EEG alpha activity in response to Transcutaneous Electrical Nervous Stimulation in healthy young subjects and in the healthy elderly subjects

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) is used not only in the treatment of pain but also in the examination of sensory functions. With aging, there is decreased sensitivity to somatosensory stimuli. It is essential to examine the effect of TENS application on the sensory functions in the brain by recording the spontaneous EEG activity and the effect of aging on the sensory functions of the brain during the application. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of the application of TENS on the brain’s electrical activity and the effect of aging on the sensory functions of the brain during application of TENS. 15 young and 14 elderly subjects were included in the study. Spontaneous EEG was recorded from 32 channels during TENS application. Power spectrum analysis was performed by Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) in the alpha frequency band (8-13 Hz) for all subjects. The study was approved by The Non-Interventional Clinical Research Ethics Committee of Istanbul Medipol University (Ethical report no: 10840098-604.01.01-E.6805). All participants signed an informed consent form.