Cardiac Vagal Efficiency Is Enhanced by Percutaneous Auricular Neurostimulation in Adolescents With Nausea: Moderation by Antidepressant Drug Exposure.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Percutaneous electrical nerve field stimulation (PENFS) is an effective treatment for disorders of gut-brain interaction (DGBI), proposed to influence vagal pathways. Cardiac metrics such as respiratory sinus arrythmia (RSA) and vagal efficiency (VE) can noninvasively assess parasympathetic output. Commonly used antidepressant drugs inhibit vagal signaling and may interfere with PENFS. This study examined immediate effects of active compared to sham PENFS on cardiac vagal function in adolescents with chronic nausea with and without concurrent drug therapy.

Materials and methods

Participants (n = 84) were randomized to active (3.2 V, 1-10 Hz) or sham PENFS within an 8-week prospective, double-blind clinical trial. Subjects underwent posture challenges to elicit a v

SUBMITTER: Kolacz J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11996051 | biostudies-literature | 2025 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature