Ear nerve stimulation reduced chronic pain in older bypass surgery patients
Among older adults undergoing off-pump coronary bypass, ear stimulation lowered chronic pain incidence; the chest-wall block did not show a clear overall reduction.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Ear vagus nerve stimulation around surgery reduced the proportion of participants reporting chronic postsurgical pain compared with sham stimulation. The chest-wall nerve block did not significantly reduce overall chronic pain incidence, although some pain outcomes improved. These findings concern older patients undergoing a specific bypass procedure and do not establish benefits in other surgical settings.
This abstract-based account lacks confidence intervals for the main comparisons and details of adverse events. A nonsignificant overall nerve-block result leaves uncertainty about the size of any effect.
What researchers found
Chronic postsurgical pain incidence
At 3 months, active versus sham ear stimulation; P = 0.036.
Chronic postsurgical pain incidence
At 3 months, ropivacaine block versus placebo block; P = 0.143.
What the combined design tested
The trial varied ear stimulation and the chest-wall block independently, allowing each intervention to be assessed alongside the other. No interaction was detected, so the abstract provides no evidence that combining them altered their effects.
Additional pain outcomes
Ear stimulation also improved acute pain and reported recovery quality. The block eased acute pain early after surgery and reduced moderate-to-severe chronic pain, even though its overall chronic-pain incidence comparison was not statistically significant.
The original publication
Transcutaneous Auricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation and Pectoral-Intercostal Fascial Block for the Prevention of Chronic Postsurgical Pain in Elderly Patients Undergoing Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting: A 2×2 Factorial, Double-Blinded, Randomized Clinical Trial.
Cui S, Yan L, Huang P et al.
Clin Interv Aging · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 42017043
- Record checked
AI-assisted research and writing. This explains one selected publication; it is not a complete review of everything known. Our approach.
One more question, understood.
Keep track of the research you’ve explored.