Pain Studies In The News

Taking the guess work out of predicting pain relief for patients with back pain and sciatica
October 5, 2009 Source: American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine
Patients suffering from back pain, sciatica, or a herniated disc sometimes find relief with epidural steroid injections (ESI). A new research study has found that needle electromyography (EMG) can reliably predict, among other factors, the patient’s potential pain relief from these injections. Study subjects with abnormal needle EMG showed improvement with ESI that lasted up to 6 months, versus those that had a negative needle EMG.
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New survey shows devastating impact of rheumatoid arthritis pain on intimate relations
October 10, 2009 Source: UCB
A new survey of U.S. women living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) revealed that RA has a clear emotional impact on people living with the disease, with loss of self-confidence seen in their sex lives, in the workplace, and in their social lives. Survey findings suggest that almost 60 percent of women living with RA in the U.S. feel less self confident in their sex-life and over a third consistently find intimate relations painful, or have even stopped altogether. Rheumatoid arthritis played a role in 25 percent of divorces amongst women with the disease.
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Knowledge boosts pain killing drugs
October 9, 2009 Source: Cancer Research UK
Giving cancer patients information on how to deal with their pain and manage their medicine can result in a 20 percent improvement in pain control, according to new research. Explaining how pain-killers worked and debunking any fears people had about the drugs reduced the pain cancer patients felt by an additional one point on a scale of one to ten, where average pain scores are about five out of ten.
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Attitude may affect long-term recovery from whiplash
October 8, 2009 Source: Pain
For people who suffer whiplash in a car accident, feelings of being wronged may raise their risk of lingering post-traumatic stress, a new study suggests. The study, which followed 112 patients in rehab for whiplash injuries, found that 45 percent had symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) when they started treatment. Those with a greater sense of "perceived injustice" about their situation were more likely to still have PTSD symptoms at the end of their rehab program.
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Four out of 10 back pain sufferers will recover within a year
October 8, 2009 Source: British Medical Journal
New research reveals that 35% of patients will recover from chronic low back pain within nine months and 41% will do so within a year. Delayed recovery is more prevalent among individuals with previous sick leave due to low back pain, high disability levels, and low levels of education.
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Study isolates virus in chronic fatigue sufferers
October 8, 2009 Source: Reuters
A virus linked to prostate cancer also appears to play a role in chronic fatigue syndrome. Researchers found the virus, known as XMRV, in the blood of 68 out of 101 chronic fatigue syndrome patients. The same virus showed up in only 8 of 218 healthy people.
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Children can greatly reduce abdominal pain by using their imagination
October 8, 2009 Source: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine
A new study has found that children with functional abdominal pain who used audio recordings of guided imagery at home in addition to standard medical treatment were almost three times as likely to improve their pain problem, compared to children who received standard treatment alone. Those benefits were maintained six months after treatment ended.
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Are you at risk for carpal tunnel syndrome?
October 7, 2009 Source: American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine
According to new study, certain factors can play a role in your prevalence to developing painful carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS.) Researchers found that diabetes, high body mass index, wrist dimension ratio, hormonal changes associated with menopause, and steroid use were positively associated with CTS.
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TENS for osteoarthritis: not enough evidence to recommend
October 6, 2009 Source: Wiley-Blackwell/ Cochrane Systematic Review
A new Cochrane Systematic Review could not conclude whether TENS reduces pain or physical disability in osteoarthritis. According to physical disability findings, 29 out of 100 people who received TENS treatment responded to treatment, compared to 26 out of 100 people who received fake TENS treatment or took their usual treatments. There was no difference in pain relief.
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Opioids for osteoarthritis: problems far outweigh benefits
October 6, 2009 Source: Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
In a recent review, researchers analyzed 10 studies comprising 2,268 patients and compared the efficacy and safety of opioid pills and patches. While opioids decreased pain and improved function, the benefit was small to moderate, and increasing the dose did not increase efficacy. Adverse events led to a high rate of discontinuation, making long-term use questionable.
