The Clinical journal of pain
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To describe the interference of herpes zoster (HZ) pain and discomfort with activities of daily living (ADLs) and health-related quality of life (HRQL) during the acute rash phase, and to quantify the relationship between acute HZ pain and discomfort and impaired ADLs and HRQL in older persons. ⋯ Acute zoster pain and discomfort has a significant negative impact on functional status and HRQL in older adults. The magnitude of interference increases with increasing pain and discomfort intensity.
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The purpose of the study was to investigate the effectiveness and tolerability of transdermal fentanyl in a treatment regimen in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). ⋯ Patients with pain caused by RA improved in terms of pain intensity, sleep, function, and general well-being when transdermal fentanyl was added to the treatment regimen. Treatment satisfaction was high. Transdermal fentanyl also demonstrated good tolerability over a period of 30 days.
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First to compare pain and functional disability in tennis elbow (TE) patients with healthy controls. Second, to evaluate the relationship between the 2 major psychologic factors (anxiety and depression) and TE. ⋯ TE patients showed markedly increased pain and functional disability. Significantly elevated levels of depression and anxiety pointed out the importance of psychologic assessment in TE patients. In the development of supportive and treatment strategies, we suggest the combination of "upper limb" and "psychologic" assessment tools.
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Use of a valid behavioral measure for pain is highly recommended for critically ill, uncommunicative adults. The aim of this study was to validate the English version of the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool (CPOT) and physiologic indicators [mean arterial pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, and transcutaneous oxygen saturation (SpO(2))] in critically ill ventilated adults. ⋯ The CPOT is a reliable and valid tool to assess pain in critically ill adults. Behavioral indicators represent more valid information in pain assessment than physiologic indicators. Further research is needed to explore how specific critically ill populations (eg, head injury) react to a painful procedure.
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Although a great variety of surgical procedures are performed on an ambulatory basis, little is known about postoperative pain experience at home after ambulatory surgery. This study was performed to assess the prevalence and course of postoperative pain in the early postoperative period after ambulatory surgery. ⋯ This study showed that an important number of patients still experience moderate to severe pain in the postoperative period after day-case surgery even after a 4-day period. Furthermore, the type of operation should be considered when planning postoperative analgesia for ambulatory surgery.