Rheumatology international
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Patient-reported-outcomes in subjects with painful lumbar or cervical radiculopathy treated with pregabalin: evidence from medical practice in primary care settings.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of pregabalin in painful cervical or lumbosacral radiculopathy treated in Primary Care settings under routine clinical practice. An observational, prospective 12-week secondary analysis was carried-out. Male and female above 18 years, naïve to PGB, with refractory chronic pain secondary to cervical/lumbosacral radiculopathy were enrolled. ⋯ A total of 490 (34%) patients were prescribed PGB-monotherapy, 702 (48%) received PGB add-on, and 159 (11%) were administered non-PGB drugs. After 12 weeks, significant improvements in pain, associated symptoms of anxiety, depression and sleep disturbances, general health; and level of disability were observed in the three groups, being significantly greater in PGB groups. In routine medical practice, monotherapy or add-on pregabalin is associated with substantial pain alleviation and associated symptoms improvements in painful cervical or lumbosacral radiculopathy.
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The objective of this study was to test the reliability of the Turkish version of PRTEE (PRTEE-T) as a specific scale for LE, and to investigate the validity of this version by correlating and comparing its outcomes with those of the scales DASH (the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand questionnaire) and Quick DASH (QDASH), pain (VAS), tenderness, and maximal grip strength (MGS). Fifty patients (14 males and 36 females) with the diagnosis of lateral epicondylitis were included in this study. PRTEE Questionnaire was translated into Turkish according to the guideline for the cross-cultural adaptation process. ⋯ Significant correlation was found between the sub-scales of the scale. The results of our study have shown that the Turkish version of a specific and practical scale developed for LE can be both valid and reliable. PRTEE-T is easy to apply in a relatively short period and may prove to be valuable for evaluation and follow up of the patients in daily clinical practice.