Temporary Spinal Cord Stimulation for Herpes Zoster With Myelitis: A Case Series

TL;DR

This study shows that temporary spinal cord stimulation can reduce pain in shingles patients with myelitis, potentially preventing long-term nerve pain.

Contribution

Demonstrates the effectiveness of temporary spinal cord stimulation in treating shingles-related pain complicated by myelitis.

Findings

Pain scores significantly decreased after temporary spinal cord stimulation in patients with shingles and myelitis.

The pain reduction after stimulation was significantly greater than the effect of prior interventional procedures.

Temporary spinal cord stimulation may be an effective way to prevent postherpetic neuralgia in complicated cases.

Abstract

Introduction: Preventing the development of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), the most prevalent and severe complication of herpes zoster (HZ), is vital. Recently, it has been suggested that using temporary spinal cord stimulation (tSCS) for 10-14 days can improve HZ-associated pain (ZAP) and prevent PHN. However, myelitis complicates HZ. Permanent SCS has been successful in treating neuropathic pain induced by postoperative transverse myelitis of the spine that has not responded to traditional multidisciplinary treatment. However, it is unknown whether tSCS can reduce ZAP complicated with myelitis.

Methodology: Between January 2020 and April 2022, all patients with HZ who visited our pain clinic with spinal cord edema and who underwent tSCS were enrolled in this study; their medical records were retrospectively examined. Pain intensity was assessed at baseline (before initiating interventional procedures), just before tSCS, after tSCS removal, and one and three months after tSCS.

Results: Twelve patients were enrolled. The mean Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) was 7.9 ± 1.6 at baseline (before interventional procedures), 6.8 ± 2.2 before tSCS (after interventional procedures), and 3.5 ± 2.4 after tSCS. Compared with before tSCS, the mean NRS decreased to 3.3 ± 2.3 after tSCS (P = 0.0004). The mean NRS changes with interventional procedures before and after tSCS were -1.2 ± 2.2 (P = 0.0945) and 3.3 ± 2.3 (P = 0.0004), respectively; the change after tSCS was significantly higher (between-group difference: -2.1 ± 3.7; P = 0.0324).

Conclusions: Temporary SCS alleviated pain in cases of shingles with myelitis refractory to interventional therapy. Even in cases with myelitis, tSCS for ZAP remains an effective way to prevent PHN.

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