New clinical study shows heat combined with TENS provides 32% reduction in chronic pain

Sufferers of lower back pain report significant improvement when using OMRON HeatTens pain reliever alongside existing treatment.

London, UK, 27^th July - Research from Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Belgium), commissioned by OMRON Healthcare, a global leader in clinically proven, innovative medical equipment for health monitoring and therapy, has demonstrated for the first time that in a randomized controlled clinical study, people using TENS technology (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation), in conjunction with heat, experienced an improved pressure pain threshold of 32% after just four weeks of treatment[1].

The study, recently published in the Brazilian Journal of Physical Therapy,  positions OMRON’s pioneering combination of heat and TENS as a proven alternative to provide effective relief to chronic pain sufferers. The British Pain Society estimates that there are 28 million adults suffering with chronic pain in the UK. In turn, these adults might spend up to three years before being properly diagnosed, consequently adopting a trial-and-error approach to treating their pain. Widespread adoption of heat and TENS would end ineffectual lines of attack to pain and make a significant contribution to the quality of life for millions.

The clinical study compared an experimental group using OMRON HeatTens pain reliever combined with their regular treatment alongside a control group, who continued with only regular medication treatment, without using OMRON HeatTens. The experiment had a duration of four weeks. After just four weeks of treatment, the experimental group further improved their pressure pain threshold by 32%, compared to the reduction in pain experienced by the control group1. Medical experts concluded this was a “significant clinically important pain relief” result.

Also, over the course of the study, participants amongst the experiment group self-reported continually decreasing pain scores, which led to some patients requiring no further increases in medication – compared to patients in the control group, who saw their pain levels soar to 50% and increase their medication intake by a seven-fold throughout the four weeks. This observation could support the idea that there is a synergetic effect between heat, TENS and medication. Nevertheless, the results also show a significant reduction in pain when OMRON HeatTens is used without medication. This means that, in some circumstances, there is a drug free option for people suffering chronic pain.

According to Lucia Prada, Marketing Director of OMRON Healthcare Europe, “chronic pain has a detrimental impact on all aspects of everyday life. Previous research suggests that pain affects the emotional well-being, social life, family life and even the parenting skills of the sufferers – consequently effecting the self, but also those closest and dearest. With our going for zero promise, we made an explicit commitment to help people not to be defined by their conditions, and we’re proud to present new clinical evidence that gives additional confidence for the adoption of heat plus TENS as an effective pain relief technology”.

The new OMRON HeatTens device combines two complementary therapies to relieve pain in different parts of the body using heat and TENS by applying the device’s pads to a user’s skin. The heat produced increases metabolic activity, warms and relaxes the muscle for soothing relief and improves blood circulation. This combines with a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) element that sends electrical pulses to interrupt pain signals, trigger the release of endorphins and stimulate the body’s natural pain-relieving mechanisms.

For more information about HeatTens by OMRON Healthcare, please visit https://www.omron-healthcare.co.uk/pain-relievers/HeatTens_2.html

Complete paper available on

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1413355519306872?via%3Dihub

Jargon Buster

In layman’s terms, if an individual has a wound or localized pain and someone adds pressure to this, they will feel pain. After using the device for 4 weeks, people endure more pain when pressured on the affected area; hence, it can be concluded that an individual’s pain pressure threshold improved. The pain decreases, which means that an individual’s pain threshold (the amount of pressure needed to apply to make the individual suffer) increases.

About OMRON Healthcare Europe

Committed to helping people live more active and fulfilling lives with zero compromise, OMRON Healthcare is a global leader in the field of clinically proven, innovative medical equipment for health monitoring and therapy.

Throughout its 85-year history OMRON Healthcare has been striving to improve lives and contribute to a better society by developing innovations that help people prevent, treat and manage their medical conditions, both at home and in clinical practice in over 117 countries.

OMRON Healthcare is the Global No.1 brand in both blood pressure monitors, with over 200 million units sold, as well as nebulisers for respiratory treatment with over 30 million devices sold. The company’s additional core product categories are low-frequency pain therapy equipment, body composition monitors and electronic thermometers.

OMRON Healthcare Group is headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. OMRON Healthcare Europe B.V. is the healthcare division for Europe, Russia, Middle East and Africa and provides services to customers in more than 74 countries.

[1] Pain reduction is registered with a VAS score (scale of observed pain sensation), comparing moment 0 (24 hours before the start of the experiment) and moment 1 (any point during the following 24 hours right after the experiment ends). Pain (pressure pain threshold) is measured with VAS score.