Pain medicine : the official journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine
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Review Case Reports
Deconstructing chronic low back pain in the older adult--step by step evidence and expert-based recommendations for evaluation and treatment: part I: Hip osteoarthritis.
To present the first in a series of articles designed to deconstruct chronic low back pain (CLBP) in older adults. The series presents CLBP as a syndrome, a final common pathway for the expression of multiple contributors rather than a disease localized exclusively to the lumbosacral spine. Each article addresses one of twelve important contributors to pain and disability in older adults with CLBP. This article focuses on hip osteoarthritis (OA). ⋯ Hip OA is common and should be evaluated routinely in the older adult with CLBP so that appropriately targeted treatment can be designed.
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This systematic review aims to examine the available literature and to synthesize published data concerning the treatment of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) with ketamine. ⋯ There is no high quality evidence available evaluating the efficacy of ketamine for CRPS and all manuscripts examined in this review were of moderate to low quality. Therefore, we conclude there is currently only weak evidence supporting the efficacy of ketamine for CRPS, yet there is clearly a rationale for definitive study.
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The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) uses the 11-point pain numeric rating scale (NRS) to gather pain intensity information from veterans at outpatient appointments. Yet, little is known about how NRS scores may vary over time within individuals; NRS variability may have important ramifications for treatment planning. Our main objective was to describe variability in NRS scores within a 1-month timeframe, as obtained during routine outpatient care in older patients with chronic pain treated in VA hospitals. A secondary objective was to explore for patient characteristics associated with within-month NRS score variability. ⋯ The majority of patients in the sample had clinically meaningful variation in pain scores within a given month. This finding highlights the need for clinicians and their patients to consider multiple NRS scores when making chronic pain treatment decisions.
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In April 2014, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Drug Safety Communication requesting that corticosteroid labeling include warnings that injection of corticosteroids into the epidural space of the spine may result in rare but serious adverse events, including loss of vision, stroke, paralysis, and death. ⋯ The International Spine Intervention Society spearheaded a collaboration of more than a dozen other medical societies in submitting the letter below to the FDA on November 7, 2014. We are publishing the letter to ensure that the readership of Pain Medicine is aware of the multisociety support for the safety and effectiveness of these procedures. A special note of thanks to all of the societies who signed on in support of the message.
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Letter Case Reports
Extradural thoracic spinal lesion presenting as low back and leg pain.