Electrical stimulation: A reflection on current clinical practices

This paper briefly reviews the basic principles of several clinical applica tions of electrical stimulation for therapeutic purposes. It is intended to facilitate the integration of electrical stimulation into routine clinical practice by clarifying the terminology and standard conventions of the fie ld, explaining the delivery capabilities of common electrical stimulators c ommercially available for clinical use, summarizing several examples of evi dence-based therapeutic applications, and providing guidelines for selectio n of most commonly used treatment parameters. Rather than an exhaustive sur vey of the field, the presentation touches broadly on guidelines for use of transcutaneous electrical stimulation employing surface electrodes for the purposes of analgesia (TENS), drug delivery (iontophoresis), or neuromuscu lar rehabilitation (NMES), as well as other selected clinical applications. The paper is a general review of common clinical practices of electrothera py and should serve as an introduction to the important factors for clinici ans to consider when contemplating electrical stimulation as a treatment op tion.