Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 29, 2025
Treating Low Back Pain in Failed Back Surgery Patients with Multicolumn-lead Spinal Cord Stimulation
Published on: June 26, 2018
Influence of Spinal Cord Stimulation on Insulin Sensitivity in Chronic Pain Patients
Matthias H Morgalla1, Hannah Fritschle1, Andreas Vosseler2,3,4
1Neurosurgical Clinic, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
Background And Objective:
This prospective, sham-controlled, randomized, cross-over study (NCT03637075), was designed to test the hypothesis that spinal cord stimulation (SCS) for the treatment of pain can also improve glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity when compared to sham stimulation.
Methods:
Ten non-diabetic participants (5 females, mean age 48.8 years) who had an SCS system implanted for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain were studied. Whilst applying a hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp, sham-stimulation and tonic stimulation were performed for 45 min (n=4) or 60 min (n=6) in each case randomly. The insulin sensitivity index and pain levels were determined. A second investigation, BurstDR stimulation was also conducted and the result was compared to that of sham stimulation (cross-over design).
Results:
The insulin sensitivity improved significantly under the tonic stimulation when compared to the sham stimulation (p=0.037). BurstDR stimulation independently did not lead to a significantly improved insulin sensitivity compared to that after sham stimulation (p=0.16). We also examined the pain during the test and found no significant difference between sham and tonic stimulation (p=0.687).
Conclusion:
The results of this study show that tonic stimulation used for the treatment of pain could also improve glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity. Further investigations are required to investigate the clinical relevance of the role of glucose metabolism in diabetic chronic pain participants and its underlying mechanisms.
