Table 4.
Mean Number per Patient‐Year of Medical Resources Consumed
| Resource type | Number/patient‐year | |
|---|---|---|
| Pre‐SCS | Post‐SCS | |
| Emergency Room Admissions | 0.5 | 0.3 |
| Medical Aids | 0.8 | 0.3 |
| Diagnostic Exams: | 3.9 | 1.6 |
| X‐ray spine | 0.8 | 0.5 |
| MNR spine | 0.8 | 0.2 |
| CAT spine | 0.6 | 0.3 |
| Bone scintigraphy | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| ECO abdomen | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| EMG | 0.4 | 0.1 |
| Neurophysiological exams | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Blood tests | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| ECG | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Urodynamic exams | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Urine analysis | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Drugs * | _ | _ |
| SCS‐related Hospital Admissions: | 0.0 | 1.0 |
| INS implantations | 0.0 | 0.5 |
| LEAD implantations | 0.0 | 0.5 |
| INS replacements | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| Other (lead re‐positioning/replacement) | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Non‐SCS Related Hospital Admissions: | 0.3 | 0.2 |
| Surgical admissions | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Medical admissions | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| Complementary Therapies * | _ | _ |
| Rehabilitation, Instrumental and Analgesic Therapies: | 23.6 | 14.1 |
| Motor rehabilitation | 6.2 | 2.2 |
| Postural exercises | 2.3 | 4.3 |
| Assisted exercise in water | 2.5 | 4.6 |
| Massotherapy | 2.5 | 0.9 |
| Lymphdrainage | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| Pain electrotherapy | 3.5 | 0.6 |
| Electromagnetic therapy | 2.0 | 0.1 |
| Iontophoresis | 0.5 | 0.2 |
| Therapy with ultrasound | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| Laser pain therapy | 2.2 | 0.1 |
| Injection of therapeutic substances in joints or ligaments | 1.8 | 1.1 |
| Mesotherapy | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Epidural steroids injections | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| GP Consultations: | 30.5 | 14.2 |
| Ambulatory | 24.3 | 11.5 |
| Home visits | 6.2 | 2.7 |
| Medical Specialist Consultations: | 4.9 | 1.5 |
| Neurologist | 1.8 | 0.6 |
| Orthopedist | 1.5 | 0.5 |
| Neurosurgeon | 0.6 | 0.2 |
| Psychologist | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Geriatrician | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Physiatrist | 0.9 | 0.2 |
| Anaesthetist/pain therapist | 0.3 | 0.1 |
| SCS‐related Follow‐up Specialist Consultations: | 0.0 | 1.6 |
*It would be not informative reporting synthetically the mean amount of drugs and complementary therapies used, because the patients used several types and dosages of drug treatments (e.g., opioid, antiepileptic, analgesic, gastroprotective, antibiotic, anxiolytic, antidepressant drugs etc.) and several types of complementary therapies (acupuncture, homeopathic therapy, plantar therapy, pranotherapy).