Pain medicine : the official journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine
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Dry needling is commonly used for the management of plantar fasciitis. This meta-analysis evaluated the effects of dry needling over trigger points associated with plantar heel pain on pain intensity and related disability or function. ⋯ Moderate- to low-quality evidence suggests a positive effect of trigger point dry needling for improving pain intensity and pain-related disability in the short term and long term, respectively, in patients with plantar heel pain of musculoskeletal origin. The present results should be considered with caution because of the small number of trials.
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Meta Analysis
Health Care Provider Utilization of Prescription Monitoring Programs: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
To synthesize the literature on the proportion of health care providers who access and use prescription monitoring program data in their practice, as well as associated barriers to the use of such data. ⋯ Our study found that health care providers underutilize prescription monitoring program data and that many barriers exist to prescription monitoring program data use.
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Genicular nerve radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is increasingly being performed to treat chronic pain due to knee osteoarthritis (KOA). This narrative review provides a concise summary of the relevant neuroanatomy, randomized controlled trials, appropriate patient selection, and safety relating to genicular RFA. Cadaveric studies demonstrate significant variability in the location of the genicular nerves, which has stimulated debate about the ideal target locations for genicular RFA. ⋯ Several randomized controlled trials demonstrate superiority of genicular RFA compared with intra-articular steroid, viscosupplementation, and oral analgesics. Genicular RFA of the superior medial genicular nerve, inferior medial genicular nerve, and superior lateral genicular nerve appears to be an effective treatment for painful KOA, but targeting additional sensory nerves may further improve treatment success. Although genicular RFA appears relatively safe on the basis of the available data, additional large-scale studies are needed to provide greater confidence.
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Chronic hip pain can be treated with physical therapy, oral medications, injections, and, definitively, total hip arthroplasty. Enough patients have contraindications to and refractory pain even after total hip arthroplasty, that there is a need to develop alternative managements for this disabling condition. This article examines the state of hip radiofrequency ablation literature including relevant anatomy, patient selection, and treatment outcomes.