Current medical research and opinion
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Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Lidocaine patch 5% and its positive impact on pain qualities in osteoarthritis: results of a pilot 2-week, open-label study using the Neuropathic Pain Scale.
To determine the impact of the lidocaine patch 5% on distinct pain qualities associated with osteoarthritis (OA) through use of the Neuropathic Pain Scale (NPS), an assessment tool designed to assess intensity of various pain qualities (i.e.sharp, dull). ⋯ In patients with moderate-to-severe OA of the knee, 2 weeks of treatment with the lidocaine patch 5% significantly reduces the intensity of pain qualities as measured by all 4 NPS composite measures. Our results coincide with previously reported improvements in pain and physical function in the same patient population, as measured by the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities OA Index. Measuring the various qualities of pain appears to be a valid approach for assessing clinical outcomes in the treatment of OA pain. Pain measures such as the NPS can capture the multi-dimensional properties of a patient's pain experience and may offer clinicians the possibility to identify differential effects of analgesic treatments on various pain qualities associated with OA.
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Bipolar disorder greatly impacts health-related quality of life (HRQoL), physical and social functioning, employment, and work productivity, and greatly increases health-care utilization and costs. Our objective was to characterize how bipolar disorder impacts HRQoL, work impairment, and health-care utilization and costs. ⋯ Bipolar disorder imposes a tremendous burden on patients and the health-care system, resulting in decreased HRQoL and increased medical and work impairment costs. Limited data suggest that appropriate management can improve HRQoL and functioning while reducing utilization and cost.
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Editorial
Introduction: chronic pain studies of the lidocaine patch 5% using the Neuropathic Pain Scale.
The manifestation of pain in any individual patient may result from a variety of underlying mechanisms that also may vary from one disease state to another. Global measures of pain intensity and relief are inadequate for characterizing specific pain qualities or identifying the unique effects of pain treatments on different pain qualities. The Neuropathic Pain Scale (NPS) is a recently developed measure designed to assess distinct pain qualities and may allow differentiation of therapeutic effects, even in cases where global pain response may be similar. Three studies are presented that provide preliminary evidence for the utility of the NPS for characterizing distinct pain qualities and changes in pain qualities in patients treated with the lidocaine patch 5% for a variety of neuropathic and non-neuropathic chronic pain conditions, including low-back pain, osteoarthritis, post-herpetic neuralgia, and painful diabetic neuropathy.
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Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Effectiveness of the lidocaine patch 5% on pain qualities in three chronic pain states: assessment with the Neuropathic Pain Scale.
To determine the impact of the lidocaine patch 5% on pain qualities associated with chronic pain from postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), painful diabetic neuropathy (DN), and low-back pain (LBP), using the Neuropathic Pain Scale (NPS). ⋯ The lidocaine patch 5% effectively reduces the intensity of all common pain qualities in patients with moderate-to-severe chronic pain resulting from PHN, painful DN, or LBP. Treatment is well tolerated in combination with other analgesic regimens, with no reports of serious AEs or adverse drug interactions. Assessment scales such as the NPS may offer the possibility to differentiate between various pain states and to assess treatment outcomes for various pain qualities associated with a given pain state.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a fixed combination containing two plant extracts (Crataegus oxyacantha and Eschscholtzia californica) and magnesium in mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders.
To assess the clinical efficacy of a neurotonic component containing fixed quantities of two plant extracts (Crataegus oxyacantha and Eschscholtzia californica) and magnesium versus placebo in mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders with associated functional disturbances, under usual general practice prescription conditions. ⋯ The preparation containing fixed quantities of Crataegus oxyacantha, Eschscholtzia californica, and magnesium proved safe and more effective than placebo in treating mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders. Sympathyl is produced and marketed by Laboratoire Innotech International, Arcueil, France.