Pain practice : the official journal of World Institute of Pain
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Chronic pain can negatively impact a child's quality of life. Pediatric Intensive Interdisciplinary Pain Treatment (IIPT) programs aim to improve overall functioning despite pain through various rehabilitative strategies. It is, however, unclear whether improved function corresponds to self-reported decrease in pain levels. Hence, the purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between changes in physical function and perceived pain among children with chronic pain who have undergone inpatient IIPT. ⋯ Self-reported functional gains during IIPT are associated with greater change in perceived pain. Moreover, measures of self-reported physical function can help identify children at risk of minimal pain reduction post-IIPT.
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Chronic pain is a debilitating, multifactorial condition. The purpose of this study was to examine patient characteristics of those who did not show up for their scheduled first pain medicine appointment in order to identify factors that may improve access to care. ⋯ High no-show rates were present particularly among younger patients. Having a referral from another specialty was an independent predictor of lower no-show rates.
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Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is an interventional procedure that has been used to treat chronic back pain for over 50 years; this unique case report demonstrates the effectiveness of pulsed radiofrequency ablation (PRFA) on the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) in the treatment of chronic radicular pain (Russo et al., 2021, J Pain Res, 14, 3897). The RFA provides pain relief by using thermal energy to disrupt peripheral nerves carrying nociceptive signals back to the central nervous system (Abd-Elsayed et al. 2020, Pain Ther, 9, 709). However, there is a lack of literature about the safety and efficacy of PRFA of the DRG.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Wearable, noninvasive, pulsed shortwave (radiofrequency) therapy for postoperative analgesia: A randomized, double-masked, sham-controlled pilot study.
Nonthermal, pulsed shortwave (radiofrequency) therapy (PSWT) is a nonpharmacologic, noninvasive modality that limited evidence suggests provides analgesia. Its potential favorable risk-benefit ratio stems from its lack of side effects and significant medical risks, applicability to any anatomic location, long treatment duration, and ease of application by simply affixing it with tape. Even with a relatively small treatment effect, PSWT might contribute to a multimodal analgesic regimen, similar to acetaminophen. However, widespread clinical use is hindered by a lack of systematic evidence. The current randomized, controlled pilot study was undertaken to determine the feasibility and optimize the protocol for a subsequent definitive investigation and estimate the treatment effect of PSWT on postoperative pain and opioid consumption. ⋯ Pulsed shortwave (radiofrequency) therapy did not reduce pain scores and opioid requirements to a statistically significant or clinically relevant degree during the initial postoperative week in this pilot study. These results must be replicated with a subsequent study before being considered definitive. Data from this preliminary study may be used to help plan future trials.