{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,17]],"date-time":"2026-07-17T13:28:34Z","timestamp":1784294914369,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":26,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1779235200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JCM"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) is an established therapy for chronic refractory pain, but its clinical value depends on whether benefit persists beyond the early post-implant period. Although short-term SCS studies are abundant, reports with follow-up of 24 months or longer are dispersed, methodologically heterogeneous, and difficult to interpret across indications and stimulation platforms. This scoping review aimed to map the clinical literature reporting SCS outcomes at \u226524 months, characterize the represented populations and modalities, summarize the long-term outcome domains assessed, and identify major methodological and clinical gaps in the evidence base. Methods: This PRISMA-ScR-informed scoping review applied a Population\u2013Concept\u2013Context framework. PubMed\/MEDLINE and Scopus were searched through April 2026, yielding 6866 records before deduplication. Following staged title\/abstract screening, iterative full-text retrieval, and the reconciliation of overlapping publications, 292 unique full-text reports were assessed for eligibility. Studies reporting original clinical SCS data with extractable outcomes at \u226524 months were included. No meta-analysis or formal GRADE assessment was undertaken, as the objective was evidence mapping rather than pooled effect estimation. Results: The final evidence map comprised 65 unique reports representing a cumulative report-level population of 11,518 participants across non-overlapping cohorts. The literature was dominated by non-randomized evidence (55 observational reports; 10 randomized or randomized-derived). The most frequent indication was mixed chronic pain (30\/65; 46.2%), followed by failed back surgery syndrome\/persistent spinal pain syndrome (FBSS\/PSPS; 16\/65; 24.6%), chronic back and\/or leg pain (6\/65; 9.2%), complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS; 5\/65; 7.7%), and painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN; 4\/65; 6.2%). Most reports involved conventional or unspecified SCS (47\/65; 72.3%), with smaller contemporary clusters for 10 kHz high-frequency SCS and ECAP-controlled closed-loop SCS. The most frequently reported outcome domains were pain durability, function and quality of life, device-related outcomes, and opioid use. At a descriptive level, the literature more often supported persistence of benefit than complete erosion of effect, particularly in spinal pain populations and in contemporary PDN and closed-loop SCS cohorts. Interpretation was constrained by outcome heterogeneity, cohort overlap, mixed indication categories, and inconsistent opioid and device-maintenance reporting. Conclusions: The long-term SCS literature supports the view that durable benefit is achievable in a substantial patient subset, particularly in FBSS\/PSPS populations, and in more recent evidence, in PDN, nonsurgical refractory back pain, and closed-loop SCS cohorts. The evidence base remains heterogeneous and does not support a uniform certainty-ranked estimate across indications and technologies. Future studies should prioritize indication-specific cohorts, standardized multidomain outcome reporting, and transparent separation of unique cohorts from secondary analyses of the same clinical populations.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm15103939","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T12:30:51Z","timestamp":1779280251000},"page":"3939","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Long-Term Effectiveness of Spinal Cord Stimulation Beyond 24 Months: A PRISMA-ScR-Informed Scoping Review"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8968-0978","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jakub","family":"Wi\u015bniewski","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Neurosurgery, Nicolaus Copernicus Hospital, 80-803 Gdansk, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-3094-2385","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mateusz","family":"Szczupak","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Therapy, Nicolaus Copernicus Hospital, 80-803 Gdansk, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1671-2163","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Pawe\u0142 Jan","family":"Winklewski","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Neurophysiology, Neuropsychology and Neuroinformatics, Medical University of Gdansk, 80-210 Gdansk, Poland"},{"name":"2nd Department of Radiology, Medical University of Gdansk, 80-210 Gdansk, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8331-208X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anna Barbara","family":"Marcinkowska","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Neurosurgery, Nicolaus Copernicus Hospital, 80-803 Gdansk, Poland"},{"name":"2nd Department of Radiology, Medical University of Gdansk, 80-210 Gdansk, Poland"},{"name":"Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Department of Neurophysiology, Neuropsychology and Neuroinformatics, Medical University of Gdansk, 80-210 Gdansk, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"98","DOI":"10.1227\/01.NEU.0000144839.65524.E0","article-title":"Spinal Cord Stimulation versus Repeated Lumbosacral Spine Surgery for Chronic Pain: A Randomized, Controlled Trial","volume":"56","author":"North","year":"2005","journal-title":"Neurosurgery"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"762","DOI":"10.1227\/01.NEU.0000325731.46702.D9","article-title":"The Effects of Spinal Cord Stimulation in Neuropathic Pain Are Sustained: A 24-Month Follow-up of the Prospective Randomized Controlled Multicenter Trial of the Effectiveness of Spinal Cord Stimulation","volume":"63","author":"Kumar","year":"2008","journal-title":"Neurosurgery"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"233","DOI":"10.1136\/rapm-2023-104639","article-title":"Durable Multimodal and Holistic Response for Physiologic Closed-Loop Spinal Cord Stimulation Supported by Objective Evidence from the EVOKE Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial","volume":"49","author":"Kapural","year":"2023","journal-title":"Reg. 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