Effectiveness of whole spine electrotherapy in individuals with chronic low back pain: a retrospective controlled study.

INTRODUCTION

Chronic low back pain (cLBP) significantly impacts functional capacity and psychological well-being. This study investigated the efficacy of a whole-spine electrical stimulation system (StimaWELL 120MTRS) as a multimodal intervention to reduce pain and disability in this population.

AREAS COVERED: A controlled trial was conducted with sixty-one participants, assigned to either a treatment group (n = 30) or a waitlist-control group (n = 31). The intervention consisted of 30-minute whole-spine electrical stimulation sessions twice weekly for four weeks. Evaluation parameters included the Numeric Pain Scale (NPS) for pain intensity, the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) for disability, and the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) for quality of life (QoL). Analysis focused on both within-group improvements and between-group comparisons to determine the system's clinical impact.

EXPERT OPINION/COMMENTARY: The findings demonstrate that whole-spine electrotherapy was associated with improvements in pain at rest and at night, reduced catastrophizing, and enhanced overall QoL compared to no intervention. This technology may offer a noninvasive approach for the comprehensive management of cLBP by addressing both physical symptoms and psychological factors like catastrophizing.