Comparison between TENS and EMS currents:
Abbreviation for TENS:
Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation. |
Abbreviation for EMS:
Electrical Muscle Stimulation. |
Functioning of TENS:
Melzack and Wall’s gate control theory and increased production of endorphins in the CNS. |
Functioning of EMS:
muscle contraction – maintenance of contraction – relaxation of muscle tension. |
Type of impulses used in TENS therapy:
symmetrical and asymmetrical bipolar rectangular pulses. |
Type of impulses used in EMS therapy:
unipolar rectangular pulses. |
Duration of treatment with TENS:
Approximately 30 minutes. |
Duration of treatment with EMS:
Approximately 15 minutes. |
Purpose of the treatment with TENS:
chronic analgesic therapy and stimulation of skeletal muscles. |
Purpose of the treatment with EMS:
· prevent or inhibit muscle spasms, · re-education of lost muscle function, · maintain or increase the range of motion in the joints, · protection against atrophy, · increase local blood circulation, · postoperative thrombosis prevention by stimulating the lower leg muscles, · in sports training: during warm-up, in exercises of strength, speed, resistance and press. |
Indications for TENS:
· disk disease, · degenerative joint disease, · joint pain and pain syndromes during rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis, · neuralgia and compression syndromes, · periarticular inflammation, · shingles, · postoperative pain, · other pain syndromes besides the cancerous origin, · partial injury to afferent nerve fibers, · muscle atrophy due to immobilization and partial denervation. |
Indications for EMS:
Muscular injuries of various types |
Contraindications for TENS and EMS:
· patients with implanted electronic devices (such as pacemakers) or other implants (e.g. endoprosthesis, metal plates) should be consulted by a doctor before the treatment, · local acute inflammation in the area to be treated, · tendency to bleed, · thrombosis, · pregnancy, · changes in the skin at the points where the electrodes are applied, · cases in which the skin cannot be wet. |