142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

Annual Meeting Recordings are now available for purchase

305952
A randomized controlled trial comparing three alternative and complementary health practices for the treatment of chronic pain

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Monday, November 17, 2014 : 11:10 AM - 11:30 AM

Salvatore Libretto, PhD , Military Medical Research Programs, Samueli Institute, Alexandria, VA
Michael Schlicher, PhD , TriService Nursing Research Program, Rockville, MD
Kimberly McConnell, EdD , Military Medical Research Programs, Samueli Institute, Alexandria, VA
Weimin Zhang, PhD , Military Medical Research Programs, Samueli Institute, Alexandria, VA
Alice Inman, PsyD , Hematology/Oncology Clinic, San Antonio Military Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, TX
Chronic pain affects nearly 116 million American adults at an estimated cost of up to $635 billion per year in terms of lost work days and healthcare expenditures.  Pain contributes substantially to morbidity, mortality, disability, demands on the health care system and significant economic burdens for the nation.  Currently available treatments have limited effectiveness for most people with severe chronic pain.  We conducted a 3-armed randomized controlled trial to compare the Tennant Biomodulator with Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) and Traditional Chinese Acupuncture for the management of chronic pain among injured service members (n=98) at a large Military Treatment Facility. The primary outcome was change in pain ratings over the 6-week treatment period. Secondary outcomes included quality of sleep, depression, heart rate, and PTSD symptoms. Data were collected at intake, before and after each treatment session, and again at a 1-month follow-up. Results indicate improvements in pain scores over time for all three groups (p<0.0001) and a statistically significant treatment by time interaction effect for pain as measured by the Million Visual Analog Scale (MVAS) (p = 0.0259) indicating that some treatments were better than others for managing pain. Results also indicate a significant treatment by time interaction for heart rate (p = 0.0399) as measured before each treatment session. This study evaluated the effectiveness of non-traditional therapies on pain reduction and co-morbid symptoms. The results suggest non-pharmacological therapies may decrease symptoms of chronic pain and the presentation will address which modalities were more effective in chronic pain management.

Learning Areas:

Chronic disease management and prevention
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice

Learning Objectives:
Describe the results of a three-arm RCT for pain. Evaluate the effectiveness of three alternative/complementary therapies for chronic pain management. Discuss implications of findings for further research.

Keyword(s): Chronic Disease Management and Care, Alternative and Complementary Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: This study investigates the Tennant Biomodulator, a precision medical instrument indicated in the use for symptomatic relief and management of chronic, intractable pain. The Biomodulator is a biofeedback-like device that uses a sophisticated computer cont

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I contributed to the design and implementation of this study as an Associate Investigator.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.