Articles: pain-clinics.
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Perceived social isolation is prevalent among patients with low back pain (LBP) and could be a potential prognostic factor for clinical outcomes following an episode of LBP. ⋯ Patients' perceived social isolation predicts disability related to LBP. Further understanding of the role of social isolation in LBP is warranted.
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Development and application of psychophysical test paradigms to assess endogenous pain modulation in healthy controls and in patients yielded large body of data over the last 2 decades. These tests can assist in predicting pain acquisition, in characterizing pain syndromes and related dysfunctions of pain modulation, and in predicting response to treatment. This chapter reviews the development of thought on pain modulation in the clinical setup, focusing on conditioned pain modulation, and update on accumulated data regarding the mechanism, protocols of administration, and applications in the clinic.
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Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic widespread pain condition linked to central sensitization. Altered excitability of sensorimotor cortex has been proposed as an underlying pathology of FM. This study aimed to investigate intracortical excitability of the primary somatosensory cortex (S1) and its potential role in clinical pain in patients with FM. ⋯ For both the N20m-P35m and the P35m in the left hemisphere, PPS ratios were positively associated with the sensory pain on the short-form McGill Pain Questionnaire. This study demonstrated that intracortical inhibition in the S1 is compromised bilaterally in patients with FM, and the extent of disinhibition can be closely associated with increased clinical pain. Our results suggest that changes of intracortical inhibition of the S1 may contribute to the pathophysiology of FM pain.
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The aim of this study was to determine the ability of the central sensitization inventory (CSI), a new screening instrument, to assist clinicians in identifying patients with central sensitivity syndromes (CSSs). ⋯ The CSI is a useful and valid instrument for screening patients for the possibility of a CSS, although the chances of false positives are relatively high when evaluating patients with complex pain and psychophysiological disorders.
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The prevalence of chronic pain has been estimated to be 19% in the European population and criteria for disabling chronic pain were found in approximately 7% of the German population. Clinical care for these patients is provided in ambulant and hospital-associated facilities. In this context, invasive interventions are part of the diagnosis and treatment of several specific diseases. Current data on the structure of clinical care based regional anesthesia for chronic pain patients in Germany are not available. ⋯ This survey describes the current structures of specialized pain facilities for regional anesthesia in Germany including responses from predominantly anesthesiologists in a hospital-associated setting. In light of the limited evidence in the literature there is no consensus on the interventional therapeutic management of chronic pain. Especially the application of a series of blocks and the frequency as well as criteria to support continuing or terminating a series of regional anesthesia interventions are not sufficiently evaluated. This survey also gives an incentive for a possible revision of the existing practice in regional anesthesia in the context of multimodal therapy and currently existing guidelines in future clinical studies.