Pain Studies In The News
Survey shows that few Americans are familiar with a medical specialty that could decrease pain and increase quality of life without surgery
October 5, 2007
A recent survey showed showed only one percent of 1,000 American adults polled even knew the term "physiatrist." Yet nearly 67 percent of those surveyed said they could benefit from medical care provided by these physicians once the specialty was defined for them. Story
Many common ways of treating knee osteoarthritis have no scientific support
October 5, 2007
A new scientific review found that glucosamine and chondroitin, over-the-counter dietary supplement ingredients that are used widely because of their purported benefits to relieve knee pain caused by osteoarthritis and improve physical functioning, appear to be no more effective than placebos. Story
Cell phones and computers a major source of pain in Canada
October 2, 2007
Three in four Canadians suffer from muscle pain and 39 per cent of them say computers and cell phones are the cause. Story
Seven percent of world population suffering unnecessary cancer pain
October 2, 2007
A new report, "Access to Pain Relief - an Essential Human Right reports that 80 percent of the world's cancer sufferers have no access to pain relief. Furthermore, seven percent of all people in the world suffer cancer pain that could be relieved but isn't due to lack of access to low cost and effective pain relieving drugs. Story
Doctors learn to control their own brains' pain responses to better treat patients
September 27, 2007
Physicians apparently learn to "shut off" the portion of their brain that helps them appreciate the pain their patients experience while treating them and instead activate a portion of the brain connected with controlling emotions, according to new research Story
Why don't painkillers work on fibromyalgia? Research explains why
September 27, 2007
People with the common chronic pain condition fibromyalgia often report that they don’t respond to the types of medication that relieve other people’s pain. New research from the University of Michigan Health System helps explain why: Patients with fibromyalgia were found to have reduced binding ability of a type of receptor in the brain that is the target of opioid painkiller drugs such as morphine. Story
Mixing large doses of both acetaminophen painkiller and caffeine may increase risk of liver damage
September 26, 2007
Consuming large amounts of caffeine while taking acetaminophen, a widely used painkiller, could potentially cause liver damage Story
New phase III data demonstrate oxycodone / naloxone combination tablet reduces opioid-induced bowel dysfunction in patients with chronic severe pain
September 26, 2007
A Phase III trial of 463 patients was designed to evaluate the symptoms
of constipation of the oral PR oxycodone / naloxone combination tablet
compared to PR oxycodone tablets. The results show that the combination of
the opioid receptor agonist naloxone and the opioid analgesic oxycodone is
associated with a reduction in the impact of opioid-induced bowel
dysfunction Story
Positive results for NKTR-118 (oral PEG-naloxol) presented at American Academy of Pain Management meeting
September 26, 2007
Story
Study concludes that static magnets are not effective in reducing pain
September 25, 2006
The results of a meta-analysis of 9 randomized trials found no effect of magnets on pain scores and concluded that the evidence does not support the use of static magnets for pain relief Story
Acupuncture treatment may be more effective than conventional therapy in treating lower back pain
September 24, 2007
Six months of acupuncture treatment appears to be more effective than conventional therapy in treating low back pain. However, the study suggests that both sham acupuncture and traditional Chinese verum acupuncture appear to be effective in treating low back pain. Story
New treatment effective for patients with shoulder pain
September 24, 2007
Inflammation of a tendon triggered by calcium deposits, or calcific tendinitis, can effectively be treated with a simple and cost effective percutaneous method according to a recent study Story
Stomach ache? It may be newly recognized inflammatory reaction
September 19, 2007
As many as one in four people in westernized countries experience pain or discomfort in their upper abdomen. Researchers have found evidence that an abnormal amount of inflammatory cells populates the upper intestine of affected individuals, which suggests a fresh way of understanding the common complaint. Story
Rating your pain from 0 to 10 might not help your doctor
September 17, 2007
The most commonly used measure for pain screening may only be modestly accurate, according to researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine and the University of North Carolina. Story
Methadone and systematic follow-up: the best solution for managing chronic pain
September 12, 2007
A study performed at the Pain Centre of the Montreal University Health Centre shows that methadone in combination with innovative and high-quality case management can provide relief for many patients. Story
Once daily tramadol shows similar bioavailability to immediate release formulation
September 12, 2007
A once-daily formulation of the centrally-acting analgesic tramadol appears to have comparative bioavailability as the immediate release formulation of the drug. The once daily formulation, known as Contramid is marketed by Labopharm Inc., Laval, Quebec, Canada, which funded the study. The immediate release version of the drug Ultram is marketed by Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceuticals Story |
