La Revue du praticien
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The chronic pain management structures were identified by the French health authorities regarding two levels: consultation (with a pluri-professional organization and proximity missions) and the center (with a multidisciplinary organization and expertise). Access to these structures is facilitated by guidelines published in 2008 by the Haute Autorité de santé.
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La Revue du praticien · Jun 2013
Review[Pharmacological treatment of neuropathic pain in primary care].
Neuropathic pain is difficult to treat. First line treatment includes tricyclic antidepressants (notably amitriptyline), mixed serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (duloxetine for diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain), antiepileptics (gabapentin and pregabalin) and topical agents (lidocaine plasters for postherpetic neuralgia). These drugs can be subsequently associated in case of partial response to monotherapy. Opioids and tramadol are only considered second/third line, alone or in combination with first line drugs.
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Neurosurgical treatment of pain is based on 3 concepts: 1) lesional techniques interrupt the transmission of nociceptive neural input by lesionning the nociceptive pathways (cordotomy, radicotomy...), they are indicated to treat morphine-resistant cancer pain; 2) neuromodulation techniques try to decrease pain by reinforcing inhibitory mechanisms, using chronic electrical stimulation of the nervous system (peripheral nerve stimulation, spinal cord stimulation, motor cortex stimulation...) to treat chronic neuropathic pain; 3) intrathecal infusion of analgesics (morphine, ziconotide), using implantable pumps, allows to increase their efficacy and to reduce their side effects. These techniques can improve, sometimes dramatically, patients with severe and chronic pain, refractory to all other treatments.