Medicina clinica
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Chronic pain is a complex process that can vary depending on factors such as time evolution, mood, or even previous experiences. Our objective is to describe patient's characteristics from those who were referred with a diagnosis of low back pain in their first Pain Unit (PU) visit, and identify those factors that may interfere with their pain perception. ⋯ The specialized treatment of low back pain in PUs must take into account the patient's profile and especially the affective disorders and associated comorbidities since they predict a greater intensity of pain. Consequently, the associated comorbidity not only affects the greater intensity of pain, but the physical characteristics that accompany the patient throughout the process can influence or even compromise treatment.
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Progression of carcinoid syndrome (CS) to carcinoid heart disease (CHD) is difficult to predict. This retrospective analysis evaluates the use of chromogranin A (CgA), a biomarker widely used in the diagnosis of neuroendocrine tumours (NET), in monitoring CS and disease progression. ⋯ CgA has potential as a clinically useful biomarker in reporting disease status and predicting outcome in patients with CS and with CHD.