{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T12:03:48Z","timestamp":1785413028454,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":25,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1785369600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Med."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Context<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Acute and subacute zoster-related pain (ZRP) may progress to postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), yet comparative real-world evidence for early neuromodulation remains limited.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Objectives<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>To compare the clinical outcomes of short-term spinal cord stimulation (stSCS) and pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) in patients with acute\/subacute ZRP.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      In this retrospective single-center cohort study, 421 patients with acute\/subacute ZRP treated with stSCS (\n                      <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f167) or PRF (\n                      <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f254) between 2020 and 2023 were included. Outcomes included pain intensity assessed by the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS), treatment response, residual ZRP and PHN incidence, sleep quality assessed by the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS), activities of daily living (ADL), and complications.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Both treatments were associated with significant pain reduction during follow-up. Compared with PRF, stSCS achieved lower NRS scores at 2\u202fweeks and 1\u202fmonth (both\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.001), and higher responder rates at 2\u202fweeks (80.2% vs. 50.8%) and 1\u202fmonth (92.2% vs. 75.6%; both p\u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.001). At 3\u202fmonths, responder rates remained higher with stSCS (97.6% vs. 92.9%,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.043), whereas by 6\u202fmonths response rates were similarly high in both groups (98.8% vs. 98.0%,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.708). PHN incidence was lower in the stSCS group (7.2% vs. 20.9%,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.001). In multivariable adjusted analyses, stSCS remained associated with a lower risk of PHN incidence. Sleep quality improved in both groups, with greater AIS improvement after stSCS (all post-treatment\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.001), while ADL improvement was comparable. No permanent neurological deficit or device-related infection occurred. Three mild pneumothorax cases after thoracic PRF resolved with conservative management.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Short-term spinal cord stimulation was associated with faster early pain relief, greater sleep improvement, and lower incidences of residual ZRP and PHN than PRF in acute\/subacute ZRP.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fmed.2026.1859392","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T11:10:30Z","timestamp":1785409830000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Short-term spinal cord stimulation vs. pulsed radiofrequency in acute\/subacute herpes zoster pain"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Chen","family":"Li","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]},{"name":"Graduate School, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xinyu","family":"Dou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wenhui","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]},{"name":"Graduate School, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chunhua","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]},{"name":"Graduate School, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Qing","family":"Shi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]},{"name":"Graduate School, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yi","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yifan","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bifa","family":"Fan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Peng","family":"Mao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pain Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital","place":["Beijing, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","year":"2024"},{"key":"ref2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e3210","DOI":"10.1093\/cid\/ciaa1185","article-title":"Herpes zoster and Postherpetic neuralgia: changing incidence rates from 1994 to 2018 in the United States","volume":"73","author":"Thompson","year":"2021","journal-title":"Clin Infect Dis"},{"key":"ref3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"253","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jinf.2020.12.013","article-title":"Incidence and disease burden of herpes zoster in the population aged \u226550 years in China: data from an integrated health care network","volume":"82","author":"Sun","year":"2021","journal-title":"J Infect"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e71002","DOI":"10.1002\/cns.71002","article-title":"Postherpetic Neuralgia: Mechanisms, Risk Factors, and Stratified Management-A Narrative Review","volume":"32","author":"Tang","year":"2026","journal-title":"CNS Neurosci Ther"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"30","DOI":"10.1097\/j.pain.0000000000000307","article-title":"A systematic review and meta-analysis of risk factors for postherpetic neuralgia","volume":"157","author":"Forbes","year":"2016","journal-title":"Pain"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"274","DOI":"10.4065\/84.3.274","article-title":"Herpes zoster (shingles) and Postherpetic neuralgia","volume":"84","author":"Sampathkumar","year":"2009","journal-title":"Mayo Clin Proc"},{"key":"ref7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"CD006866","DOI":"10.1002\/14651858.CD006866.pub3","article-title":"Antiviral treatment for preventing postherpetic neuralgia","volume":"2014","author":"Chen","year":"2014","journal-title":"Cochrane Db Syst