Pain
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Controlled Clinical Trial
Opioidergic activation in the medial pain system after heat pain.
Opioids modulate the affective component of pain and in vivo data indicate that opioids induce activation changes in the rostral ACC, insula and other brain areas. Hence, opioidergic release is to be expected in these brain regions following experimental pain stimulation. ⋯ Pain stimulation led to significant reduction of diprenorphine binding in limbic and paralimbic brain areas including the rostral ACC and insula. The finding of altered opioidergic receptor availability in the rostral ACC after experimental nociceptive pain is novel and provides direct evidence for the involvement of this region in endogenous opioidergic inhibition of pain.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Predictive factors for 1-year and 5-year outcome for disability in a working population of patients with low back pain treated in primary care.
Many patients seeking primary care for low back pain continue to report disability several years after their initial visit. The aims of this study were to assess the independent predictive value of a number of potential predictive factors for disability at the 1-year and 5-year follow-ups, and to examine whether prediction models were improved by replacing baseline health-state-related variables with corresponding variables after treatment. A further aim was to describe possible differences between those on sick leave, early retirement or disability pension, and those who were not. ⋯ For those without disability the corresponding figure was 9% (n=8/92). Being a woman, duration of the current episode, similar problems during the previous 5 years, exercise level before the current episode, pain frequency at baseline, and disability after treatment emerged as predictive factors for disability at the 5-year follow-up. Replacing baseline health-state-related measures with corresponding measures after the treatment period, and adding physical-activity-related and possibly work-related factors might improve the likelihood of predicting future disability.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Parent attention versus distraction: impact on symptom complaints by children with and without chronic functional abdominal pain.
The objective of this study was to assess the impact of parent attention and distraction on symptom complaints by children with and without chronic functional abdominal pain. The water load symptom provocation task was used to induce visceral discomfort in pediatric patients with abdominal pain (N=104) and well children (N=119), ages 8-16 years. Parents were randomly assigned and trained to interact with their children according to one of three conditions: Attention, Distraction, or No Instruction. ⋯ Parents of pain patients rated distraction as having greater potential negative impact on their children than attention. Parents' responses to children's symptom complaints can significantly increase or decrease those complaints. Girls with functional abdominal pain are particularly vulnerable to the symptom-reinforcing effects of parental attention.
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Clinical Trial
Physical and psychological factors maintain long-term predictive capacity post-whiplash injury.
Higher initial levels of pain and disability, older age, cold hyperalgesia, impaired sympathetic vasoconstriction and moderate post-traumatic stress symptoms have been shown to be associated with poor outcome 6 months following whiplash injury. This study prospectively investigated the predictive capacity of these variables at a long-term follow-up. Sixty-five of an initial cohort of 76 acutely injured whiplash participants were followed to 2-3 years post-accident. ⋯ The latter two groups showed only persistent deficits in cervical muscle recruitment patterns. Higher initial NDI scores (OR 1.00-1.1), older age (OR 1.00-1.13), cold hyperalgesia (OR 1.1-1.13) and post-traumatic stress symptoms (OR 1.03-1.2) remained significant predictors of poor outcome at long-term follow-up (r2=0.56). The robustness of these physical and psychological factors suggests that their assessment in the acute stage following whiplash injury will be important.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Reduction of intractable deafferentation pain by navigation-guided repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation of the primary motor cortex.
The precentral gyrus (M1) is a representative target for electrical stimulation therapy of pain. To date, few researchers have investigated whether pain relief is possible by stimulation of cortical areas other than M1. According to recent reports, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can provide an effect similar to that of electrical stimulation. ⋯ Results indicated a statistically significant effect lasting for 3 hours after the stimulation of M1 (p<0.05). Stimulation of other targets was not effective. The M1 was the sole target for treating intractable pain with rTMS, in spite of the fact that M1, S1, preM, and SMA are located adjacently.