Expanding Horizon of Spinal Cord Stimulation: An Overview of Neuromodulation Physiology and Techniques

Abstract

Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) is an evolving technique for the treatment of chronic back pain. Technically, it involves “pulsed electrical energy” stimulation near the spinal cord to manage the pain. The conventional SCS works by causing paraesthesia as nonpainful input, which is not conducive to some patients; then newer techniques such as high frequency, burst, and dorsal root ganglion stimulation paradigms are used, which are more conductive. In this paper, we have given a concise review of the SCS modality and highlighted the basic physiological mechanism of the same.