Pain physician
-
The symptom severity of back pain/leg pain is not correlated with the severity of degenerative changes and canal stenosis in lumbar stenosis. Considering the individual pain sensitivity might play an important role in pain perception, this discordance between the radiologic findings and clinical symptoms in degenerative lumbar stenosis might originate from the individual difference of pain sensitivity for back pain and/or leg pain. ⋯ The current study suggests that the pain sensitivity could be a determining factor for symptom severity in the degenerative spinal disease.
-
Pancreatic cancer pain is often severe and refractory to conservative therapies. Several interventional techniques have been described for the management of end-stage pancreatic cancer pain, with variable results and complications. ⋯ Radiofrequency thermocoagulation of both splanchnic nerves may offer a safe and effective technique for pain management and quality of life improvement in patients with end-stage pancreatic cancer towards the end of life.
-
Placement of an intrathecal drug delivery system (IDDS) may provide substantial benefit to certain patients. However, placement of these devices is not without complications, and minimal data exist describing the rates of these complications. Specifically, there is a paucity of data describing the incidence of post dural puncture headache (PDPH) following IDDS placement. ⋯ Though the development of PDPH after IDDS implantation was found to be fairly common (23% incidence), the majority of these patients had self-limited symptoms that resolved with conservative medical management. Epidural blood patch or application of epidural fibrin glue was therapeutically successful for the remainder of PDPH patients who were refractory to conservative measures.
-
Neuromodulation is an effective and reversible treatment option for chronic intractable pain. Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) represents a field of application of neuromodulation and is known to be effective for several conditions including complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS), and chronic leg and back pain. SCS has some technical limitations that can be bypassed through retrograde neuromodulation. ⋯ Retrograde neuromodulation seems to be effective in patients that present with a well localized pain with a clear dermatome distribution. We found retrograde neuromodulation to be effective in radiculopathy related to FBSS. We found it to be limited in the treatment of perineal pain probably due to technical limitations and anatomical reasons besides the lack of knowledge of the etiology of this pain model and the exact mechanisms of action of neuromodulation.
-
Intrathecal baclofen (ITB) infusion has become a common treatment for severe spasticity. Many complications of these drug delivery systems have been reported such as those related to improper dosing, mechanical failure of the implanted pump or catheter, or post-operative wound issues. We report a case of ITB withdrawal after pseudomeningocele aspiration. ⋯ The subcutaneous cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) collection partially recurred 48 hours later, but this resolved after a second epidural blood patch. The case illustrates a unique presentation of a serious complication of ITB infusion. This underscores that timely diagnosis and treatment of acute baclofen withdrawal is key to optimal outcomes.