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Antidepressant and placebo are equally effective in child pain relief
October 1, 2009 Source: American Gastroenterological Association
According to a new study, when used "off-label," the antidepressant amitriptyline works just as well as placebo in treating pain-predominant gastrointestinal disorders in children. Children with IBS, functional abdominal pain or functional dyspepsia were randomized to four weeks of placebo or amitriptyline. Of the 83 children who completed the study, 63 percent of those who took amitriptyline reported feeling better, while 5 percent reported feeling worse. Of the patients who were given a placebo, 57.5 percent felt better, while 2.5 percent felt worse.
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Combined drug treatment more effective than either alone at reducing neuropathic pain
October 1, 2009 Source: The Lancet
A new study found that combination treatment using gabapentin and nortriptyline reduces neuropathic pain more than either drug alone and thus could be used in patients that only partially respond to one drug or the other.
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Women may adapt to pain faster than men
September 30, 2009 Source: Pain
A new study suggests that women get over their discomfort more quickly than men. Researchers exposed 32 adults to a moderately painful stimulus -- a heat-producing probe placed on the skin. While the women were initially more sensitive to the pain, after 20 seconds, they reported a decline in both the intensity of the pain and their "annoyance" with it -- until they were actually less bothered than men. Men, in contrast, showed no similar adaptation.
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A relief? Lower back pain unlikely to mean cancer
September 30, 2009 Source: Arthritis and Rheumatism
According to a new study, lower back pain is very unlikely to mean serious problems such as broken vertebrae or cancer. Researchers studied 1172 patients who came to general practitioners, physical therapists, or chiropractors with a new complaint of lower back pain. Among these patients, only 11 cases were anything serious, and eight of those 11 were broken vertebrae.
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Pulling together increases your pain threshold
September 28, 2009 Source: University Of Oxford
A study of Oxford rowers has shown that members of a team who exercised together were able to tolerate twice as much pain as when they trained on their own. Researchers found the pain threshold of 12 rowers from the Oxford Boat Race squad was greater after group training than after individual training. Acting as a group and in close synchrony appears to ‘ramp up’ pain thresholds.
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High-heels linked to heel and ankle pain
September 29, 2009 Source: Hebrew SeniorLife Institute for Aging Research
A new study suggests that that the type of shoes women wear, specifically high-heels, pumps and sandals, may cause future hind-foot (heel and ankle) pain. Nearly 64 percent of women who reported hind-foot pain regularly wore these types of shoes at some point in their life.
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Study assesses alcohol use by pain patients
September 28, 2009 Source: American Pain Society
A recent study examined the use of alcohol to relieve pain in more than 4,000 adults with tooth pain, jaw or face pain and arthritis. Results showed that the use of alcohol as a pain management strategy was consistent across the three patient groups, ranging from 25 to 28 percent. More men were found to frequently use alcohol as a pain management strategy. Alcohol use was also associated with the frequency of pain but not with intensity or chronicity.
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Medicinal products susceptible to 'dose dumping' should be fully tested
September 23, 2009 Source: American Chemical Society
A new review suggests that controlled release pills and capsules that show a tendency in the standard laboratory test toward dose dumping should be withheld from the market until proven safe in humans. Dose dumping occurs when a substance, such as alcohol, interacts with a medication, causing the medicine to be released in a faster and potentially unsafe manner.
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Neurologic signs common with fibromyalgia
September 22 2009 Source: Arthritis and Rheumatism
In a recent study, researchers found that people with fibromyalgia were more likely than those without the chronic pain condition to have poor balance, tingling and weakness in the arms and legs, and other "neurologic" signs and symptoms. They also had greater dysfunction in certain nerves in the brain and more "sensory" problems. The new findings support the possibility that a "neuroanatomical" cause may underlie fibromyalgia.
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Healthcare staff find it hard to diagnose pain levels in nursing home residents accurately, says study
September 18 2009 Source: Journal of Clinical Nursing.
A new study found that relatives and healthcare staff find it hard to accurately diagnose pain levels in nursing home residents. Researchers studied 174 nursing home residents and spoke to 171 nurses and 122 relatives. Although all of the study residents reported pain in the last week, only 89% of the caregivers and 67 % of the relatives were aware of that pain.