Rev"},{"key":"ref8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"E411","DOI":"10.36076\/ppj.2017.E418","article-title":"Pulsed radiofrequency to the dorsal root ganglion in acute herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia","volume":"20","author":"Kim","year":"2017","journal-title":"Pain Physician"},{"key":"ref9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"939432","DOI":"10.3389\/fnagi.2022.939432","article-title":"Short-term spinal cord stimulation is an effective therapeutic approach for herpetic-related neuralgia\u2014a Chinese nationwide expert consensus","volume":"14","author":"Sun","year":"2022","journal-title":"Front Aging Neurosci"},{"key":"ref10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"746","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bja.2024.01.005","article-title":"Enhancing spinal cord stimulation-induced pain inhibition by augmenting endogenous adenosine signalling after nerve injury in rats","volume":"132","author":"Cui","year":"2024","journal-title":"Br J Anaesth"},{"key":"ref11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2390","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms21072390","article-title":"Suppression of superficial microglial activation by spinal cord stimulation attenuates neuropathic pain following sciatic nerve injury in rats","volume":"21","author":"Shinoda","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int J Mol Sci"},{"key":"ref12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"S104","DOI":"10.1097\/j.pain.0000000000001854","article-title":"Spinal cord stimulation in chronic neuropathic pain: mechanisms of action, new locations, new paradigms","volume":"161","author":"Joosten","year":"2020","journal-title":"Pain"},{"key":"ref13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"603","DOI":"10.1186\/s40001-024-02196-6","article-title":"Clinical study of short-term spinal cord stimulation for herpes zoster-associated pain","volume":"29","author":"Zuo","year":"2024","journal-title":"Eur J Med Res"},{"key":"ref14","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":"Wan","year":"2021","journal-title":"Pain Physician"},{"key":"ref15","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e29073","DOI":"10.1097\/MD.0000000000029073","article-title":"Comparing the efficacy and safety of short-term spinal cord stimulation and pulsed radiofrequency for zoster-related pain","volume":"101","author":"Xue","year":"2022","journal-title":"Medicine (Baltimore)"},{"key":"ref16","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1286","DOI":"10.3390\/jpm13091286","article-title":"Comparison of the severity of zoster-associated pain and incidence of Postherpetic neuralgia in patients with and without pre-existing spinal disorders at the same spinal nerve level: a retrospective multicenter study","volume":"13","author":"Chae","year":"2023","journal-title":"J Pers Med"},{"key":"ref17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"3320","DOI":"10.1093\/pm\/pnaa141","article-title":"Efficacy and safety of pulsed radiofrequency as a method of dorsal root ganglia stimulation in patients with neuropathic pain: a systematic review","volume":"21","author":"Vuka","year":"2020","journal-title":"Pain Med"},{"key":"ref18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"149","DOI":"10.1097\/AAP.0000000000000063","article-title":"Pulsed radiofrequency: a review of the basic science as applied to the pathophysiology of radicular pain: a call for clinical translation","volume":"39","author":"Van Boxem","year":"2014","journal-title":"Reg Anesth Pain Med"},{"key":"ref19","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e13867","DOI":"10.1111\/srt.13867","article-title":"Peripheral and central pathogenesis of postherpetic neuralgia","volume":"30","author":"Liu","year":"2024","journal-title":"Skin Res Technol"},{"key":"ref20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"25829","DOI":"10.31083\/JIN25829","article-title":"The role of cytokines in Postherpetic neuralgia","volume":"24","author":"Shen","year":"2025","journal-title":"J Integr Neurosci"},{"key":"ref21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1155\/2022\/3880424","article-title":"Comparison of the efficacy and safety of temporary spinal cord stimulation versus pulsed radiofrequency for Postherpetic neuralgia: a prospective randomized controlled trial","volume":"2022","author":"Li","year":"2022","journal-title":"Pain Res Manag"},{"key":"ref22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"666","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pain.2011.12.003","article-title":"Insomnia, sleep quality, pain, and somatic symptoms: sex differences and shared genetic components","volume":"153","author":"Zhang","year":"2012","journal-title":"Pain"},{"key":"ref23","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1155\/2022\/7055697","article-title":"Short-term spinal cord stimulation or pulsed radiofrequency for elderly patients with Postherpetic neuralgia: a prospective randomized controlled trial","volume":"2022","author":"Sheng","year":"2022","journal-title":"Neural Plast"},{"key":"ref24","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"23","DOI":"10.1007\/s40122-023-00561-7","article-title":"Progress in radiofrequency therapy for zoster-associated pain about parameters, modes, targets, and combined therapy: a narrative review","volume":"13","author":"Rui","year":"2024","journal-title":"Pain Ther"},{"key":"ref25","first-page":"E1227","article-title":"Association between the risk of relapse and the type of surgical procedure for herpes zoster-related pain","volume":"24","author":"Luo","year":"2021","journal-title":"Pain Physician"}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Medicine"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1859392\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T11:10:31Z","timestamp":1785409831000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1859392\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]]},"references-count":25,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fmed.2026.1859392"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1859392","relation":{},"ISSN":["2296-858X"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2296-858X","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]]},"article-number":"1859392"}}