Table 1.
Summary of included studies characteristics.
| Study | Study Design | Intervention | N (total) | Use of analgesics | Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onesti et al.36 | Double Crossover | Active rTMS versus sham | 23 | YES | VAS(0–100); RIII reflex |
| Weintraub et al.38 | RCT | PEMF versus sham | 194 | YES | VAS (0–10); NPS(0–100); PGIC |
| Zahra and Serry42 | RCT | TENS versus exercise versus pharmacological group | 60 | YES | VAS; sensory NCS |
| Oyibo et al.37 | Crossover | PENS versus sham | 14 | NO | VAS |
| Naderi Nabi et al.35 | RCT | PRF versus TENS | 60 | YES | NRS |
| Kumar et al.32 | RCT | PENS vs sham group | 31 | NO | Pain grade |
| Kim et al.30 | RCT | M1 tDCS versus DLPFC tDCS vs sham | 60 | YES | VAS; CGI score; anxiety score; sleep quality; BDI; PPT |
| Hamza et al.29 | Crossover study | PENS versus sham | 50 | YES | VAS; SF-36; BDI; POMS |
| Gossrau et al.28 | RCT | TENS versus sham | 40 | NO | PDI; NPS; CES-D |
| Lacigová et al.33 | cross-over study | MDM versus sham | 60 | YES | VAS; TSS; BDI; SF-36 |
| Kumar et al.31 | RCT | PENS versus sham | 23 | YES | Pain grade |
| Abdelkader et al.43 | Quasi-experiment | rTMS in both groups: insulin dependent versus non-insulin dependent group | 20 | NO | VAS |
| Moharič et al.34 | RCT | TENS versus pregabalin versus combined group | 65 | YES | VAS; SF-36 |
| Bulut et al.26 | RCT | TENS versus sham | 40 | NO | VAS; Pain grade |
| Yuanhong Ding et al.41 | RCT | TENS versus pharmacological group | 60 | YES | MCV; SCV; Pain grade |
| Yonghong Guo et al.40 | RCT | PENS versus pharmacological group | 68 | YES | MCV; SCV; hemorheology |
| Wróbel et al.39 | RCT | PEMF versus sham | 61 | YES | VAS; EuroQol EQ-5D; MOS; Sleep Scale |
| Armstrong et al.44 | Quasi-experiment | PENS | 10 | NO | VAS |
| Bosi et al.25 | Crossover | FREMS versus sham | 31 | NO | VAS; MCV; SCV; SF36; VPT |
| Forst et al.27 | RCT | TENS versus sham | 19 | NO | NTSS-6; VAS |
DN4: Douleur Neuropathique 4 Questions; rTMS: repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation; VAS: Visual analog scale; NPS: Neuropathy Pain Scale; PGIC: Patient’s Global Impression of Change; PI-NRS: Pain Intensity Numerical Rating Scale; PEMF: pulsed electromagnetic field therapy; TENS: transcutaneous electrical nerve Stimulation; NDS: neuropathy disability score; PENS: percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, PRF: Pulsed Radiofrequency Sympathectomy; FREMS: frequency-modulated electromagnetic neural stimulation tDCS: transcranial direct current stimulation; M1: primary motor cortex; DLPFC: dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; CGI: Clinical Global Impression; BDI: Beck Depression Inventory; PPT: pressure pain threshold; NTSS: neuropathy total symptom score; POMS: the Profile of Mood Status; SF-36: the MOS 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey; CES-D: Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale; IFT: Interferential therapy; MDM: “mesodiencephalic” modulation; MCV: motor conduction velocity; SCV: sensory conduction velocity; SEP: Somatosensory-evoked potential; PSP: Acupoint skin pain threshold; NIS LL: Neuropathy Impairment Score Low Limbs scale.