I'm thankful to Rebuilder Medical because the Rebuilder is the first thing that helped my PN, and I still use it. But now I hesitate to recommend it. The Rebuilder works for me, but so does my interferential electric stimulation unit at about 1/4 the cost compared to the Rebuilder 2406 unit or 1/2 the cost of the 3000 unit.

When Rebuilder Medical started, the huckstering and hyperbole on the web site were shameless. Since, the company has toned down its web site, but it's still a one-sided hard sell. Rebuilder Medical has raised the prices of the Rebuilder units tremendously with no relation to assembly cost and way beyond the ability of most to buy it.

To balance out the negativism of the above, my 2401 unit has been dependable with frequent use for about 10 years now, and the company has been wonderfully supportive on the phone, and beyond generous with two upgrades when the company was young.

Its telling that the study did not compare the Rebuilder to other type of electrical stimulation units: TENS, EMS, and interferential. Looking at the large body of animal studies, I think that all would help neuropathic nerves heal, and reduce pain.

It's a hypothesis of mine that daily massage helps sensory PN by 1) increasing blood flow, 2) rhythmically stimulating the nerves, thus overriding abnormal firing with something closer to normal firing...which has a healing effect all the way up the line to the brain, 3) reducing pain through "lateral inhibition" ( http://www.google.com/search?q=%22la...ient=firefox-a ), 4) stimulating the surrounding muscles, which improves muscle tone and continues to have a healing effect. From the research I've read, the type of massage is less critical than the frequency. Massage can be manual, electrical, vibrational, or even possibly with light energy (as in anodyne therapy). The nice thing about electrical stimulation is that once you own the unit, you can do it once or twice a day with only a little hassle and small expense.

I urge all to not give up, fight cynicism and resignation, and try different things that might work for you, including electrical stimulation.