The Clinical journal of pain
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Case Reports
Ritodrine for Intractable Uterine Pain Due to Extrapelvic Malignant Tumor Metastases: A Case Report.
Effective pain management is an essential component of cancer treatment as approximately 75% of all cancer patients experience excruciating nociceptive pain even at maximum safe doses of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and/or opioids. We report a case where ritodrine hydrochloride effectively controlled refractory pain due to uterine metastases from thymic carcinoma. ⋯ Ritodrine relieved the pain caused by uterine contraction due to metastases and enhanced the quality of life.
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Case Reports
Favorable Outcome of an Acute Complex Regional Pain Syndrome With Immunoglobulin Infusions.
To emphasize that complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), a disabling disorder with the implication of aberrant inflammation, vasomotor dysfunction, and maladaptive neuroplasticity, might be treated with a high dose of intravenous immunoglobulin infusions (IVIG). ⋯ This observational study emphasizes that high-dose IVIG may be a treatment option in the acute phase of CRPS.
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Patients with complex regional pain syndrome type 1 might have disturbed autonomic function and increased heart rate fractal dynamics with a resultant impaired baroreflex sensitivity (BRS). We hypothesized that these parameters of impaired cardiovascular regulation might improve with a reduction of pain intensity. ⋯ Increased LF/HF ratios likely indicate that patients had an imbalance of the autonomic nervous system. The increased fractal slope suggests that patients developed strong self-similarity of HR variability. The highly predictable HR variability leads to impaired hemodynamic homeostasis, resulting in decreased BRS. The impaired cardiovascular regulation improved with a reduction of pain. Thus, spectral analysis of HR variability may be useful objectively to follow complex regional pain syndrome type 1 patients, not only for pain management but also for the status of cardiovascular stability.
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Symptomatic cluster-like headache has been described with some ophthalmological disorders such as glaucoma, orbital myositis, posterior scleritis, enucleation, herpes zoster ophthalmicus, and cataract surgery. ⋯ The surgical technique of cataract removal involves corneal incision, which can trigger the trigeminal-autonomic reflex, a pathophysiological mechanism potentially implicated in idiopathic cluster headache. Differential diagnosis in these cases includes surgical and anesthetic complications.