Table 3.
Global subjective pain scores pre- and post-DNS; mean ± SD and estimated effect size (median value and range), where a positive effect size value indicates improvement
| Authors | Study type | Pain scale | Limb/group | n | Pre-DNS score | Post-DNS pain score at nearest month (effect size)
|
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.5 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 24 | 48 | ||||||
| DNS groups | |||||||||||
| Karazog et al (2008)26 | Observational | VASa | DNS | 24 | 6.9±2.1 | 1.4±1.8 2.7 (2.4–3.6) |
1.2±1.6 2.9 (2.6–4.0) |
||||
| Knobloch et al27 | Observational | VAS | DNS | 12 | 7.1±1.2 | 3.3±2.4 2.0 (1.7–3.2) |
|||||
| Liao et al28 (diffuse pain) | Observational | VAS | DNS | 161 | 8.3±1.8b | 3.5±2.7b 2.1 (1.8–2.8) |
3.0±2.8b 2.2 (1.9–3.0) |
2.5±2.8b 2.5 (2.1–3.3) |
|||
| Liao et al28 (focal pain) | Observational | VAS | DNS | 145 | 8.2±1.3b | 2.3±1.7b 3.9 (3.1–4.7) |
2.1±1.9b 3.7 (3.2–4.9) |
1.0±1.6b 4.9 (4.2–6.4) |
|||
| Macaré van Maurik et al33 | Randomized limb | VAS | DNS limb | 38 | 6.1±1.9 | 2.8±1.3c 2.0 (1.7–2.7) |
3.1±1.2 1.9 (1.6–2.5) |
3.5±3.0 1.0 (0.9–1.4) |
|||
| Rader29 | Observational | VAS | DNS | 38d | 8.7±1.6 | 0.6±0.4 6.8 (5.1–10.5) |
0.3±0.3 7.3 (5.3–11.4) |
||||
| Rozen et al32 | Double-blind, RCT | Likertc | DNS limb | 40 | ~8.0e | [−5.7±2.1]f 2.7 (2.3–3.5) |
[−7.5±2.5]f 3.0 (2.5–3.9) |
||||
| Wood and Wood39 | Observational | VAS | DNS | 30 | 8.8±1.9 | 3.1±2.3 2.7 (2.3–3.5) |
|||||
| Yang et al30 | Observational | VASg | DNS | 11 | 7.1±1.3 | 4.5±1.7 17 (1.5–2.2) |
3.2±1.5 2.8 (24–3.6) |
2.1±1.7 3.3 (2.8–4.3) |
2.0±2.0 3.0 (2.6–4.0) |
1.9±2.1 3.0 (2.6–4.0) |
|
| Average pain score (average effect size) | 459 | 8.0±1.8 | 1.5±1.8 4.7 |
3.0±1.8 2.4 |
2.7±2.3 2.9 |
2.5±2.5 3.0 |
1.8±2.4 3.6 |
[−7.5±2.5]f 3.0 |
|||
| Control groups/limbs | |||||||||||
| Liao et al28 | Observational | VAS | Control group | 92 | 8.0±1.2b | 7.6±1.4b 0.3 (0.3–0.4) |
8.0±1.1b 0.0 (0.0–0.0) |
7.8±1.3b 0.2 (0.1–0.2) |
|||
| Macaré van Maurik et al33 | Randomized limb | VAS | Control limb | 38 | 6.1±1.9 | 4.4±0.7b 1.2 (0.9–1.7) |
4.6±0.6h 1.1 (0.8–1.5) |
5.3±2.8 0.3 (0.3–0.4) |
|||
| Rozen et al32 | Double-blind, RCT | Likert | Sham limb | ~20 | ~8.0e | [−5.3±2.8]f 1.9 (1.6–2.4) |
[−6.0±2.4]f 2.5 (2.1–3.2) |
||||
| Rozen et al32 | Control group | Control group | ~20 | NS | NS | ||||||
| Average pain score (average effect size) | 170 | 7.7±1.7 | 4.4±0.7 1.2 |
4.6±0.6 1.1 |
5.3±2.8 0.3 |
7.8±1.3 0.2 |
|||||
Notes:
VAS pain scores based on eleven-interval analog scale (0–10);
Liao et al mean ± SD measured from Figure 1 of their paper;
Likert pain scores based on eleven items (0–10), with distances between each item being equal;
results confounded by 10 of 38 participants having bilateral DNS;
estimated using mean difference from baseline at 12 months (DNS leg, –5.72±2.71; sham leg, –5.3±2.9) and at 54 months (actual value not reported and unavailable on request);
(mean difference ± SD) from pre-DNS minus post-DNS;
combined daytime, nighttime, and peak pain scores, expressed on eleven-interval analog scale (0–10);
estimated SD from 12-month data.
Abbreviations: DNS, decompression nerve surgery; RCT, randomized controlled trial; VAS, visual analog scale.