Articles: neuralgia.
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There were several reports suggesting α-adrenoceptor antagonists are effective to treat neuropathic pain. The aims of this study were as follows: (1) to introduce drug delivery system for dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons; (2) to elucidate the effects of α-adrenoceptor antagonists in acute, subacute or chronic phase and (3) to determine which subtype of adrenoceptor was mainly involved. ⋯ This study showed α-adrenoceptor antagonists could suppress pain behaviour via α2-adrenoceptor in acute phase and temporary attenuate pain behaviour in chronic phase. These findings presented potentials sympathetic nerve blockade contributed to treat neuropathic pain.
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Spinal cord injury (SCI) causes a high incidence of motor and sensory dysfunctions accompanied with neuropathic pain. No effective treatment is available. Both somatosensory evoked potential (SSEP) and neuropathic pain (NPP) are transmitted via myelinated large diameter fibers of deep sensory pathways. Here we aimed to evaluate whether SSEP can consistently and objectively assess transmission of deep sensory pathways, and to examine the effects of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell (UCMSC) transplantation on SSEP and NPP as assessed by the pain rating index (PRI) in a patient with a 2-year history of complete cervical SCI. We demonstrate that SSEP can directly reflect physiological function of myelinated large fibers in deep sensory pathway transmission (NPP is also transmitted by the same pathway). One year after UCMSC transplantation, the SSEP parameter, PRI, and clinical presentations of NPP significantly improved. ⋯ Spinal cord, neuropathic pain, somatosensory evoked potential, umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells.
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Neuropathic pain, a chronic pain condition following nerve damage and degeneration, involves aberrant excitability in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. A growing body of evidence has shown that the aberrant excitability might not be a consequence merely of changes in neurons, but rather of multiple alterations in glial cells, such as microglia, the immune cells of the central nervous system. ⋯ Here, we describe recent advances in the understanding of neuron-microglia interactions by purinergic signaling in neuropathic pain following neurodegeneration. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled 'Purines in Neurodegeneration and Neuroregeneration'.
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Journal of neurosurgery · May 2016
Correlation of preoperative MRI with the long-term outcomes of dorsal root entry zone lesioning for brachial plexus avulsion pain.
OBJECT Lesioning of the dorsal root entry zone (DREZotomy) is an effective treatment for brachial plexus avulsion (BPA) pain. The role of preoperative assessment with MRI has been shown to be unreliable for determining affected levels; however, it may have a role in predicting pain outcomes. Here, DREZotomy outcomes are reviewed and preoperative MRI is examined as a possible prognostic factor. ⋯ A longer duration of pain prior to operation was also a significant predictor of treatment success (p = 0.004). CONCLUSIONS Overall, the DREZotomy procedure has a 66% chance of achieving meaningful pain relief on long-term follow-up. Successful pain relief is associated with the lack of damage to the DREZ and dorsal horn on preoperative MRI.
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Psychometric Validity and Reliability of the Thai Version of the Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory.
The aim of this study was to evaluate validity and reliability of the Thai version of the Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory (NPSI-T) in Thai patients with neuropathic pain. Although the Thai version of Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory (NPSI-T) has been linguistically validated, the tool has to be psychometrically validated before applying to neuropathic pain patients in daily practice. ⋯ The study demonstrated validity and reliability of the NPSI-T for assessing the neuropathic pain in Thai patients.