Stimulating device now an option for chronic back pain

Medical professionals can now access a TGA-approved device to treat patients with chronic back pain, which affects 3.24 million Australians.

The Senza Omnia Spinal Cord Stimulation System from Nevro delivers treatment for chronic back pain using frequency technology to stimulate the spinal cord and is reported to be the only product of its kind that can deliver all frequencies, between two and 10,000 HZ.

The device offers a waveform pioneered by Omnia — the HF10 — which was found to reduce pain across two 24-month trials. In the SENZA-EU study, a multicentre back pain study conducted in Europe, the average opioid intake of the patients was decreased by nearly 70% and the percentage of patients not taking opioids by two years had tripled (from 14% to 42%).

The Nevro Omnia Device.

Nevro Chief Commercial Officer Niamh Pellegrini said the product will be available to medical practitioners across Australia from 1 July, following successful launches in the United States and Europe.

“Omnia was developed as a result of extensive feedback from physicians to provide a versatile solution to help more patients with chronic pain,” Pellegrini said.

“With Omnia, patients will have access to the widest range of SCS [spinal cord stimulation] frequencies, and physicians can have the peace of mind knowing they can provide their patients the broadest range of solutions for the best possible outcomes.”

The system is made up of several components, including a programmer that allows medical practitioners to vary the frequencies required by their patients and a remote to make it easier for patients to use the device. The device also features an implantable pulse generator that lasts more than a decade, is MRI safe and can be upgraded for future waveforms and frequencies.

Pain Specialist Australia Director Nick Christelis said he is looking forward to using Omnia’s updated programming suite.

“The TGA approval of the Omnia spinal cord stimulation system to treat chronic refractory pain will be a welcome new platform from Nevro,” Christelis said.

“The new device reflects a more versatile solution to treat the changing, dynamic, and sometimes even progressive, nature of chronic pain.”

Nevro has created the NevroCloud system so patients are supported using the device and doctors can check in with how their patients are responding to the treatment.

Image credit: stock.adobe.com/au/peterschreiber.media