Efficacy and mechanism of spinal cord stimulation in the treatment of chronic pain after spinal cord injury: a review
10.3760/cma.j.cn501098-20240918-00567
- VernacularTitle:脊髓电刺激治疗脊髓损伤后慢性疼痛的疗效及其作用机制研究进展
- Author:
Qiwen WANG
1
;
Zhonghai LI
1
Author Information
1. 大连医科大学附属第一医院骨科，大连 116600
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
Spinal cord injuries;
Electric stimulation therapy;
Chronic pain
- From:
Chinese Journal of Trauma
2025;41(2):219-224
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Chronic pain following spinal cord injury refers to persistent or recurrent pain that occurs after spinal cord injury, which can be manifested as symptoms such as burning, stinging, and electric shock, seriously impairing the patients′ quality of life. Current conventional treatments for chronic pain after spinal cord injury include surgery, medication, and physical therapy. However, these treatments have limitations: surgery cannot fully repair nerve damage, medication has limited efficacy, and physical therapy often requires prolonged treatment with suboptimal outcomes. Spinal cord stimulation (SCS), as a neuromodulation technique, can relieve chronic pain in patients by stimulating spinal nerves by emitting weak current from electrodes placed around the spinal cord. SCS has been used to treat chronic pain after spinal cord injury, especially for refractory pain of the patients who fail to respond to conventional treatments, but its efficacy and exact mechanism remain to be further verified. To this end, this article reviewed the research progress of the efficacy and mechanism of SCS in the treatment of chronic pain after spinal cord injury so as to provide reference for its clinical treatment.
