Pain
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Fibromyalgia is a common and complex long-term pain condition. Despite advancements in our understanding and treatment of fibromyalgia, patients report patchy health care provision and frustrating journeys through the health care system. To inform how best to deliver care, we undertook 2 narrative reviews examining existing evidence on (1) models of care for fibromyalgia and (2) patients' experiences, preferences, and unmet needs regarding their health care. ⋯ Positive care experiences such as being listened to and shared decision-making made patients feeling better informed, well supported, and more satisfied. There is little evidence to inform how best to organise health care for patients with fibromyalgia and ensure care is delivered in a coordinated and consistent way. These findings provide a strong rationale for developing a new model of care for fibromyalgia.
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The inflammatory/immune response at the site of peripheral nerve injury participates in the pathophysiology of neuropathic pain. Nevertheless, little is known about the local regulatory mechanisms underlying peripheral nerve injury that counteracts the development of pain. Here, we investigated the contribution of regulatory T (Treg) cells to the development of neuropathic pain by using a partial sciatic nerve ligation model in mice. ⋯ Finally, we identified IL-10 signaling as an intrinsic mechanism by which Treg cells counteract neuropathic pain development. These results revealed Treg cells as important inhibitory modulators of the immune response at the site of peripheral nerve injury that restrains the development of neuropathic pain. In conclusion, the boosting of Treg cell function/activity might be explored as a possible interventional approach to reduce neuropathic pain development after peripheral nerve damage.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Efficacy and safety of propranolol for treatment of temporomandibular disorder pain: a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial.
Propranolol is a nonselective beta-adrenergic receptor antagonist. A multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, phase 2b trial enrolled participants aged 18 to 65 years with temporomandibular disorder myalgia to evaluate efficacy and safety of propranolol compared with placebo in reducing facial pain. Participants were randomized 1:1 to either extended-release propranolol hydrochloride (60 mg, BID) or placebo. ⋯ Propranolol was likewise efficacious for a ≥50% reduction in FPI (number-needed-to-treat = 6.1, P = 0.03). Adverse event rates were similar between treatment groups, except for more frequent fatigue, dizziness, and sleep disorder in the propranolol group. Propranolol was not different from placebo in reducing mean FPI but was efficacious in achieving ≥30% and ≥50% FPI reductions after 9 weeks of treatment among temporomandibular disorder participants.
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Meta Analysis
The efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions in acute pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Recent meta-analyses have shown mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) to be effective for chronic pain, but no pooled estimates of the effect of MBIs on acute pain are available. This meta-analysis was conducted to fill that gap. A literature search was conducted in 4 databases. ⋯ GRADE assessment indicated that except for pain tolerance, the data were of low or very low quality. There is moderate evidence that MBIs are efficacious in increasing pain tolerance and weak evidence for pain threshold. However, there is an absence of good-quality evidence for the efficacy of MBIs for reducing the pain severity or pain-related distress in either clinical or experimental settings.
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No large-cohort studies that examine potential racial effects on placebo hypoalgesic effects exist. To fill this void, we studied placebo effects in healthy and chronic pain participants self-identified as either African American/black (AA/black) or white. We enrolled 372 study participants, 186 with a diagnosis of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) and 186 race-, sex-, and age-matched healthy participants to participate in a placebo experiment. ⋯ Racial effects on placebo were observed in TMD, although negligible, short-lasting, and mediated by conditioning strength. Secondary analyses on the effect of experimenter-participant race and sex concordance indicated that same experimenter-participant race induced greater placebo hypoalgesia in TMDs while different sex induced greater placebo hypoalgesia in healthy participants. This is the first and largest study to analyze racial effects on placebo hypoalgesia and has implications for both clinical research and treatment outcomes.