EFFECTIVENESS OF TRANSCUTANEOUS ELECTRICAL NERVE STIMULATION

ABSTRACT

Background: Dysmenorrhea is a gynecological challenge among women of reproductive age group. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulator (TENS) in managing primary dysmenorrhea among female undergraduates and to explore the physiotherapist experiences in the use of TENS for primary dysmenorrhea. Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of TENS on pain intensity associated with primary dysmenorrhea among female undergraduates of University of Benin and to explore the physiotherapist experiences in the use of TENS for primary dysmenorrhea. Methodology: Forty-seven female undergraduates participated in the study. Cluster sampling technique was used and all the 15 faculties were selected as a cluster. From the 15 faculties 150 eligible respondents were found across the faculties. A preliminary survey was conducted to determine those that had history of dysmenorrhea. From the survey 47 persons were found to have history of PD in 11 faculties. While 4 faculties did not have females with dysmenorrhea; A structured questionnaire on menstrual symptoms was then distributed to the participants. Menstrual pain was measured by a self-reported pain intensity using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) before and after TENS treatment. The interviews was a semi-structured interview guide, prior to the face to face interviews, information about the research aims, risks and benefits of participating, confidentiality, anonymity and participants’ right to withdraw from the interview if he or she feels distressed was provided. The researcher conducted a one to one interview with each respondent with the time ranging between 45 minutes and an hour. The interview explored respondents’ experiences in the use of TENS for primary dysmenorrhea. Open ended questions were asked to encourage more detailed responses and for a dynamic flow of conversation. Interviews was audiotaped and transcribed verbatim after each session. Paired t-test was used to compare the pre and post treatment pain intensity for 3 days. Obtained variables were analyzed and the significant level was set at 0.05. Results: Majority of the participants who were 20 years and above having normal BMI reported their menstrual pain as moderate pain and above, had pain reduction from day 1 to day 3. The pre and post-TENS intervention showed significant pain intensity reduction from day 1 to day 3(p <0.0001). There was no significant relationship between age of the participants, pain intensity and BMI of the participants to TENS intervention. Conclusion: The result showed that the use of TENS in managing primary dysmenorrhea showed significant pain intensity reduction from day 1 to day 3 among the female undergraduates. TENS should be considered a potential alternative for relieving menstrual pain among female adolescents and women. The clinical significance of these is that, it will add to the existing body of knowledge and help ameliorate pain associated with primary dysmenorrhea and it will increase the productivity of individuals if they are aware of the effect of TENS in ameliorating primary dysmenorrhea. Key words: Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS), Dysmenorrhea, Female undergraduates, Principal physiotherapist.