not talking about the Tens Device, but what to do about the pain/possible surgery. One orthopedic surgeon may say, "let's do this", but another OS may say, "let's do that".

TS
Click to expand...


The best advice provided thus far.

I shudder when folks with good intentions seek medical advice on webforums. Each case is different, thus, no answer is universal.
 
I injured my knee climbing the city walls of Dubrovnik and found after a few days that I could hardly walk at all. Standing was no problem, but walking? Not so good. When I got back to the U.S., I went to a chiropracter, thinking it was merely out of place. He said it was a little, but that he suspected calcium deposits had been "knocked loose" in the climbing and that the knee wouldn't be much better until they were out of my knee area (not a surgical thing, just normal blood cleansing the area), and that he thought I should go to my doctor for his opinion. As it turned out the doctor was essentially useless and wanted to remove fluid (which I maintained wasn't there--and he discovered with his needle wasn't there) and inject steroids (which changed absolutely nothing.)

The chiropracter said the knee was aligned properly and loaned me a tens unit so that I would be able to walk while we were in Yellowstone. It was invaluable. It still hurt some, but I could walk, slowly, but I managed most sights. I simply couldn't have done it without the tens unit. For me, the relief lasted quite a while, and by using it after a walk, I was able to do the next one. After I returned the loaner unit, I bought one to keep on hand, even though the calcium deposits cleared the knee shortly after we got back from Yellowstone. I like knowing I have it if I should need it again.
 
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