TENS Therapy at Home in Sadashiv Peth, Pune

TENS stands for transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. A small, battery-run unit sends mild electrical pulses through sticky pads placed on the skin near the painful area. The patient feels a buzzing or tingling, and for many people that sensation makes the pain easier to tolerate while it lasts.

It is a pain-relief tool, not a treatment for the cause of the problem. This page explains when it is worth using at home in Sadashiv Peth, when it is not, and how it fits with exercise. For the wider picture of our service, see the TENS therapy guide.

What TENS can do, and what it cannot

The pulses seem to compete with pain signals travelling to the brain, and they may also encourage the body's own pain-relieving chemicals. In practice, TENS often gives short-term relief for muscle and joint pain, and some people find it helps most for a few hours afterwards. Studies on its long-term benefit are mixed, and it works well for some people and hardly at all for others. It does not repair a torn muscle, widen a narrowed spinal canal or strengthen a weak knee.

That is why the purpose here is practical. If a person with a painful knee cannot bend it enough to do the exercises, a session of TENS beforehand may allow them to move. If sleep is being broken by back pain, a short session in the evening may help. The relief is used as a window for exercise, and the exercise is the part that changes the problem.

Safety checks before the pads go on

TENS is not suitable for everyone, and the physiotherapist asks first. We do not use it, or we take special care, in these situations:

• a pacemaker, defibrillator or other implanted electrical device;
• pregnancy, particularly over the abdomen or lower back;
• epilepsy, since pulses near the head and neck are avoided;
• broken, inflamed or infected skin, and areas with reduced sensation, where the person may not notice if the current is too strong;
• the front of the neck, over the eyes, or on top of a recent clot or suspected deep vein thrombosis.

Skin in older adults is thin and may be dry or fragile, so the physiotherapist checks it before and after, and uses new pads each time or reuses them with care. Many older people living in Sadashiv Peth have diabetes, which can reduce sensation in the feet. In that case we keep the intensity low and ask for feedback often.

How a TENS session goes in your home

1. The physiotherapist examines the problem and decides whether TENS is appropriate.
2. The skin is cleaned and the pads are placed around, not on, the sore spot.
3. The intensity is raised until you feel a strong but comfortable buzzing, never pain or muscle jumping.
4. You rest in a supported position, in bed or a chair, while it runs.
5. Afterwards we move straight on to the exercises that the pain relief makes easier.

Some patients ask whether they should buy a unit. The physiotherapist can advise whether it is likely to help in your case and show you how to use it safely, and a cheap unit is not a reason to skip the exercises. TENS can accompany other approaches, such as IFT, which uses a different type of current, or treatment for back pain.

Stop and call if something feels wrong

Turn the unit off and remove the pads if you feel burning, a rash, dizziness or palpitations. New chest pain, swelling of the calf, or numbness that spreads are not TENS problems and need a doctor.

To arrange a visit, book here, or see how home physiotherapy in Sadashiv Peth is organised.