In App Behavioral Intervention
Buse et al., Pain Medicine, 2022
The Nerivio app includes an optional behavioral treatment feature, called ‘Guided Imagery, Education and Relaxation’ (GIER). This component augments Nerivio treatment with a tailored behavioral intervention. Nerivio’s in-app GIER feature is a 25-minute video, played on the user’s smartphone during the Nerivio treatment. The GIER includes three behavioral therapy techniques: diaphragmatic breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and guided imagery. Patients may watch and/or listen to the video while the Nerivio device is activated for treatment.
This study assessed the effect of combined Nerivio and GIER intervention for acute treatment of migraine. Real world data from patients who used the Nerivio device in tandem with the GIER behavioral treatment was compared to data from a matched group who used Nerivio alone, over a period of thirteen months. Patients voluntarily recorded pain severity and functional disability via the Nerivio pp. Data from 170 users were analyzed (85 per group).
Results:
- Pain relief was achieved by 79% of Nerivio+GIER users vs 57% of the Nerivio-only users, at 2 hours post-treatment.
- Improvement in function was achieved by 71% of the Nerivio+GIER users vs 53% of the Nerivio-only users at 2 hours.
- Return to normal function was achieved by 38% of the Nerivio+GIER users and 18% of the Nerivio-only users at 2 hours.
Conclusion: The results suggest that combining the GIER behavioral intervention with Nerivio treatment can improve the therapeutic efficacy beyond that of Nerivio alone, in terms of both pain level and improvement of disability.
Source: Buse DC, Rabany L, Lin T, et al. Combining Guided Intervention of Education and Relaxation (GIER) with Remote Electrical Neuromodulation (REN) in the Acute Treatment of Migraine. Pain Medicine. 2022.
