| Title |
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation and placebo analgesia: is the effect the same for young and older individuals?
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Clinical Interventions in Aging, February 2018
|
| DOI | 10.2147/cia.s152906 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Inès Daguet, Kayla Bergeron-Vézina, Marie-Philippe Harvey, Marylie Martel, Guillaume Léonard |
| Abstract |
Placebo analgesia refers to a perceived reduction in pain intensity following the administration of a simulated or otherwise medically ineffective treatment. Previous studies have shown that many factors can influence the magnitude of placebo analgesia. However, few investigations have examined the effect of age on placebo analgesia, and none have done it in the context of electrotherapeutic interventions. The objective of this study is to compare the placebo response induced by sham transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) between young and older individuals, using an experimental heat-pain paradigm. Twenty-two young (21-39 years) and 22 older (58-76 years) healthy adults participated in this comparative study. Experimental heat pain was evoked with a thermode (2-min stimulation at a constant individually adjusted temperature) applied on the lumbar region. Participants were asked to evaluate the intensity of their pain using a computerized visual analog scale. Experimental pain was induced before and after an unconditioned placebo intervention (placebo TENS) applied for 25 min. In young individuals, no significant pain reductions were noted, whereas in older individuals, a statistically significant pain reduction was observed after the placebo stimulation (P<0.01). Between-group analyses revealed that placebo analgesia was greater in older individuals (40% pain reduction) compared with young individuals (15% pain reduction) (P<0.05). However, sham TENS increased heat-pain thresholds in the young group (P<0.01), but not in the older group (P=0.43). Our results indicate that placebo analgesia is influenced by age, with older individuals showing larger placebo analgesia than young adults. Although these results should be confirmed in clinical pain populations, the current observations bear potentially important consequences for the design of future placebo-controlled trials and for healthcare professionals working with elderly patients. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 7 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | 2 | 29% |
| United Kingdom | 1 | 14% |
| Australia | 1 | 14% |
| Unknown | 3 | 43% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 4 | 57% |
| Scientists | 2 | 29% |
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 1 | 14% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 55 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 55 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Master | 14 | 25% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 6 | 11% |
| Student > Bachelor | 3 | 5% |
| Lecturer | 2 | 4% |
| Other | 2 | 4% |
| Other | 9 | 16% |
| Unknown | 19 | 35% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Dentistry | 9 | 16% |
| Nursing and Health Professions | 6 | 11% |
| Neuroscience | 4 | 7% |
| Psychology | 4 | 7% |
| Arts and Humanities | 2 | 4% |
| Other | 8 | 15% |
| Unknown | 22 | 40% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 6. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 29 January 2019.
All research outputs
#6,786,204
of 25,584,565 outputs
Outputs from Clinical Interventions in Aging
#623
of 1,962 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#127,396
of 450,135 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Clinical Interventions in Aging
#13
of 43 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,584,565 research outputs across all sources so far. This one has received more attention than most of these and is in the 73rd percentile.
So far Altmetric has tracked 1,962 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 11.2. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 68% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 450,135 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 71% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 43 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 72% of its contemporaries.