Home-based Transcutaneous Electrical Acustimulation (TEA) for the Treatment of Pain in Chronic Pancreatitis: A Feasibility Trial

OBJECTIVES: Treatment options for abdominal pain from chronic pancreatitis (CP) are limited. Transcutaneous electrical acustimulation (TEA) is a noninvasive, self-administered, needleless acupuncture modality, with proven analgesic effects in several gastrointestinal conditions. This study aimed to assess the feasibility and acceptability of TEA in patients with painful CP, and to explore its analgesic effects. METHODS: This was a single-center, single-arm, open-label, feasibility trial. The study involved 3 periods: run-in (2 wk), treatment (4 wk with TEA), and follow-up (4 wk without TEA). TEA was self-administered at home over 2 daily treatment sessions of 30 minutes each. Subjects completed daily pain diaries, weekly brief pain inventory (BPI), a treatment acceptability scale at trial completion, and other assessments at the end of each of the 3 periods. Feasibility of recruitment and data collection, acceptability of the intervention, and preliminary health effects were measured. RESULTS: Of 178 approached subjects, 12 with painful CP were recruited (6.7% recruitment rate). After excluding 2 subjects in the run-in period and 1 subject who withdrew before TEA initiation, 9 underwent TEA treatment. Completion rate of the electronic questionnaires was 76.5%. TEA was rated as an acceptable intervention for pain, with only 11% (1/9) who dropped out from treatment sessions. Compared with baseline, there was improvement of pain severity at the end of treatment and follow-up periods. CONCLUSIONS: We found that TEA was feasible and acceptable for the treatment of painful CP. These results lay the groundwork for larger trials evaluating the efficacy of TEA in painful CP.