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New survey of people with diabetic nerve pain shows the condition significantly impacts daily activities such as exercise and sleep yet often goes untreated
September 17 2009 Source: Taking Control of Your Diabetes
In a new online survey, 85% of people who experience diabetic nerve pain said that their pain was one of the top three most bothersome complications of their diabetes. Despite the fact that people with diabetic nerve pain recognize the condition's impact on their lives, and 84% of those surveyed said they have discussed the condition with a healthcare provider, only 49% of respondents were treating their pain.
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Scientific studies confirm the value of botulinum toxin type A (Botox) in treating and preventing chronic migraine
September 16, 2009 Source: International Headache Society
Four separate studies representing the findings of clinical trials in the U.S., Canada and Europe have confirmed the value of botulinum toxin A in treating and preventing chronic migraine in adults. These studies found that treatment with botulinum toxin type A was associated with significantly fewer headache days, less headache-related disability, and significantly improved quality of life.
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Going to work with a migraine? New study says work productivity is the same as staying home
September 16, 2009 Source: International Headache Society
Employees who go to work with a migraine or stay on the job when they get an attack may be less productive than if they stayed home, according to a new study. The prospective study of 509 migraineurs found that a total of 1301 hours were lost due to presenteeism, while only 974 total hours were lost due to absenteeism.
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Exercise better than shockwave treatment for chronic shoulder pain
September 15 2009 Source: British Medical Journal
A new study found that supervised exercises are more effective than shockwave treatment in relieving chronic shoulder pain. Participants received either radial extracorporeal shockwave treatment or supervised exercises. After 18 weeks, 64% of patients in the exercise group achieved a reduction in shoulder pain and disability scores compared with 36% in the shockwave treatment group. More patients in the exercise group also returned to work, while more patients in the shockwave treatment group needed additional treatment after 12 weeks.
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Migraine patients who experience aura may have a two-fold increased risk for ischemic stroke
September 15, 2009 Source: International Headache Society
Results of a systematic review and meta-analysis of case-control and cohort studies show that patients with migraine with aura have a two-fold increased risk for ischemic stroke compared to non-migraineurs. This risk is further magnified for migraineurs less than 45, smokers and women using oral contraception.
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New national survey reveals significant decline in the misuse of prescription drugs
September 10, 2009 Source: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
According to the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the misuse of prescription drugs decreased significantly between 2007 and 2008 among those aged 12 and older, including among adolescents. Non-medical use of prescription drugs dropped from 3.3 percent in 2007 to 2.9 percent in 2008.
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95% of patients in pain are still in moderate to severe chronic pain despite one year of treatment
September 10, 2009 Source: PainSTORY [European Federation of IASP Chapters, et al]
A recent survey discovered that 95% of chronic pain patients are still suffering from moderate to severe pain after one year of treatment. Despite the high proportion of patients continuing to suffer pain, the number of patients visiting a doctor significantly declined over the course of the year. Only 12% of patients are being prescribed strong opioids, and for 28%, their pain is so bad they report they sometimes want to die.
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First results from major European patient survey show devastating impact of living with breakthrough cancer pain
September 11, 2009 Source: Nycomed
Ninety percent of patients surveyed indicated that breakthrough cancer pain interfered with their daily living, including their ability to sleep, walk and get on with other people. The study, presented today at the 6th congress of the European Federation of Chapters of the International Association for the Study of Pain, documents that breakthrough pain significantly affects the daily lives of cancer patients..
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Electrical nerve stimulation may be effective complement to the pharmacological management of neuropathic pain
September 11, 2009 Source: Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development
In a recent study, researchers assessed the short-term effects of high- and low-frequency transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) on neuropathic pain following spinal cord injury. Twenty-nine percent of patients reported a favorable effect from high-frequency TENS and 38 percent from low-frequency stimulation.
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Yoga may ease chronic back pain
September 10, 2009 Source: Spine
A new study randomly assigned 90 adults (average age 48, range 18-70) with chronic lower back pain to either stay with conventional care or take six months of Iyengar-style yoga classes. Overall, the researchers found, the yoga group showed not only greater improvements in pain and mobility, but also a larger reduction in depression symptoms. And the benefits were seen immediately after the six-month yoga regimen ended, as well as six months later.
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The American Academy of Pain Management is the nation's largest interdisciplinary/integrative organization serving clinicians
who treat people with pain through education, setting standards of care, and advocacy.
© 2009 American Academy of Pain Management