An Evaluation of Psychological Wellbeing in Neuromodulation Patients during a Global Pandemic: E-Poster Viewing

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Bart's Neuromodulation Centre is a centre of excellence for research and innovation. In the UK, the NICE 159 guidelines have highlighted the importance of psychological and multidisciplinary assessment to ascertain the suitability of patients for Neuromodulation. It is widely acknowledged that the global pandemic of Covid-19 has had far-reaching physical, psychological and socioeconomic implications. Despite the various limitations of running services during a pandemic, Barts Neuromodulation Centre maintained the importance of multidisciplinary assessment in the selection of patients suitable for this form of therapy. This paper presents psychological wellbeing outcomes of neuromodulation patients during this unprecedented period. Materials / Methods: Data collection was gathered remotely between January 2021 to December 2021.N=178 completed questionnaires. The mean age was 55 years and 63% were female. Data was collected at baseline and in addition, post-implant data was obtained at 1,3,6 and 12 month follow up. As per NHS England outpatient guidance (2020), all data was completed remotely. All collected data was anonymized and data was stored on an encrypted database. Result(s) Graph 1 HADS Depression Scores [Formula presented] Graph 1 demonstates a 78% decrease in depression scores from baseline to 2 years+ Graph 2 HADS Anxiety Scores [Formula presented] Graph 2 demonstrates a 76% decrease in anxiety scores from baseline to 2 years+. Discussion(s) The data demonstrates significant improvements in psychological wellbeing as shown in depression and anxiety scores after SCS therapy. It would be useful to explore ways to improve patient compliance and explore broader parameters of outcomes. Conclusion(s) Despite the global pandemic, there remains a strong demand for SCS and encouragingly showed significant improvements in psychological wellbeing. Learning Objectives: 1. Evaluate clinical outcomes 2. Understand the impact of a global pandemic on clinical outcomes 3. Delivering remote clinical care and data collection. Keywords Anxiety, depression, Pain, SCS, neuromodulation, LBP Copyright © 2022