Burning, tingling or a leg that will not do what you ask makes every step harder. Peripheral nerve stimulation sends gentle electrical input through pads on your skin, with no surgery and no implant.
Overview
Maybe your feet burn at night, or your leg drags after a stroke. Maybe pain from an old injury never quite switched off.
These problems often involve the nerves that carry signals between your brain and body. We use controlled electrical input to give those pathways clear, repeated signals. It is one of the tools in the rehabilitation services at our physical rehab center, used after a full exam.
What it is
Peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) uses a mild electrical current, delivered through pads on the skin, to activate selected nerves in the body. At True Performance it is non-invasive: no surgery, no implanted leads and no medication. It can target pain or be timed with walking and balance exercises.
Your exam shows which nerve pathways connect to your symptoms.
Pads go on the skin, and the current starts low.
Settings change with your feedback, often during exercise.
The re-check
We re-check comfort, sensation and how you walk as you go. If nothing is changing, we adjust the plan or stop.
Nerves constantly tell your brain about position, pressure and motion. Timing the input with a step or a balance task gives your nervous system extra information while you practice that exact movement.
Conditions
The goal changes with the condition: comfort for pain, and better control for movement after a brain injury.
For people working to regain balance, coordination, and movement after a stroke, often in coordination with their medical providers, our gait protocol may stimulate the saphenous and tibial nerves in the leg while you practice steps, as part of gait retraining after a stroke.
A brain injury can affect coordination in one or both legs. In coordination with your medical providers, pairing stimulation with movement practice supports walking and coordination after a brain injury.
For burning or tingling from neuropathy, we target the pathways linked to the area that bothers you, using devices such as the ReBuilder and SunStim.
Stimulation can be one part of a wider plan for nerve-related chronic pain.
It may also help with sharp pain after a recent injury.
Why here
When walking is the problem, the input is timed with steps or lower-body exercises. You practice the movement while the nerve and muscles get the signal.
The current is delivered through the skin, so there is nothing to implant and no medication to take. You tell us what you feel, and we adjust the settings.
We explain which nerves we chose and what response we are looking for.
Other options
Other paths exist. A home TENS unit can ease some pain, physical therapy builds strength, and some people are candidates for an implanted stimulator through a surgeon. We use in-clinic PNS when your exam shows that targeted input, often paired with movement, fits your goal.
Is it for you
If the second list applies, we check with you and your physician before any session.
The FDA's page on electronic muscle stimulators notes reports of interference with implanted devices such as pacemakers.
Your visits
A complimentary call about your symptoms and goals.
About 90 minutes, plus data and history gathering. We check sensation, strength, balance, coordination and how you walk.
Pads go on the skin over the chosen nerves. The current starts low, and you may feel tingling, pulsing or a muscle twitch.
We review comfort, sensation and movement, then change the settings or the plan.
Cost
Cost depends on your exam findings and how many sessions your plan needs. We explain it before you commit.
What your cost depends on
Booking policies
The clinic
Our background in neurological rehabilitation shapes how we use this tool. The findings from your exam set the nerve areas, the settings and the timing of every session.
Peripheral nerve stimulation is one part of our movement-focused physical rehabilitation in Rancho Santa Fe. Book an exam to see whether it fits your plan.
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Visit
Sessions take place at our Rancho Santa Fe office: 18029 Calle Ambiente, Suite 507, in Cielo Village. The office is minutes from Lake Hodges, and many stroke and brain-injury patients drive in from across San Diego County.
The first step
No. Some forms of PNS use implanted parts, but ours works through pads on the skin. There is no surgery and nothing left in your body.
We explain cost and payment options on your intro call, before you book an exam. The total depends on how many sessions your plan needs.
Most people feel tingling, gentle pulsing or a light muscle twitch. The current starts low, and we turn it down right away if anything feels uncomfortable.
Tell us about any implanted device before your first session. Electrical stimulation can interfere with pacemakers and defibrillators, so we check with your physician first and may choose another option.
It may be part of the plan. We time the stimulation with walking practice and re-check your gait as you go, and it works alongside the rehabilitation your medical team has prescribed.
Start with a complimentary 15-minute call with our team.
