What is TENS?

TENS stands for transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. This may sound complicated but it’s really not. The devices simply send stimulating pulses across the surface of your skin along your nerve strands. The pulses travel across the nerve strand and to the brain where they help stimulate production of endorphins, our own natural painkillers.

There are two parts to TENS therapy, the TENS unit, and the electrodes. With TENS, sticky electrodes are placed on the skin around the painful are then attached to a TENS unit. In place of electrodes, you can now also use garments that are more precise. They come in gloves, socks, knee wraps, etc. When the TENS unit attached to the electrodes are conductive garments and is turned on, it delivers a light current through the electrodes to the skin and tissues just beneath it. The sensation is a bit like pins and needles, or like when your foot falls asleep. On a high enough setting, your muscles can twitch.

And it’s a very safe treatment option. TENS has few adverse effects, if any. Specifically, this treatment won’t interact with medications and it won’t make you drowsy like many pain medications do.

Indications for Use:

Systemic Pain:
Bursitis
Cancer
Causalgia
Multiple Sclerosis
Neuralgia
Osteoarthritis Phantom Limb Syndrome
Raynaud’s Syndrome
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Synovitis
Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy

Head and Neck Pain:
Cluster Headaches
Dental Disorders
Migraine Headaches
Spondylosis
Sprains/Strains Suboccipital Headaches
TMJ Syndrome
Torticollis
Trigeminal Neuralgia
Whiplash

Abdominal Pain:
Diverticulosis
Dysmenorrhea Labor
Postoperative Pain

Back Pain:
Facet Syndrome
Intercoastal Neuralgia
IVD Syndrome
Lumbago
Lumbosacral Pain Radiculitis
Sprains/Strains
Thoracodynia
Whole Back Pain

Lower Extremity Pain:
Ankle Pain
Foot Pain
Fractures
Ischialgia
Knee Pain Passive Stretch Pain
Sciatica
Sprains/Strains
Tendonitis
Thrombophlebitis

Upper Extremity Pain:
Epicondylitis
Frozen Shoulder
Hand Pain
Peripheral Nerve Injury Sprains/Strains
Subdeltoid Bursitis
Wrist Pain