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ANALGESIA

The Impact of Asynchronous Electroacupuncture Stimulation Duration on Cold Thermal Pain Threshold

Shu-Ming Wang, MD^*, Eric C. Lin, BS, Inna Maranets, MD^*, and Zeev N. Kain, MD, MBA

From the *Department of Anesthesiology, Yale School of Medicine; Department of Anesthesiology, The Yale Center for Advancement of Perioperative Health©, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut; and Departments of Anesthesiology, Pediatrics, and Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Irvine, California.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Shu-Ming Wang, MD, Department of Anesthesiology, Yale School of Medicine, 333 Cedar St., New Haven, CT 06520. Address e-mail to shu-ming.wang{at}yale.edu.

Abstract

The durations of asynchronous electroacupuncture can affect the resultant hypoalgesia. Healthy volunteers were randomized to receive different durations (0 min, 20 min, 30 min, or 40 min) of asynchronous electroacupuncture stimulations (alternating low/high [2/100 Hz] frequency at 5 mA). Using a human experimental cold thermal pain threshold model, we found that 30 min of asynchronous 2/100 Hz stimulation resulted in the most significant hypoalgesic effect that was sustained for at least 60 min after stimulation compared with 0-, 20-, or 40-min stimulations (P < 0.05). We conclude that the most optimal duration for asynchronous electroacupuncture stimulation is 30 min.