Southern medical journal
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Phenazopyridine has been associated with methemoglobinemia in patients who have received an overdose, have decreased renal function, or are discovered to be unusually susceptible to the drug (ie, they may have an undetected NADH methemoglobin reductase deficiency). The case we have presented is unusual in that normal doses of phenazopyridine were given, no renal dysfunction was evident, and our patient had previously been given this drug without complication. ⋯ We saw no evidence to indicate that bupivacaine contributed to its development. Enzyme pathway changes induced by chemotherapy should be considered, though few studies have linked alterations of enzyme levels and pathways with chemotherapy and malignancy.
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Southern medical journal · Oct 1993
Case Reports Clinical TrialSystemic lidocaine therapy for poststroke pain.
Poststroke pain syndrome is commonly regarded as an intractable disease. We describe four patients who responded to an intravenous lidocaine infusion for relief of central pain after a stroke. The infusion was administered over a 48-hour period after an initial bolus of 50 to 100 mg intravenously over 40 to 120 seconds. ⋯ All patients were subsequently given a trial of mexiletine, an oral congener of lidocaine. Two have continued taking the drug and report excellent relief at 12 months' follow-up; the other two had side effects that precluded further use of the drug. We conclude that lidocaine can reduce poststroke pain, and we propose a treatment algorithm based on our experience with 40 additional patients treated for other neuropathic pain states.