All About Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation
By: Jason Maxwell
Submitted: 2010-10-14 22:59:40 | Word Count: 539
TENS therapy is one of the alternative ways to combat pain. Mild electrical impulses are used to treat chronic and short-term pain in general. Patients who are into pain are recommended to try this method as an alternative to drugs. Doctors prescribe TENS as safe and effective remedy for pain management system for decades. This method stimulates nerves and blocks the pain gate system of the body before it can reach the brain. Moreover, this particular therapy is popular among elderly patients who experience severe side effects of strong drugs. When these mild electrical impulses hit the affected area, patients will experience relief.
Many people have become curious about taking the chance to receive TENS therapy. The sensation generated by the machine is relaxing rather than painful and the ongoing use for electric stimulation is generally low. When the machine is adjusted on a high level, patient will only experience a very mild discomfort in the form of muscle tension. The sensation is almost similar when one is receiving hard pressure during a massage. The therapist should adjust the settings properly if the particular sensation arises.
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Patients will gradually adjust to it after some relaxing sessions since the impulses hikes up and down. In the event when patients still cannot adjust to the impulses generated by the machine, they can request their therapist for lower setting. Responsibility of the therapist is to make sure that the desirable setting is achieved and the comfort of the patients is improved. A good therapist should once in a while check the condition of the patients during and after the entire procedure. The therapist should ensure that the setting is set pursuant to the patients ability to tolerate.
During the early times, TENS was used for pain management. The first machine was patented in America in 1974. This was designed initially to test the tolerance of chronic discomfort for cancer patients before electrodes are implanted in the spinal cord. This procedure can give many patients high relief and they had never gone for implantation anymore.
The rate of success is generally high with the use of TENS for pain management. Many patients experience great relief after a couple of sessions. On the other hand, Patients use the machine throughout the day with average pulse frequency from 80 to 100 impulses. People suffering from back pain and many types and causes of pain will receive high advantage when this therapy is used.
TENS is a non-invasive, safe nerve stimulation intended to reduce pain, both acute and chronic. While controversy exists as to its effectiveness in the treatment of chronic pain, a number of systematic reviews or meta-analyses have confirmed its effectiveness for postoperative pain, osteoarthritis, and chronic musculoskeletal pain.
The unit is usually connected to the skin using two or more electrodes. A typical battery-operated TENS unit is able to modulate pulse width, frequency and intensity
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Try tens system or Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation therapy for better pain relief.Ultrasound machine available in the local market will help you feel the total comfort that you aspire for. Tens will not only relieve pain but it will also save you from the negative effects of current drugs in the market.