Spinal Cord Stimulation for Chronic Pain Leads to Decreased Health-care Costs

In a study presented at the International Neuromodulation Society 12th World Congress, mean annual expenditures increased in the three years prior to spinal cord stimulation (SCS) for pain patients, and consequently decreased in each of the three years afterward. The Pain Program, a neuromodulation patient database set up by the British Columbia’s Ministry of Health, followed patients who received SCS implants from 2007 to the present, measuring functional and clinical outcomes. Results of the study showed mean expenditures dropped 29 percent overall when comparing the three years prior to treatment and the three years after, with pharmaceutical costs decreasing 31 percent and non-pharmaceutical costs decreasing 29 percent. Researchers noted that the cost effectiveness of SCS is demonstrated in studies that show post-implant health-care savings offset the initial expenditure of an SCS implant, with implantation within two years of symptom onset appearing to offer the greatest success rate. “This research is a very useful tool to show the funding authority that neuromodulation saves money in the short term with regards to overall health care dollar costs,” a lead researcher noted. “It confirms the value of this very important modality in the treatment of patients suffering with pain.” To read more about this study, click here.