Influence of spinal cord stimulation on peripheral blood flow.

In 27 vasculopathic and 9 nonvasculopathic patients who underwent spinal cord stimulation to treat pain in lower extremities, Doppler recordings and thermography were used to study peripheral blood flow changes during stimulation. Generally, poststimulation pain relief coincided with a improvement of Doppler recording, a normalization of morphology and increase of pulse wave amplitude, and a rise of skin temperature in the painful area.