Efficacy and Safety of a Stimulator Using Low-Intensity Pulsed Ultrasound Combined with Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation in Patients with Painful Knee Osteoarthritis

Table 3

Differences between the groups for changes from baseline.

Variables	ΔV1−V2	Difference between groups in change from baseline (97.5% CI)	value	ΔV1−V3	Difference between groups in change from baseline (97.5% CI)	value
VAS-P1
Only TENS group	1.53 (0.34)	−0.74 (−1.70 to 0.23)	0.036	1.37 (0.41)	−0.26 (−1.61 to 1.08)	0.650
LIPUS + TENS group	2.26 (0.24)			1.63 (0.40)
VAS-P2
Only TENS group	1.79 (0.35)	−0.89 (−2.01 to 0.22)	0.027	1.95 (0.42)	−0.21 (−1.50 to 1.08)	0.457
LIPUS + TENS group	2.68 (0.32)			2.16 (0.36)
VAS-P3
Only TENS group	1.37 (0.28)	−0.58 (−1.47 to 0.31)	0.134	1.63 (0.31)	0.16 (−1.04 to 1.35)	0.759
LIPUS + TENS group	1.95 (0.26)			1.47 (0.41)
WOMAC
Pain
Only TENS group	2.89 (0.55)	−1.21 (−3.23 to 0.81)	0.170	3.26 (0.59)	−0.05 (−2.49 to 2.39)	0.960
LIPUS + TENS group	4.11 (0.67)			3.32 (0.86)
Stiffness
Only TENS group	0.68 (0.31)	−0.16 (−1.06 to 0.74)	0.653	0.53 (0.29)	−0.42 (−1.31 to 0.47)	0.241
LIPUS + TENS group	0.84 (0.23)			0.95 (0.25)
Physical function
Only TENS group	7.05 (1.39)	−4.11 (−8.68 to 0.47)	0.048	10.11 (1.55)	0.89 (−3.95 to 5.74)	0.668
LIPUS + TENS group	11.16 (1.38)			9.21 (1.37)
Total
Only TENS group	10.6 (1.82)	−5.47 (−11.78 to 0.83)	0.050	13.89 (1.97)	0.42 (−6.42 to 7.26)	0.886
LIPUS + TENS group	16.11 (1.99)			13.47 (2.16)
FAC thickness (cm)
Medial
Only TENS group	0.00 (0.00)	0.00 (−0.00 to 0.00)	0.623	−0.01 (0.00)	−0.00 (−0.02 to 0.01)	0.931
LIPUS + TENS group	0.00 (0.00)			−0.01 (0.00)
Central
Only TENS group	0.00 (0.00)	0.00 (−0.00 to 0.00)	0.636	0.00 (0.00)	−0.00 (−0.01 to 0.01)	0.808
LIPUS + TENS group	0.00 (0.00)			0.00 (0.00)
Lateral
Only TENS group	0.00 (0.00)	0.00 (−0.00 to 0.01)	0.695	0.00 (0.00)	−0.00 (−0.01 to 0.01)	0.483
LIPUS + TENS group	0.00 (0.00)			0.00 (0.00)
SF-36 global score
Only TENS group	−8.09 (2.28)	2.65 (−6.08 to 11.38)	0.328	−9.09 (3.14)	−0.41 (−10.37 to 9.56)	0.925
LIPUS + TENS group	−10.74 (2.95)			−8.69 (2.87)

Data are presented as mean (SE). . Bonferroni correction was applied to adjust the 2-time comparisons. ΔV1−V2, difference of values between visit 1 and visit 2; ΔV1−V3, difference of values between visit 1 and visit 3; CI; confidence interval; TENS, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation; LIPUS, low-intensity pulsed ultrasound; VAS, visual analogue scale (range, 1 to 10), with higher values indicating worse outcomes; VAS-P1, visual analogue scale for knee pain at the current moment; VAS-P2, visual analogue scale for knee pain with movement; VAS-P3, visual analogue scale for knee pain at the resting position; WOMAC, Western Ontario and McMaster index with higher scores representing worse pain, stiffness, and impaired physical function; FAC, femoral articular cartilage; SF-36, the MOS 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey with a higher score indicating better health.