American family physician
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Although many patients experience debilitating pain at the end of life, there are many options to improve analgesia and quality of life. Pain assessment using a validated tool, with attention to patient function and specific goals, helps tailor individual treatment plans. The World Health Organization pain ladder offers a stepwise guideline for approaching pain management. ⋯ Neuropathic pain responds well to adjuvant pharmacotherapies, such as anticonvulsants or antidepressants, in addition to opioids. Opioid-induced hyperalgesia can occur with any dose of an opioid, but is more common with higher doses of parenteral morphine and hydromorphone. With appropriate counseling, most patients with a history of substance abuse will comply with a pain treatment plan.
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Hip fractures cause significant morbidity and are associated with increased mortality. Women experience 80% of hip fractures, and the average age of persons who have a hip fracture is 80 years. Most hip fractures are associated with a fall, although other risk factors include decreased bone mineral density, reduced level of activity, and chronic medication use. ⋯ Rehabilitation is critical to long-term recovery. Unless contraindicated, bisphosphonate therapy should be used to reduce the risk of another hip fracture. Some patients may benefit from a fall-prevention assessment.
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When choosing an infiltrative anesthetic agent, the type of procedure, the length of time required for anesthesia, and the pharmacodynamics of each medication are important considerations. Distraction techniques and buffering with sodium bicarbonate can be used to decrease the pain associated with injection. Local cutaneous infiltration is the most commonly used anesthetic technique and involves direct injection into the area requiring anesthesia. ⋯ Nerve blocks target the innervation to a specific area and are useful on the face and digits. Using easily identifiable landmarks, blockade of the supraorbital, supratrochlear, infraorbital, and mental nerves can provide site-specific anesthesia. Dorsal and palmar or plantar digital nerve blocks can be performed at a variety of locations on the hands and feet.