The Clinical journal of pain
-
Although pain is commonly experienced by cancer patients, many receive inadequate pain management. Little data exist quantifying analgesic usage among oncology patients. This study evaluates perceived causes of pain and investigates reasons why oncology patients fail to receive optimal pain management. ⋯ Most cancer patients perceive pain from their disease or treatment, regardless of therapy received. Many, however, did not use analgesics due to concerns of addiction, cost, or lack of health care provider endorsement. Providers should regularly discuss pain symptoms and management with cancer patients.
-
Chronic pain is a well-known complication after surgery, but the prevalence of persistent pain after melanoma surgery is unknown. This study examined the prevalence and predictors of persistent pain after melanoma surgery. ⋯ The results support previous findings that persistent postoperative pain is a complication of almost any surgical intervention. Persistent pain was related to abnormal sensation, and neuropathic pain should be considered in these patients.
-
To report a case of hiccups secondary to intrathecal (IT) morphine infusion. ⋯ We report a case of a 44-year-old man who developed persistent hiccups with IT morphine infusion pump therapy. The hiccups persisted despite various nonpharmacological and pharmacological measures. The untoward symptom resolved after substitution of IT hydromorphone for IT morphine.
-
The postthoracotomy pain syndrome (PTPS) has a prevalence of 30% to 40%. Although intraoperative nerve damage during thoracotomy has been demonstrated, it has not been clearly linked to PTPS and detailed quantitative sensory characterization data have so far not been presented, comparing PTPS and pain-free patients. ⋯ Neurophysiological assessments indicate nerve injury to be common in pain and pain-free patients after thoracotomy. The combination of increased thresholds together with hyperesthesia, suggests consequences of nerve injury to be more pronounced in PTPS patients.