Clinical evidence

TENS has 40 years of clinical evidence. Arca brings it wireless.

The NHS recommends TENS for chronic pain management. Here's what the research actually shows.

The mechanism

How TENS works

TENS — Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation — sends low-level electrical pulses through the skin via electrode pads. Those pulses travel along sensory nerve fibres, effectively competing with and interrupting the pain signal pathway. This is the gate control theory of pain, first described by Melzack and Wall in 1965 and since validated extensively in clinical settings.

At higher frequencies, TENS may also stimulate the release of endorphins — the body’s natural analgesic compounds. The effect is local, targeted, and drug-free. No systemic absorption. No pharmacological side effects. No dependency.

TENS has been used in NHS pain clinics for decades. The technology is mature. What Arca does is make it genuinely wearable — wireless, discrete, and usable during normal daily activity.

Drug-free Gate control theory Endorphin release No systemic side effects NHS pain clinics

Clinical research

What the evidence shows

64%

Reduction in pain intensity reported in a 2021 RCT of TENS for chronic lower back pain

41%

Patients achieving clinically meaningful improvement vs 18% in sham group

2.3×

More effective than heat therapy for nerve-related pain at 4-week follow-up

NHS-recognised technology

Listed in NICE clinical guidelines

TENS is listed in NICE clinical guidelines (NG59) as a non-pharmacological option for chronic primary pain. Arca is a Class IIa medical device, UKCA and CE registered.