Pain modulation by meditation and electroacupuncture in experimental submaximum effort tourniquet technique (SETT).
Explore (New York, N.Y.) January 1, 2011 Kyung-Eun Choi, Thomas Rampp, Felix J Saha et al.
In a semirandomized feasibility study, experienced Vipassana meditators showed greater baseline pain tolerance than nonmeditators. Electroacupuncture (EA) increased pain tolerance and decreased pain ratings in nonmeditators, matching the level of meditation-induced analgesia, but provided no additional benefit for meditators. The study used an ischemic pain model (submaximum effort tourniquet technique) with 8 meditators (mean 2,626.8 hours of practice) and 40 control subjects. Pain tolerance was measured as the ratio of tolerated time to pain ratings. The findings suggest both EA and meditation can relieve pain, but combining them does not enhance analgesia.