In the past, if you chose to take part in the SCS trial, you would have to deal with a wire sticking out of your back for the duration of the procedure. This wire would then attach to pager-like device you’d have to carry around your waist in a belt bag. If that wasn’t bad enough, the handheld remote you used to control the intensity of the treatment had to be connected to the pager in the belt bag by, you guessed it, another wire.

If this sounds like a bit much, you’re not alone – 69% of patients who had this type of experience with the stimulator trial withdrew from the treatment because they disliked the wires, among other reasons [2].

It’s no surprise that a lot of people undergoing an SCS trial found it a real disturbance in their everyday life. In fact, some people found the inconvenience so distracting it was hard for them to tell if the treatment even worked or not. Because they were physically connected to the unit in the belt bag, people had to modify their basic everyday activities like dressing, undressing and washing around the wire coming out of their back – not to mention having to be constantly aware they didn’t get themselves caught on a door knob just walking out of their bedroom!