European journal of pain : EJP
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Surveys show consistently that pain is not treated well. Improvement depends on knowing which treatments are the most effective. We used systematic review to compare the relative efficacy of two common analgesics, ibuprofen and diclofenac, in post-operative pain. ⋯ Both drugs worked well. Choosing between them is an issue of dose, safety and cost. Copyright 1998 European Federation of Chapters of the International Association for the Study of Pain.
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The extent of surgical trauma was related to postoperative pain intensity in a previous study. However, more extensive surgical procedures with higher baseline pain intensity did not appear to influence the ability to document the additive analgesic effect of codeine when given with paracetamol, partly due to large interindividual variation in baseline pain intensity. The aim of the present study was to attempt to improve upside assay sensitivity in this dental pain model by: (1) selecting patients with high baseline pain intensity; and (2) closer supervision of outpatients>> drug intake and compliance with protocol. ⋯ More pain relief was revealed when codeine 60 mg was added to paracetamol 1000 mg on the following measures of effect: change of pain intensity with time (p<0.05, Mann-Whitney), sum of pain intensities (p=0.019), pain intensity difference (p=0.05), sum of pain intensity differences (p<0.05), pain reduction index (p<0.05) and global-evaluation score (p=0.006). The study confirms that this dental pain model, when controlled for sufficient and homogeneous baseline pain and patient compliance, does have sufficient upside assay sensitivity to discriminate between paracetamol with and without codeine. Copyright 1998 European Federation of Chapters of the International Association for the Study of Pain.
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The tricyclic antidepressant imipramine has shown analgesic effect in human clinical and experimental pain studies. The aim of the present study was to test the effect of imipramine on a pure short-term nociceptive stimulus with pin-prick pain quality. In a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover study, the hypoalgesic effect of a single oral dose of 100 mg imipramine was investigated in 10 healthy volunteers. ⋯ This study demonstrates the important fact that a drug may show clear analgesic effect in some experimental pain models while it is without effect in other models; e.g. imipramine is known to affect pain tolerance and summation thresholds. Pre-clinical tests of potentially analgesic drugs should therefore be based on different pain-stimulation modalities. Copyright 1998 European Federation of Chapters of the International Association for the Study of Pain.
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The aims of this study were: (1) to compare two groups of patients with chronic pain conditions (work-related muscular pain, mainly low back pain, and fibromyalgia) in general coping and pain-specific coping; (2) to examine the relationship between general and pain-specific coping and, (3) to examine the influence of state-trait anxiety on general and pain-specific coping. The sample included 80 individuals (range=19-70 years; mean=47; SD=9.9), who were patients at two pain management clinics for examination of their physical and psychosocial health conditions and consideration on disability pension. The patients were asked to respond to theStrategies to Handle Stress Questionnaire, theCoping Strategies Questionnaireand theState-Trait Anxiety Inventory. ⋯ Anxiety-prone patients with fibromyalgia might benefit from psychological support in the process of coping with pain. Copyright 1998 The British Infection Society. All rights reserved.