Pain medicine : the official journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine
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Observational Study
Evaluation of the relationship between geographic proximity and treatment for people referred to a metropolitan multidisciplinary pain clinic.
This study examined which patient characteristics are associated with traveling further to attend a metropolitan, publicly funded pain management service, and whether travel distance was associated with differences in treatment profile, duration, and percentage of appointments attended. ⋯ Although people traveling further for treatment may be seeking predominantly medical treatment, particularly opioid medications, the present findings highlight the need to further explore patient triage and program models of care to ensure that people living with persistent disabling pain can access the same level of care, regardless of where they live.
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To describe differences between patients with chronic, non-cancer pain (CNCP) who were successfully able to cease full mu agonist chronic opioid analgesic therapy (COAT), and those who exhibited refractory COAT reliance, among those who participated in a multidisciplinary program designed for COAT cessation. ⋯ Results suggest that fear avoidance beliefs and behavior, as measured by the FAB, play a significant role in refractory COAT reliance for patients with CNCP.
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The aim of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness and safety of a novel lateral in-plane approach for ultrasound-guided transforaminal cervical nerve root block (US-guided TF-CNRB) in the treatment of cervical radiculopathic pain. ⋯ US-guided TF-CNRB produced circumferential spreading around the involved cervical nerve root and showed significant clinical effectiveness in patients resistant to regular US-guided CNRB.