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Would pulsed radiofrequency applied to different anatomical regions have effective results for chronic pain treatment?

JPMA. The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association · 2011 · Benefit · Very low evidence

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BenefitVery low evidencePaper 3225

In this retrospective cross-sectional series (mean follow-up 8.5±5.4 months), 16/24 (66.7%) patients had at least a 50% decrease in VAS pain scores compared with baseline after pulsed radiofrequency applied to various anatomical targets. No early- or late-ter…

Study snapshot

PublicationJPMA. The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association · 2011
Study typecross_sectional
Reported directionBenefit
Evidence ratingVery low

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of Pulsed radiofrequency on patients presenting with complaints of chronic pain. METHODS: It was a retrospective cross sectional study which included patients with chronic pain who did not respond to conventional treatment.The study was conducted at the Pain Management Centre, Dicle University, Diyarbakir, Turkey from October 2008 to September 2010. The applications of Pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) were made under the guidance of C-arm fluoroscopy, local anaesthesia, and sedoanalgesia. The intervention types applied consisted of sacroiliac intraarticular, heel, sciatic nerve and impar ganglion Pulsed radiofrequency. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was used for pain assessment.Sacroiliac intraarticular PRF was applied to nine patients, impar ganglion PRF to eight patients, heel PRF to four patients and sciatic nerve PRF was applied to three patients. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 41.3 +/- 16.9 (range 15-77) years, 15 (62.5%) were females. The mean follow-up period was 8.5 +/- 5.4 months. A minimum 50% decrease was determined in the VAS scores of 16 (66.7%) patients compared to the initial values. The patients who had > or = 50% decrease in their VAS scores in the sacroiliac group was 55.6. This value was 75.0, 75.0 and 66.7 in the impar, heel and sciatic nerve groups respectively. No early- or late-term complications were observed in any of the patients. CONCLUSIONS: P Pulsed Radiofrequency implementation was found to be an effective and safe method for chronic pain treatment in our centre.

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AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typecross_sectional
Effect directionbenefit
PopulationPatients with chronic pain not responding to conventional treatment at a pain management centre (Dicle University, Diyarbakir, Turkey)
Sample size24
ExposureNot supplied
Evidence strengthVery lowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

In this retrospective cross-sectional series (mean follow-up 8.5±5.4 months), 16/24 (66.7%) patients had at least a 50% decrease in VAS pain scores compared with baseline after pulsed radiofrequency applied to various anatomical targets. No early- or late-term complications were observed.

Outcomes measured

  • Pain (Visual Analogue Scale, VAS)
  • Complications/adverse events

Limitations

  • Retrospective cross-sectional design
  • No control/comparator group described
  • Small sample size overall and within each anatomical subgroup
  • Frequency/SAR and detailed PRF exposure parameters not reported in abstract
View raw extracted JSON
{
  "study_type": "cross_sectional",
  "exposure": {
    "band": null,
    "source": "pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) pain intervention",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": null
  },
  "population": "Patients with chronic pain not responding to conventional treatment at a pain management centre (Dicle University, Diyarbakir, Turkey)",
  "sample_size": 24,
  "outcomes": [
    "Pain (Visual Analogue Scale, VAS)",
    "Complications/adverse events"
  ],
  "main_findings": "In this retrospective cross-sectional series (mean follow-up 8.5±5.4 months), 16/24 (66.7%) patients had at least a 50% decrease in VAS pain scores compared with baseline after pulsed radiofrequency applied to various anatomical targets. No early- or late-term complications were observed.",
  "effect_direction": "benefit",
  "limitations": [
    "Retrospective cross-sectional design",
    "No control/comparator group described",
    "Small sample size overall and within each anatomical subgroup",
    "Frequency/SAR and detailed PRF exposure parameters not reported in abstract"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "very_low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "pulsed radiofrequency",
    "PRF",
    "chronic pain",
    "visual analogue scale",
    "sacroiliac",
    "impar ganglion",
    "sciatic nerve",
    "heel",
    "fluoroscopy"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": []
}
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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: Not supplied
PubMed: 22360028

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