Effects of Transcutaneous Auricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Individuals with Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Abstract
Background and aims: Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) is a promising neuromodulation therapy with proved efficacy in treating various conditions, such as migraine, depression, abdominal pain, constipation, stroke, and sleep disorders. However, no randomized controlled trials have evaluated the effects of taVNS in patients with primary dysmenorrhea (PwPD). This study aims to investigate the impact of taVNS on pain, functional and emotional symptoms, and physical performance in PwPD.
Materials and methods: In this study, conducted over two menstrual cycles, 34 PwPD were randomly assigned (1:1) to the taVNS or Sham groups. The treatment protocol comprised taVNS or sham treatment for five consecutive days, starting five days before the expected second menstrual period. The Numerical Rating Scale (NRS), pressure pain threshold (PPT), the Menstrual Symptom Questionnaire (MSQ), the Functional and Emotional Measure of Dysmenorrhea (FEMD), the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAM-A), and the 6-Minute Walking Test (6MWT) were evaluated at the first and subsequent menstrual cycles.
Results: The difference between the groups was significant, favoring the taVNS group in the NRS, PPT, MSQ, FEMD, HAM-A, and 6MWT (for all, p < 0.05). Time, treatment, and time × treatment interaction were found to have significant effects on all treatment parameters except 6MWT (for all, p < 0.05).
Conclusion: PwPD may benefit from taVNS, given it has shown efficacy in alleviating pain and…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Calcium Ions in the Physiology and Pathology of the Central Nervous System
- AI-powered in silico twins: redefining precision medicine through simulation, personalization, and predictive healthcare
- In silico functional, structural and pathogenicity analysis of missense single nucleotide polymorphisms in human MCM6 gene
- In Silico drug repurposing pipeline using deep learning and structure based approaches in epilepsy
- Targeting serotonin receptors with phytochemicals – an in-silico study
- In silico exploration of anti-prostate cancer compounds from differential expressed genes
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.