The Clinical journal of pain
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Acupuncture in migraine prevention: a randomized sham controlled study with 6-months posttreatment follow-up.
To assess the efficacy of acupuncture in migraine prophylaxis. ⋯ Individualized treatment based on traditional Chinese medicine plays a role in preventing migraine attacks. Nevertheless, sham acupuncture had similar effects. Major conclusions were limited by the small sample sizes however the observed trends may contribute to design future trials.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Mirtazapine decreases the pain feeling in healthy participants.
The treatment of neuropathic pain is mainly based on antiepileptics, tricyclic antidepressants, and opiates. These drugs have important side effects disturbing the patient's quality of life. Mirtazapine (MTZ) is a new and well-tolerated tricyclic antidepressants with both monoaminergic and opioid properties that might favorably influence pain. The aim of this study was to assess whether MTZ can reduce the pain induced by a standardized stimulus presented to healthy human participants. The nociceptive flexion reflex (NFR) to an electric stimulus was chosen to determine the pain threshold. ⋯ MTZ increases the pain tolerance in healthy participants. The potential benefit of this effect on pain should be investigated more thoroughly in chronic neuropathic pain patients. The NFR might serve as an additional tool for the monitoring of these patients.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Hydrocodone/acetaminophen and tramadol chlorhydrate combination tablets for the management of chronic cancer pain: a double-blind comparative trial.
The purpose of this study was to compare the analgesic efficacy and tolerability of opioids hydrocodone and tramadol in the relief of cancer pain. ⋯ There was no superior analgesic efficacy with the administration of hydrocodone/acetaminophen when compared to patients receiving tramadol in the relief of cancer pain. Tramadol produced more mild side effects than hydrocodone.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Gabapentin supplemented with ropivacain block of trigger points improves pain control and quality of life in trigeminal neuralgia patients when compared with gabapentin alone.
Pain control in trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is achieved using anticonvulsivants, mainly carbamazepine. When this drug cannot be used, other drugs like gabapentin (GBP) have been used to provide adequate pain control. To improve the therapeutic effect of GBP, we evaluated the clinical efficacy of associating GBP with ropivacain (ROP) analgesic block of facial trigger points in TN patients. ⋯ The association of GBP and ROP is safe, without side effects and results in an important clinical benefit associated to an improvement of the functional health status of TN patients when compared with GBP alone. This may constitute a therapeutic alternative for pain control in TN patients who cannot be treated with carbamazepine.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Topical amitriptyline versus lidocaine in the treatment of neuropathic pain.
Oral amitriptyline, a tricyclic antidepressant, is effective for treating neuropathic pain. We conducted a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover study to evaluate the efficacy of topical 5% amitriptyline and 5% lidocaine in treating patients with neuropathic pain. ⋯ This randomized, placebo-controlled crossover study examining topical 5% amitriptyline and 5% lidocaine in the treatment of neuropathic pain showed that topical lidocaine reduced pain intensity but the clinical improvement is minimal and that topical 5% amitriptyline was not effective.