Journal of pain research
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Journal of pain research · Jan 2017
Health care resource use and cost differences by opioid therapy type among chronic noncancer pain patients.
The study assessed 12-month chronic pain (CP)-related health care utilization and costs among chronic noncancer pain (CNCP) patients who initiated various long-term opioid treatments. Treatments included monotherapy with long-acting opioids (mono-LAOs), mono-therapy with short-acting opioids (mono-SAOs), both LAOs and SAOs (combination), and opioid therapy initiated with SAO or LAO and switched to the other class (switch). Using MarketScan® claims databases (2006-2012), we identified CNCP patients with ≥90 days opioid supply after pain diagnosis and continuous enrollment 12 months before pain diagnosis (baseline period) and 12 months after opioid start (post-index period). ⋯ Use of pain-related medications and other treatment modalities was also significantly lower in the mono-LAO cohort relative to the other cohorts. CNCP patients using long-term monotherapy with LAOs had the lowest CP-related total health care costs in the 12 months after opioid initiation compared with mono-SAO, switch, or combination patients despite higher opioid daily doses and higher prescription costs. Future research accounting for severity and duration of pain would aid in determining the optimal long-term opioid regimen for CNCP patients.
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Journal of pain research · Jan 2017
Preoperative intravenous ibuprofen does not influence postoperative narcotic use in patients undergoing elective hernia repair: a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled prospective trial.
Inguinal and umbilical hernia repairs are among the most common surgical procedures performed in the US. Optimal perioperative pain control regimens remain challenging and opioid analgesics are commonly used. Preoperative nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) administration has been shown to reduce postoperative narcotic requirements. This study sought to evaluate the efficacy of perioperative intravenous (IV) ibuprofen on postoperative pain level and narcotic use in patients undergoing open or laparoscopic inguinal and/or umbilical hernia repair. ⋯ Preoperative administration of IV ibuprofen did not significantly reduce postoperative pain among patients undergoing elective hernia repair. Considerable variability in postoperative narcotic analgesic requirement was noted, and larger scale studies are needed to better understand the narcotic analgesic requirements associated with IV ibuprofen in inguinal/umbilical hernia repair patients.
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Journal of pain research · Jan 2017
Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy assessment of metabolite status of the anterior cingulate cortex in chronic pain patients and healthy controls.
Chronic pain is a common cause of reduced quality of life. Recent studies suggest that chronic pain patients have a different brain neurometabolic status to healthy people. Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) can determine the concentrations of metabolites in a specific region of the brain without being invasive. ⋯ Chronic pain patients have a different metabolite status in the anterior cingulate cortex to controls. Within the pain patient group, HADS scores had a positive relationship with NAA/tCr and Glx/tCr levels. 1H-MRS successfully detected metabolic changes in patients' brains in a noninvasive manner, revealing its potential as a superior diagnostic tool for pain patients.
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Journal of pain research · Jan 2017
Analysis of perioperative pain management in vascular surgery indicates that practice does not adhere with guidelines: a retrospective cross-sectional study.
Inadequate treatment of pain related to surgery may be associated with complications and prolonged recovery time and increased morbidity and mortality rates. We investigated perioperative pain management in vascular surgery and compared it with the relevant guidelines for the treatment of perioperative pain. ⋯ The study indicates that management of surgery-related pain in complex vascular procedures at this hospital did not follow guidelines for the management of acute perioperative pain. Our finding that most patients did not receive appropriate analgesia after vascular surgery leads to the conclusion that the institution would benefit from developing guidelines for the management of acute perioperative pain, which should be applied in all cases.
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Journal of pain research · Jan 2017
Quantitative sensory testing measures individual pain responses in emergency department patients.
Refining and individualizing treatment of acute pain in the emergency department (ED) is a high priority, given that painful complaints are the most common reasons for ED visits. Few tools exist to objectively measure pain perception in the ED setting. We speculated that variation in perception of fixed painful stimuli would explain individual variation in reported pain and response to treatment among ED patients. ⋯ QST reveals individual differences in perception of fixed painful stimuli in ED patients, including hyperalgesia. Subgroups of ED patients with hyperalgesia and psychiatric history report larger treatment effects on ED pain and QST measures.