Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation for Pain Relief in Primary Dysmenorrhea

To determine the effectiveness of a single treatment with acupuncture-like transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) for relief of primary dysmenorrheic pain, 20 women received either one placebo sugar pill or 30 min of acupuncture-like TENS at four acupuncture points bilaterally. Pain levels were measured using the visual analogue scale and McGill pain rating index for up to 150 min following treatment. Results showed that the experimental groups attained a statistically significant (p < 0.05) amount of pain relief and the control group did not. The results of this study indicate that acupuncture-like TENS could be an alternative for relief of menstrual pain.