Thermal Microcautery, a Form of Peripheral Nerve Field Stimulation for Treatment of Painful Knee Osteoarthritis: Non-Randomized Controlled Trial

• 作者: Ahmed Abdelaal Ahmed Mahmoud Camillus K. Power Deborah Galvin Nikolaos G. Kostopoulos Tagarisa Foto
• 来源期刊: 疼痛研究与治疗(英文)
• 学科: 医学
• 关键词: Peripheral NERVE Field Stimulation THERMAL Microcautery PAINFUL OSTEOARTHRITIS Agni-Karma
• 年，卷（期）: 2019,（3）
• 页码范围: 33-54
• 页数: 22页
• 分类号: R68

摘要

Background: Thermal Microcautery (TMC) is a form of peripheral nerve field stimulation and is a technique used in Traditional Indian Medicine (Agnikarma) to manage chronic pain. The aim was to asses TMC in painful knee osteoarthritis (PKO). Methods: A non-randomized controlled trial was employed. All PKO patients on a waiting list for knee replacement were offered PNFS-TMC. Patients in the intervention group received 4 sessions (2 weeks apart) of PNFS-TMC by a pin-point tip of a metal rod. The rod was heated over a flame for 5 minutes before being used to induce a single 1 mm second-degree burn over points of tenderness. The control group was selected from the same waiting list. The primary outcome was assessed by Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores. The secondary outcomes were changes in levels of physical day to day activity, sleep and analgesics. Results: 16 PNFS-TMC intervention group patients and 15 control group patients were subject to analysis. Baseline VAS score was higher in PNFS-TMC group [9 ± 1.23 (95% CI 8.38 - 9.61) versus 5.93 ± 2.11 (95% CI 4.81 - 7.06) in the control, P Conclusions: PNFS-TMC could offer a simple, safe, cheap and effective method of pain management in chronic PKO patients.