Spinal Cord Stimulation to Treat Pain

There's been a proliferation of devices that use spinal cord stimulation to treat chronic pain--an especially important therapy given the skyrocketing abuse of painkillers.

Menlo Park, CA-based startup Nevro last year won a PMA for its Senza spinal cord stimulation device. Nevro boasts that the Senza device is unique because it relieves chronic pain without causing the tingling sensation called paresthesia--a common side effect among older spinal cord stimulation devices.

Founded in 2007, Nevro went public in November 2014, becoming the best performing IPO of the year in the medical device industry. The stock started out at nearly $30 per share. It is now trading at around $70 per share.

Also last year, Greatbatch received a PMA for its Algovita spinal cord stimulation system to treat chronic intractable pain of the trunk and/or limbs. Greatbatch spun off the part of the company that created the device into a new company called Nuvectra.

The company boasts an "advanced, 24-channel implantable pulse generators (IPGs) and comprehensive lead portfolio provide a broad range of options for pain coverage that can be tailored to individual patient requirements."  The device delivers electrical stimulation to the dorsal column of the spinal cord.

Another spinal cord stimulation system, St. Jude Medical's Axium neurostimulator system, received FDA approval just this February. The Axium came to St. Jude through its acquisition of Spinal Modulation in May 2015.

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