'A Patient Voice' Community

hello, R --

here is a webMD article on TENS devices; the initials stand for "transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation" -- http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/tc/transcutaneous-electrical-nerve-stimulation-tens-topic-overview . be sure to check out of the subsections on the left in blue ink under the black title "transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)."

TENS is a therapy for pain relief that uses low-voltage electrical current thru the skin by means of a small, battery-powered machine. some people experience less pain when the current is delivered. use of a TENS device does not hurt. the effectiveness of TENS therapy, esp for chronic pain, is still a matter of debate.

to find others' experience with TENS devices, you might want to re-post your inquiry in the pain management community, http://exchanges.webmd.com/pain-management-exchange , where there is an expert on-board. to find others' experience with TENS devices specifically for cancer and osteoarthritis, you might want to re-post your inquiry in the cancer community, http://exchanges.webmd.com/cancer-community , and/or the osteoarthritis community, http://exchanges.webmd.com/osteoarthritis-exchange .

i hope this helps.

-- susie margaret

I USED A TENS UNIT TWICE AFTER SURGERIES....LUMBAR FUSION & THEN SHOULD REPAIR...IT BLOCKS THE PAIN FROM GOING TO THE BRAIN...IT WORKED VERY WELL FOR ME AFTER BOTH SURGERIES...AND I DIDN'T NEED PILLS...

TIFF

I understand your pain. I use the TENS Unit provided by VA and I have to admit it works while using it. If you take it off then the pain returns. They are portable depending what size you buy. The batteries are rechargebale and requires some supplies such as the sticky attachments that wear out eventually. I did not pay for the TENS unit but I would say that while on and attached to back it does actually provide some relief. Hope this helps...

hello, R --

i am in the middle of compiling a list of organizations, foundations, etc., that provide financial assistance for people who have certain specific diseases. many of these programs will pay for equipment of some sort, possibly a TENS device ("device" seems to be the prevailing terminology on most resources i have looked at).

can you tell me what kind of cancer you have, if you are willing? my list is so rough so far that it is not ready for circulation, but i can send you some indiv websites focused on certain kinds of assistance, with special attention to cancer resources.

i haven't done any research on groups related to osteoarthritis, but i could do a quickie search for the most likely places. i'll get back to you on that.

-- susie margaret

hello again, R --

surprisingly, i could not find any sites on osteoarthritis that list financial assistance programs!

however, there are some clinical studies that are recruiting volunteers. if you might be interested in that, let me know, and i'll send you the info i've found on them.

-- susie margaret

Dear Susiemargaret: Thank you for the response. I have not been checking my discussions lately because I have been kind of overwhelmed by a heap of medical/financial issues. I have colorectal cancer. My oncologist says I may have some residual radiation damage, and my GI doctor is following up on a ring of ulcerations at the point of attachment ( I had a lower resection). They also found some herniated tissue in my lower colon. However most of my pain is from osteoarthritis, and osteonecrosis, and my infectious disease doctor just informed me that I may have osteomyelitis. Biopsies from my upcoming TKR should tell for sure. I have had two very serious bouts with MRSA in the past 4 yrs. My surgeon intends to put vancomycin in the cement when he does my TKR but does not guarantee that will do the trick. They grew MRSA out of blood cultures., but I don't know if it has infected all my joints or not. All I know is that the pain is not getting better and the meds never do relieve it completely. I am getting desperate for a solution. I am very grateful for your suggestions. Thanks again, and I am interested in info on financial assistance links.

Yes, I am interested in info on clinical studies for OA. Thanks again. You don't know how much I appreciate your efforts.

hello, R --

i had a lovely response for you on your TENS inquiry, but the gremlins of computerland ate it! nonetheless, i think i can reproduce it, altho, of course, it won't be as beautiful to behold!

to my disappointment, there was only one site i could find that offered financial assistance for "equipment and pain relief specific" to "colorectal cancer," http://www.cancerfac.org ; (most of the others are for children or for other kinds of cancer). this is the site for the cancer financial assistance coalition, which is a collection of groups working together to help cancer patients manage their financial challenges.

you can search by diagnosis or by type of assistance needed (because your Q concerned "equipment and pain relief," i did not search for any other categories of assistance). one difficulty specific to your inquiry is that TENS devices are not usually the subject of a prescription, and practically all of the medical equipment relief programs deal only with items required by a prescription.

to find clinical trials and research studies on osteoarthritis-related problems that are still recruiting volunteers, look several places --

-- http://www.clinicaltrials.gov , this is the NIH website that lists clinical trials on osteoartiritis that are still recruiting volunteers;

-- http://www.centerwatch.com/clinical-trials/listings/studylist.aspx?CatID=109 , centerWatch is an industry website that keeps track of all industry-funded clinical trials, this page lists ongoing studies that are still recruiting volunteers; and

-- http://clinicalstudies.info.nih.gov , an NIH website that lists all research studies (as opposed to clinical trials); at present, there are no results for a search under "osteoarthritis" as the diagnosis (look under "full query").

there are also several websites where potential study volunteers can register themselves to be contacted in case a study begins that is in one of their areas of interest and is soliciting volunteers. these are --

-- http://www.centerwatch.com/clinical-trials/pns , centerWatch patient notification service; and

-- https://www.researchmatch.org/volunteers , researchMatch.

i hope this info helps and that i did not miss the mark on exactly what you were looking for. if so, please be more specific, and i will see what i can find.

-- susie margaret

Dear susie margaret: Once again, thanks so much. You have been exceedingly helpful, as always. Some of those links should be relevant and productive.