Pain medicine : the official journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Short-term Efficiency and Tolerance of Ketoprofen and Methylprednisolone in Acute Sciatica: A Randomized Trial.
Although anti-inflammatory drugs are commonly used in acute discogenic sciatica, data regarding their efficacy are scarce and controversial. We compared the efficacy and safety of intravenous ketoprofen and methylprednisolone with placebo in sciatica. ⋯ No significant difference in leg pain was observed between groups. However, there was a higher proportion of patients relieved with intravenous methylprednisolone at day 3, compared with ketoprofen or placebo.
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To assess the evidence for the safety and efficacy of invasive procedures for reducing chronic pain and improving function and health-related quality of life compared with sham (placebo) procedures. ⋯ There is little evidence for the specific efficacy beyond sham for invasive procedures in chronic pain. A moderate amount of evidence does not support the use of invasive procedures as compared with sham procedures for patients with chronic back or knee pain. Given their high cost and safety concerns, more rigorous studies are required before invasive procedures are routinely used for patients with chronic pain.
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Trigeminal neuralgia is defined as a sudden severe shock-like pain within the distribution of the trigeminal nerve. Pain is a subjective experience that is influenced by gender, culture, environment, psychological traits, and genes. Sodium channels and nerve growth factor play important roles in the transmission of nociceptive signals and pain. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence of Nav1.7 sodium channel and nerve growth factor receptor TrkA gene polymorphisms (SCN9A/rs6746030 and NTRK1/rs633, respectively) in trigeminal neuralgia patients. ⋯ Although no association of evaluated polymorphisms and trigeminal neuralgia diagnosis or pain severity was observed, our data do not exclude the possibility that other genotypes affecting the expression of Nav1.7 or TrkA are associated with the disease. Further studies should investigate distinct genetic polymorphisms and epigenetic factors that may be important in expression of these molecules.