A £50 device designed to tackle the pain of Angina

A recent article in a Daily Newspaper states:

A device designed to tackle the pain of chronic angina could benefit thousands of sufferers. One in three patients who has used the equipment through the NHS National Refractory Angina Centre has either reduced or eliminated the pain symptoms.

The nerve stimulation treatment - which has been shortlisted for a national innovation award later this year - is based on pulses of electricity that are passed through electrodes attached to the skin and works by blocking the unwanted pain signals getting through to the brain.

Angina is a recurring pain or discomfort in the chest that happens when a part of the heart does not receive enough blood. Usually it is assign of arteriosclerosis, a blocking up of arteries, and feels like a pressure or squeezing pain, often in the chest, but sometimes in the shoulders, arms, neck, jaws or back. It often comes on after physical exertion.

Angina rarely causes permanent damage, because unlike a heart attack, the blood supply is not suddenly cut off. Angina can be tackled with drugs like nitro-glycerin, beta blockers and calcium channel-blockers.

Surgery is also used to widen the blood vessels, but for some people the angina persists. The nerve stimulation therapy has been found to be an effective and safe therapy for controlling chest pain in chronic angina.

A clinical nurse specialist at the National Refractory Angina Centre says: "What is happening in angina is that as a result of the clogging up of the arteries, chemicals are released which are detected by the brain through the sympathetic nervous system. These nerves exaggerate the signal so that by the time it gets to the brain, the brain believes there is a major problem, hence the pain.

One of the treatments offered at the centre is electrical stimulation, which aims to interrupt brain signals. It is based around the idea that there is a nerve gate that can be closed to prevent the brain from receiving a painful signal. Stimulation of sympathetic nerves is one way of closing this gate.

During the treatment, gel-covered pads are put on the skin around the painful area and attached to the device which generates a particular current at a frequency of 70HZ, found to work for angina patients. The electrical nerve stimulation technology also boosts the production of the body's own painkillers - endomorphines - which help make the patient more relaxed and less stressed.

"When we bang an elbow we rub it vigorously. If we didn't the pain would get worse. Stimulation with these impulses works in the same way, says the clinical nurse. "When a patient comes to us we look at where and when they need to use the stimulation. That includes where on the chest they put the pads, and when they do it, because people can get angina at different times, in the morning or after a meal and so on" says the clinical nurse.

"We have found that the more people use the device at home, the greater improvements in symptoms there is. Our experience here suggests that for one in three people this is a cheap and highly successful treatment and is one that is now being looked at nationally".

A 64 year old patient from Merseyside says that the device has changed his life, not only releasing him from persistent chest pain, but also enabling him to take up swimming again.

After having his device for about ten weeks he says: "It has made a different man of me. It's marvellous. Two and a half years ago I had a heart bypass operation, for six months everything was wonderful, but then I started to have pain in my chest. It became so bad I couldn't touch it, and I shied away from people to avoid contact"

"When I first heard about this technology, I was sceptical. After a bypass operation, I had to walk for a set period of time each day. I got chest pain every time I did it. Sometimes it was unbearable so, despite my sceptisism, I decided to give this new treatment a go. Soon after I started walking I got the chest pains, so I switched the machine on. After about ten minutes the pain began to subside and eventually became a faint background pain. It was remarkable.

"It had another effect too" he says "when you have a bypass operation it can cause major changes that you don't expect. After my operation I found that I was terrified of swimming although I had been a swimmer all my life.

"This summer when I went on holiday, I used the machine, and I was standing in the shallow end of the pool to keep cool. I took part in some aerobics and suddenly found that I wanted swim - and I did. It was a marvellous feeling. For me this machine has been tremendous, I now use it every day, for half hour sessions. If I am going out I put it on because it is unobtrusive, no-one knows it is there".

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A £50 device designed to tackle the pain of Angina

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