Pain medicine : the official journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effects of a Peer-Led Pain Management Program for Nursing Home Residents with Chronic Pain: A Pilot Study.
OBJECTIVES : To examine the feasibility of a peer-led pain management program among nursing home residents. DESIGN : A quasi-experimental design. SETTING : Two nursing homes. ⋯ There was an enhancement in happiness level for the experimental group (p < 0.001), while the loneliness level dropped significantly for the experimental group (p < 0.001) and the control group (p = 0.031). The peer volunteers showed a significant increase in self-rated pain management knowledge (2.9 ± 2.6 to 8.1 ± 1.2, p < 0.001) and self-efficacy in volunteering (5.8 ± 2.9 to 8.3 ± 1.5, p = 0.032). CONCLUSION : The peer-led pain management program was feasible and has potential in relieving chronic pain and enhancing the physical and psychological health of nursing home residents.
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Patients in remote areas lack access to specialist care and pain management services. In order to provide pain management care to patients remote from our center, we created a telemedicine pain clinic (telepain) at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston, MA to extend services to the Island of Martha's Vineyard. ⋯ The results suggest an overall positive reception of telepain by patients, yet highlight the challenge of building a patient-physician relationship remotely.
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Review Meta Analysis
The Impact of Massage Therapy on Function in Pain Populations-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials: Part III, Surgical Pain Populations.
Pain is multi-dimensional and may be better addressed through a holistic, biopsychosocial approach. Massage therapy is commonly practiced among patients seeking pain management; however, its efficacy is unclear. This systematic review and meta-analysis is the first to rigorously assess the quality of the evidence for massage therapy's efficacy in treating pain, function-related, and health-related quality of life outcomes in surgical pain populations. ⋯ Based on the available evidence, weak recommendations are suggested for massage therapy, compared to active comparators for reducing pain intensity/severity and anxiety in patients undergoing surgical procedures. This review also discusses massage therapy safety, challenges within this research field, how to address identified research gaps, and next steps for future research.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Extra Corporeal Shock Wave Therapy Versus Local Corticosteroid Injection in the Treatment of Chronic Plantar Fasciitis, a Single Blinded Randomized Clinical Trial.
Plantar fasciitis is a self-limiting condition, but can be painful and disabling. Among the different treatments which exist, corticosteroid injections are effective and popular. Extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) is another treatment modality used for resistant conditions. In this study, the authors evaluated the efficacy of radial ESWT versus corticosteroid injections in the treatment of chronic plantar fasciitis. ⋯ Both interventions caused improvement in pain and functional ability 2 months after treatment. Although inter-group differences were not significant, the FFI was improved more with ESWT and patients were more satisfied with ESWT, thus shockwave therapy seems a safe alternative for management of chronic plantar fasciitis.