Efficacy of transcranial direct current stimulation in treating central pain after ischemic stroke

Zhou Quan; Zhou Xiaoyun; Yang Lan; Xu Jian; Sun Li; Hong Ye; Qu Xiaxia

doi:10.11986/j.issn.1673-873X.2024.07.09

Abstract：Objective To explore the clinical efficacy of transcranial direct current stimulation(tDCS)combined with prega-balin in the treatment of patients with central pain after ischemic stroke,with the aim of providing a reference for clinical treatment.Methods A total of 102 patients with central pain after ischemic stroke treated at Baoji People's Hospital from January 2021 to January 2024 were selected as the study participants.Patients were assigned to a control group(n=51)and an observation group(n=51)using the random number table method.Both groups of patients received conventional drug treatment with pregabalin,and the observation group additionally received tDCS treatment using the Aijunyi tDCS therapy device.The Visual Analog Scale(VAS)scores,Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index(PSQI),and pain relief(PAR)scores be-fore and after treatment in the two groups of patients were compared.The incidence of adverse reactions after treatment in the two groups of patients was also compared.Results Before treatment,no significant difference was noted in VAS and PSQI scores between the two groups(P＞0.05).Both groups had significantly lower VAS and PSQI scores after treat-ment,with the observation group having significantly lower scores than the control group(P＜0.05).The overall response rate of pain relief in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group(96.08％vs.82.35％;P＜0.05).No statistically significant difference was found in the overall incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion The use of tDCS combined with pregabalin in treating patients with central pain after ischemic stroke can effectively alleviate patients'pain symptoms and has a high safety profile,making it valuable for clinical applica-tion.