Mild anxiety may be beneficial in coping with stress; however, anxiety prior to invasive procedures in healthcare in generally regarded as undesirable and maladaptive. Although the use of anxiolytic medication reduces the anxiety associated with surgical procedures, the need is not ubiquitous and the side effects are often undesirable. As minimally invasive procedures are utilized, the necessity of anesthesia for patients has been replaced by the need for temporary relief of anxiety and pain. Cranial electrotherapy stimulation, the passing of electrical currents transcranially using ear clip electrodes, has been established for use of a regular basis for anxiety in psychiatric and substance abuse populations. However, its effectiveness when used as a one-time intervention to decrease state anxiety has only recently been examined in several studies, however; the studies have lacked power. This study contributes to the developing body of knowledge regarding the one-time use of CES prior to and during interventional pain management procedures. This study aimed to assess the efficact of a single, cranial electrotherapy stimulation intervention to reduce anxiety prior to and during fluoroscopically-guided spinal and pelvic injections for pain management.
