Electroanalgesia · TENS · St. Louis

Electroanalgesia in St. Louis

Electroanalgesia (TENS and PENS) is aimed electrical stimulation for nerve pain that has not responded to medicine. Fill out the form and we will contact you.

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Call (314) 481-5000Text (314) 886-5902

Same-day and emergency appointments are available.

What is electroanalgesia?

Electroanalgesia uses controlled electrical current to change how pain signals travel and get read. It is not one device or one procedure. It is a family of methods with one rule in common. A nerve that is being stimulated with current sends pain differently than one that is not.

It matters most in neuropathic pain. That is pain made by the nerve itself, not by damaged tissue. This kind of pain responds poorly to standard painkillers. That is exactly why drug-free options matter. Anti-inflammatories treat inflammation. They do not do much for a nerve that has started firing on its own.

At Padda Institute, we give electroanalgesia in the office as one part of a treatment plan, not as a stand-alone service. It runs alongside interventional procedures, metabolic treatment and rehab.

What is the difference between TENS and PENS?

TENS — transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. Low-level current sent through pads on the skin. It stimulates the sensory nerves and turns down the pain signal before your brain feels it. No needles, and it is the method most often kept up at home between visits.

PENS — percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. Current sent through fine needle electrodes right into the tissue, not across the skin. Because it skips the skin’s resistance, it reaches deeper and affects the release of the body’s own opioid peptides (natural painkillers). Done in the office.

Electroacupuncture. Electrical stimulation sent through acupuncture needles. It works on several pain pathways at once.

Implanted neuromodulation. Spinal cord stimulation and peripheral nerve stimulation use the same idea through an implanted device. These are a bigger step. They are kept for established (confirmed) neuropathic pain that has not responded to simpler care, and a trial always comes first.

What conditions can TENS and PENS help?

A 2024 literature review in Cureus screened more than 600 research articles and included 56 clinical studies. It found meaningful benefit for TENS, PENS and electroacupuncture across a range of conditions — chronic low back pain, knee osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, migraine, and postoperative pain and nausea, where TENS applied at acupoints performed comparably to ondansetron for preventing postoperative nausea and vomiting.

We would rather state the limit than oversell the result. The studies vary a lot and the findings are mixed. Electroanalgesia is a useful add-on with fair evidence behind it. It is not a cure. It does not replace finding what is causing the pain. When it is paired with exercise — in diabetic peripheral neuropathy, for instance — the pair beats either one alone.

Reddy J, Singhal R, Gaikwad AP, Patel D, Patel P, Gandhi SK. Unraveling the potential of electroanalgesia: a literature review of current therapeutics. Cureus. 2024;16(5):e61122. doi:10.7759/cureus.61122

How does electrical stimulation relieve nerve pain?

Neuropathic pain is not one problem. It involves nerve damage, central sensitization (an alarm system stuck on high), chemical imbalance between nerves, inflammation and bad changes in how nerve connections behave. Together these make you more sensitive to pain. They keep pain going after the first injury has healed.

Electrical stimulation hits several links in that chain at once. It interferes with signals in the nerve. It turns on the pathways from the brain that normally damp pain. It boosts the body’s own opioid activity. That reach is why it can help where a drug aimed at one receptor does not.

Is TENS safe, and who should not use it?

TENS and PENS are easy to tolerate. There is no sedation, no cut and no recovery time.

Electrical stimulation is not appropriate if you have a cardiac pacemaker or implanted defibrillator, because the current can disrupt the device. It also needs care in epilepsy. Tell us about any implanted device before treatment, not after.

Implanted neuromodulation carries the risks of any implant: infection, wires that shift, and hardware that fails. That is why a trial is required before a permanent device goes in.

Nerve Pain That Medication Has Not Touched

Electroanalgesia is one option among several. The first step is finding what is causing the pain.

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Electroanalgesia FAQs

A store-bought TENS unit uses the same idea. What differs is knowing which nerve to target, at what setting and strength, and whether electrical stimulation is the right choice at all for your pain. A device bought without a diagnosis often ends up in the wrong place.

TENS feels like tingling or buzzing. It should never hurt. PENS uses fine needles, so you feel a brief poke as they go in. Neither needs sedation.

It depends on the problem and on how you respond. You can usually tell within a few sessions. If it is not helping, we say so and change the plan. We do not keep going forever.

Sometimes it cuts what you need, which is usually the goal. It is one part of a plan with several tools. It does not replace treating the root cause.

Coverage depends on your plan and the method. Our staff will check your benefits before anything is booked and tell you what your share should be.

Size and permanence. TENS and PENS are outside the body and can be stopped any time. Spinal cord stimulation puts a device inside you. It is kept for established (confirmed) neuropathic pain after a trial that works.

A TENS unit sends low-level current through pads placed on the skin. That current stimulates the sensory nerves under the pads. It changes the pain signal before your brain feels it. It uses no needles, and it is the method patients most often keep up at home between visits. PENS works the same way but uses fine needles to reach deeper. It is done in the office.

TENS is easy to tolerate: no sedation, no cut and no recovery time. It should not be used if you have a cardiac pacemaker or implanted defibrillator, because the current can disrupt the device. It needs care if you have epilepsy. The other downside is aim. A unit used without a diagnosis often goes on the wrong spot. And it does not replace finding what is causing the pain.

Request an Appointment

Same-day and emergency appointments are available. Call (314) 481-5000 or request a time below.

Prefer not to fill in a form?

Call (314) 481-5000Text (314) 886-5902

Same-day and emergency appointments are available.

Part of our complete guide to Interventional Pain Management in St. Louis.