Pain medicine : the official journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine
-
Randomized Controlled Trial
Testing a Positive Psychological Intervention for Osteoarthritis.
Osteoarthritis is a leading cause of disability for which there is no cure. Psychosocial-oriented treatments are underexplored. We developed and tested an intervention to build positive psychological skills (e.g., gratitude) to reduce osteoarthritis symptom severity, including pain and functioning, and to improve psychosocial well-being in patients with knee or hip osteoarthritis. ⋯ The study successfully engaged patients with knee or hip osteoarthritis in a six-week intervention to build positive psychological skills. Improving osteoarthritis symptom severity and measures of psychosocial well-being, the intervention shows promise as a tool for chronic pain management.
-
The objective of this project was to develop core competencies for education on opioids and addiction to be used in all Pennsylvania medical schools. ⋯ These competencies will be incorporated into the educational process at all Pennsylvania medical schools. It is hoped that these curriculum changes will improve student knowledge and attitudes in these areas, thus improving patient outcomes.
-
Observational Study
Dexamethasone and Clonidine, but not Epinephrine, Prolong Duration of Ropivacaine Brachial Plexus Blocks, Cross-Sectional Analysis in Outpatient Surgery Setting.
The primary aim of this study is to determine the effect of adding dexamethasone, clonidine or both with and without epinephrine to ropivacaine and bupivacaine brachial plexus blocks. ⋯ For brachial plexus blocks, epinephrine did not affect the duration of analgesia when added to ropivacaine. Epinephrine did not enhance the observed increase of block duration induced by clonidine or the combination of clonidine and dexamethasone. The most block duration enhancement was observed when combination of clonidine and dexamethasone were added to ropivacaine.
-
Patient education materials (PEM) should be written at a sixth-grade reading level or lower. We evaluated the availability and readability of online PEM related to regional anesthesia and compared the readability and content of online PEM produced by fellowship and nonfellowship institutions. ⋯ Available online PEM related to regional anesthesia are well above the recommended reading level. Further, fellowship-based PEM posted are at a higher reading level than PEM posted by nonfellowship institutions and are more likely to omit certain risk descriptions.