Pain practice : the official journal of World Institute of Pain
-
Review Meta Analysis
Cost-effectiveness of Acupuncture for Chronic Nonspecific Low Back Pain.
Cost-effectiveness is a major criterion underpinning decisions in mainstream health care. Acupuncture is increasingly used in patients with chronic lower back pain (LBP), but there is a lack of evidence on cost-effectiveness. The objective of this study was to assess the cost-effectiveness of acupuncture in alleviating chronic LBP either alone or in conjunction with standard care compared with patients receiving routine care, and/or sham. ⋯ When comorbid depression is alleviated at the same rate as pain, cost is around $18,960 per DALY avoided. Acupuncture as a substitute for standard care was not found to be cost-effective unless comorbid depression was included. According to the WHO cost-effectiveness threshold values, acupuncture is a cost-effective treatment strategy in patients with chronic LBP.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Duloxetine Compared with Pregabalin for Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathic Pain Management in Patients with Suboptimal Pain Response to Gabapentin and Treated with or without Antidepressants: A Post Hoc Analysis.
To examine the efficacy of duloxetine vs. pregabalin in the treatment for diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain (DPNP), comparing patient subgroups with and without concomitant antidepressant use. ⋯ In patients with DPNP inadequately treated with gabapentin without the concomitant use of antidepressants, switching to duloxetine instead of pregabalin may provide better pain reduction. Conversely, in nonresponders to gabapentin who are concomitantly using an antidepressant, switching to duloxetine or pregabalin may provide similar pain reductions.
-
Review
The Role of Descending Inhibitory Pathways on Chronic Pain Modulation and Clinical Implications.
The treatment and management of chronic pain is a major challenge for clinicians. Chronic pain is often underdiagnosed and undertreated, and there is a lack of awareness of the pathophysiologic mechanisms that contribute to chronic pain. Chronic pain involves peripheral and central sensitization, as well as the alteration of the pain modulatory pathways. ⋯ Due to the lack of evidence for pharmacological options that act on descending facilitation pathways, in this review we summarize the role of the descending inhibitory pain pathways in pain perception. This review will focus primarily on monoaminergic descending inhibitory pain pathways and their contribution to the mechanism of chronic pain and several pharmacological treatment options that enhance these pathways to reduce chronic pain. We describe anatomical structures and neurotransmitters of the descending inhibitory pain pathways that are activated in response to nociceptive pain and altered in response to sustained and persistent pain which leads to chronic pain in various pathological conditions.
-
Observational Study
Postoperative Pain after Major Abdominal Surgery: Is It Gender Related? An Observational Prospective Study.
Gender may be associated with postoperative pain. This study aimed to assess pain intensity and postoperative analgesic requirements in female and male patients scheduled for major abdominal surgery. ⋯ Postoperative morphine requirements did not differ between female and male patients undergoing major abdominal surgery. Pain intensity reported at rest and after cough did not differ between the 2 groups.
-
Widespread sensory hypersensitivity has been observed in acute whiplash associated disorders (WAD). Changes in descending pain modulation take part in central sensitization. However, endogenous pain modulation has never been investigated in acute WAD. Altered perception of distorted visual feedback has been observed in WAD. Both mechanisms (ie, pain modulation and perception of distorted visual feedback) may be different components of one integrated system orchestrated by the brain. This study evaluated conditioned pain modulation (CPM) in acute WAD. Secondly, we investigated whether changes in CPM are associated with altered perception of distorted visual feedback. ⋯ Changes in CPM were observed in acute WAD, suggesting less efficient pain modulation. The results suggest that central pain and sensorimotor processing underlie distinctive mechanisms.