Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation in the symptomatic management of thrombophlebitis

Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) afforded significant relief of the pain associated with acute and recurrent thrombophlebitis in 90% of 39 patients so treated. The method is simple to administer, noninvasive, and apparently free of side effects. It can be self-administered by the patient after appropriate instruction. TENS can be given in conjunction with analgesics, anticoagulant therapy, and other supportive measures to achieve greater relief and mobility in patients with thrombophlebitis whose occupations and other activities are severely limited by their pain. Further clinical trials involving larger numbers of patients, and clarification of the analgesic mechanisms involved, are warranted because of the magnitude of this problem. TENS therapy can be uniquely beneficial in certain clinical situations. They include the contraindication of conventional treatments for the pain of thrombophlebitis, pelvic vein phlebitis, and the presence of concomitant painful orthopedic and neurologic disorders.