{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,11,4]],"date-time":"2026-11-04T18:59:53Z","timestamp":1793818793056,"version":"4.6.1"},"reference-count":36,"publisher":"Wiley","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,27]],"date-time":"2022-04-27T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1651017600000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Neural Plasticity"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,27]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Background. Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is the most common and severe complication after varicella-zoster infection, especially in elderly patients. PHN is always refractory to treatment. Both pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) and short-term spinal cord stimulation (stSCS) have been used as effective analgesia methods in clinic. However, which technique could provide better pain relief remains unknown. Objectives. This study is aimed at evaluating the efficacy and safety of PRF and stSCS in elderly patients with PHN. Study Design. A prospective, randomized-controlled study. Setting. Department of Pain Management, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University. Methods. A total of 70 elderly patients with PHN were equally randomized to the PRF group or stSCS group. Patients in the PRF group received PRF treatment, while patients in the stSCS group received stSCS treatment. The primary outcome was the effective rate. The secondary outcomes included the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey Questionnaire (SF-36), and the pregabalin dosage. All outcomes were evaluated at baseline and at different postoperative time points. Results. At 12 months after surgery, the effective rate reached 79.3% in stSCS group, while 42.1% in PRF group. The effective rate was significantly higher in the stSCS group than in the PRF group at 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery. VAS scores decreased significantly at each postoperative time point in both groups (<jats:inline-formula>\n                     <a:math xmlns:a=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1998\/Math\/MathML\" id=\"M1\">\n                        <a:mi>P<\/a:mi>\n                        <a:mo>&lt;<\/a:mo>\n                        <a:mn>0.001<\/a:mn>\n                     <\/a:math>\n                  <\/jats:inline-formula>). The VAS scores were significantly lower in the stSCS group than in the PRF group at 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery. SF-36 scores (bodily pain and the physical role) were significantly improved at each postoperative time point in both groups (<jats:inline-formula>\n                     <c:math xmlns:c=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1998\/Math\/MathML\" id=\"M2\">\n                        <c:mi>P<\/c:mi>\n                        <c:mo>&lt;<\/c:mo>\n                        <c:mn>0.001<\/c:mn>\n                     <\/c:math>\n                  <\/jats:inline-formula>). The SF-36 scores were significantly higher in the stSCS group than in the PRF group at some postoperative time points. The pregabalin dosage was significantly lower in the stSCS group than in the PRF group at 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery. Limitations. A single-center study with a relatively small sample size. Conclusions. Both PRF and stSCS are effective and safe neuromodulation techniques for elderly patients with PHN. However, stSCS could provide better and longer-lasting analgesic effect compared to PRF.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1155\/2022\/7055697","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,27]],"date-time":"2022-04-27T23:20:07Z","timestamp":1651101607000},"page":"1-8","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":34,"title":["Short-Term Spinal Cord Stimulation or Pulsed Radiofrequency for Elderly Patients with Postherpetic Neuralgia: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Trial"],"prefix":"10.1155","volume":"2022","author":[{"given":"Lei","family":"Sheng","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, Zhejiang Provincial People\u2019s Hospital (Affiliated People\u2019s Hospital, Hangzhou Medical College), Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zihao","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wang","family":"Zhou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, Zhejiang Provincial People\u2019s Hospital (Affiliated People\u2019s Hospital, Hangzhou Medical College), Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xiaojun","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, Zhejiang Provincial People\u2019s Hospital (Affiliated People\u2019s Hospital, Hangzhou Medical College), Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xin","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, Zhejiang Provincial People\u2019s Hospital (Affiliated People\u2019s Hospital, Hangzhou Medical College), Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3314-6845","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Qingjuan","family":"Gong","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Management, The State Key Clinical Specialty in Pain Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"311","reference":[{"issue":"10","key":"1","first-page":"656","article-title":"Herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia: prevention and management","volume":"96","author":"A. 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Liu","year":"2020","journal-title":"Pain Physician"},{"issue":"2","key":"35","first-page":"E219","article-title":"Early treatment with temporary spinal cord stimulation effectively prevents development of postherpetic neuralgia","volume":"23","author":"J. Huang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Pain Physician"},{"issue":"3","key":"36","first-page":"215","article-title":"Efficacy of pulsed radiofrequency or short-term spinal cord stimulation for acute\/subacute zoster-related pain: a randomized, double-blinded, controlled trial","volume":"24","author":"C. F. 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