Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation as an adjunct for controlling chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in gynecologic oncology patients

To evaluate the efficacy of a miniaturized portable transcutaneous electric al nerve stimulation (TENS) unit (ReliefBand) as an adjunct to standard ant iemetic therapy for controlling nausea and vomiting induced by cisplatin-ba sed chemotherapy in gynecologic oncology patients. Methods: Forty-two patients were enrolled in a randomized, double-blind, pl acebo-controlled parallel-subjects trial with a follow-up crossover trial. All patients received a standardized antiemetic protocol, then wore the Rel iefBand continuously for 7 days. Results: Thirty-two patients were evaluable for the parallel-subjects compo nent, 16 in each group. The percentage of patients with absent or minimal n ausea was 59% overall, which was similar to that for both the active (56%) and placebo (62%) groups. The incidence and severity of nausea and vomiting was similar for each group. Eighteen patients completed two consecutive cy cles and were evaluable for the crossover component. The average age of the crossover patients and their dose intensity were comparable with those of the overall study population (56.3 versus 58.6 years ann 22.7 versus 22.7 m g/m(2)/week, respectively). The percentage of cycles with absent or minimal nausea was 47% overall, which was similar to thar of the active (50%) and placebo (44%) cycles. However, the severity of nausea was significantly low er er in the active cycles during cycles 2 to 4. Patients averaged less tha n one episode of vomiting daily in each cycle. Conclusions: The ReliefBand is on effective adjunct to standard antiemetic agents for controlling nausea induced by cisplatin-based chemotherapy in gy necologic oncology patients.