TENS: Transcutaneous electrical neuromuscular stimulation (TENS) is a physical therapy modality used to manage acute and chronic pain in physical therapy. Your PT will use TENS to decrease your pain by applying electrodes to your body over painful areas. The intensity of the electricity will be adjusted to block the pain signals traveling from your body to your brain.
Iontophoresis: Iontophoresis is a type of electrical stimulation that is used to help administer medication to you in physical therapy. The electrical current pushes various medication in through your skin and into your body. Your PT will likely use medicine to decrease inflammation or muscle spasm, or iontophoresis drugs can be used to break up calcium deposits that may occur in conditions like shoulder calcific tendonitis. Different medicines are used to accomplish different goals using iontophoresis.
Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES): NMES uses an electrical current to cause a single muscle or a group of muscles to contract. By placing electrodes on the skin in various locations the physical therapist can recruit the appropriate muscle fibers. Contracting the muscle via electrical stimulation helps improve the way your affected muscle contracts. The physical therapist can change the current setting to allow for a forceful or gentle muscle contraction. Along with increasing muscle function, the contraction of the muscle also promotes blood flow to the area that assists in healing. NMES can also be used to help decrease muscular spasm by artificially tiring your muscle in spasm, allowing it to relax.
Interferential current: Interferential current (IFC) is often used by physical therapists to decrease pain, decrease muscular spasm, or improve localized blood flow to various muscles or tissues. It is often used to decrease low back pain and muscular spasm. Interferential current typically uses 4 electrodes in a crisscross pattern. This causes the currents running between the electrodes to "interfere" with one another, and allows your PT to use a higher intensity current while still maintaining maximum comfort for you.