The Clinical journal of pain
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The proportion of chronic pain patients with suspected neuropathic pain who will have clinically meaningful pain relief with intravenous (IV) lidocaine and the clinical characteristics that identify these patients have not been described previously. ⋯ IV lidocaine effectively reduces pain in a minority of patients suspected of having neuropathic pain. Pain severity and patient age can be used to target therapy to those most likely to respond.
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We aimed to assess fear-avoidance beliefs in patients with acute low back pain (LBP) and to identify features of patients and general practitioners (GPs) associated with patients' fear-avoidance beliefs. ⋯ High levels of fear-avoidance beliefs occur early in LBP patients, and key messages on this topic should probably be delivered at a very early stage of the disease.
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To examine the effect of elevating the scapulae on symptoms during neck rotation. ⋯ Passive elevation of the scapulae resulted in a decrease in symptoms with right and left neck rotation in the majority of patients. These findings are important because they indicate that neck symptoms can be immediately improved within the context of the examination. Such information potentially can be used to assist in directing intervention.
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Fear of movement (ie, kinesiophobia) has emerged as a significant predictor of pain-related outcomes including disability and psychologic distress across various types of pain (eg, back pain, headache, fibromyalgia, complex regional pain syndrome). However, no research has examined the prevalence of kinesiophobia in adults with sickle cell disease (SCD). The purpose of this study was to assess the degree of kinesiophobia reported by African American men and women with SCD and to determine whether kinesiophobia is related to pain and psychologic distress in this population. ⋯ Although and historically, pain associated with SCD has not been considered in the context of fear of movement, findings suggest that both kinesiophobia and sex are relevant constructs for consideration in understanding pain-related outcomes in SCD. Though our results require replication, this study suggests that greater kinesiophobia is associated with greater pain and psychologic distress.