A Palliative Care Clinic's Early Experience with Scrambler Therapy

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Pain Management
• Palliative Care

Background:

• Chronic neuropathic pain presents a significant challenge in palliative care.
• Scrambler therapy (ST) is an emerging non-invasive treatment for neuropathic pain.
• Limited data exists on ST program outcomes in a palliative care setting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe a palliative care clinic's Scrambler therapy program.
• To report on referral and treatment outcomes during the initial eight months of the program.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective pilot study design.
• Inclusion of patients with chronic neuropathy in a Midwest U.S. palliative care clinic.
• Data collection included demographics, opioid dosage, and pain levels pre- and post-treatment.

Main Results:

• 78 referrals received; 12 patients completed full treatment.
• Majority of treated patients were male, with a mean age of 59, often presenting with chemotherapy-induced neuropathy and on opioid therapy.
• Seven out of 12 patients reported satisfactory pain reduction; five noted decreased opioid analgesic use.

Conclusions:

• Early outcomes of Scrambler therapy in this palliative care cohort indicate variable patient response.
• The high cost of Scrambler therapy treatment presents a significant barrier to patient access and program scalability.