European journal of pain : EJP
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Determinants of health-related quality of life in patients with persistent somatoform pain disorder.
Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) has been investigated widely in patients with chronic pain, but no study has focused particularly on the situation of patients with persistent somatoform pain disorder. ⋯ Patients with persistent somatoform pain disorder feel severely impaired. A clear pattern emerges for negative effects of the coping styles Increasing Pain Behaviors and Catastrophizing, while the identification of beneficial coping failed.
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For years enhancement of a patient's level of physical fitness has been an important goal in rehabilitation treatment in chronic low back pain (CLBP), based on the hypothesis that physical deconditioning contributes to the chronicity of low back pain. However, whether this hypothesis in CLBP holds is not clear. In this paper, possible mechanisms that contribute to the development of physical deconditioning in CLBP, such as avoidance behaviour and suppressive behaviour, are discussed. ⋯ The level of physical fitness of CLBP patients also appeared to be lower or comparable to the fitness level of healthy persons. A discriminating factor between fit and unfit patients with back pain may be the fact that fit persons more frequently are still employed, and as such may be involved more in physical activity. Lastly some suggestions are made for further research in the field of disuse and deconditioning in CLBP.
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The aim of this experimental study was to develop an in vivo model demonstrating sensory and motor interactions comparable to those seen in patients presenting with lateral epicondylalgia (i.e., deep tissue pain and hyperalgesia localised to specific sites in the wrist extensors, attenuation of wrist extension force). The effect of saline-induced deep pain combined with delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) on deep tissue sensitivity and motor function in wrist extensors was examined. Muscle pain intensity (visual analogue scale: VAS), distribution, and quality were assessed in 12 subjects. ⋯ This is another manifestation of muscle hyperalgesia. Saline-induced pain combined with DOMS further decreased maximal wrist extension force (P<0.05). The simultaneous deep tissue pain and hyperalgesia linked with force attenuation support the use of the saline-induced deep tissue pain combined with DOMS as an experimental model simulating the clinical sensorimotor correlates of lateral epicondylalgia.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Induction of non-painful and painful intestinal sensations by hypertonic saline: a new human experimental model.
To develop a pain model for chemical stimulation of the human gut. ⋯ The model represents a safe method for direct chemical activation of the sensory endings in the human gut. The model may be used for pharmacological screening of analgesics and for basic investigations in patients suffering from gastrointestinal diseases.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Effect of muscle relaxants on experimental jaw-muscle pain and jaw-stretch reflexes: a double-blind and placebo-controlled trial.
A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled three-way cross-over study was performed to investigate the effect of two muscle relaxants (tolperisone hydrochloride and pridinol mesilate) on experimental jaw-muscle pain and jaw-stretch reflexes. Fifteen healthy men participated in three randomised sessions separated by at least 1 week. In each session 300 mg tolperisone, 8 mg pridinol mesilate or placebo was administered orally as a single dose. ⋯ Administration of pridinol mesilate was associated with a significant decrease in PPTs compared with tolperisone hydrochloride and placebo (P=0.002) after medication, but not after experimental jaw-muscle pain. The normalised peak-to-peak amplitude of the stretch reflexes were not significantly influenced by the test medication (P=0.762), but were in all sessions significantly facilitated during ongoing experimental jaw-muscle pain (P=0.034). In conclusion, tolperisone hydrochloride provides a small, albeit significant reduction in the perceived intensity of experimental jaw-muscle pain whereas the present dose had no effect on the short-latency jaw-stretch reflex.