The provision of written information and its effect on levels of pain and anxiety during electrodiagnostic studies: A randomised controlled trial

Objective: The provision of written information is a low-cost and readily available intervention that has been found to reduce pain and anxiety in a variety of clinical settings. The current study was undertaken to determine if information provision may improve patients’ experience during conventional electrodiagnostic studies. Methods: 128 participants were recruited from a tertiary teaching hospital who were referred for electrodiagnostic studies. They were randomized into 2 groups where the intervention group was provided with written information about the electrodiagnostic testing. Patients were invited to complete a questionnaire that included pain and anxiety using a visual analogue scale (VAS) following the testing. All participants underwent nerve conduction studies (NCS) whilst a subset also underwent subsequent needle electromyography (EMG). Results: Those who received information had a statistically significant lower perception of anxiety during NCS, whilst only females who received information had a statistically significant lower perception of pain to both NCS and EMG. Conclusions: The provision of written information can reduce the degree of pain and anxiety experienced during electrodiagnostic testing. Significance: Improving patient comfort and tolerability during electrodiagnostic testing may have practical implications towards more reliable and accurate results obtained from such investigations that may in turn improve patient diagnosis and management.