Pain physician
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Observational Study
High-Resolution Three-Dimensional Computed Tomography for Assessing Complications Related to Intrathecal Drug Delivery.
The assessment of the functionality of intrathecal drug delivery (IDD) systems remains difficult and time-consuming. Catheter-related problems are still very common, and sometimes difficult to diagnose. ⋯ High-resolution 3D CT VRT is a non- invasive method that can identify IDD-related complications with more precision than axial CT and fluoroscopy.
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It is important to understand the anatomical relationship between the medial and lateral branches of superficial radial nerve (SRN) and the first dorsal compartment to prevent and minimize possible injury to these nerves during various procedures around the tip of radial styloid process (RSP). ⋯ Due to the anatomical proximity of the branches of the SRN and the first dorsal compartment around the RSP, physicians must be cautious during procedures near this location. It is important to approach from above the EPB, rather than from above the APL, when performing blind procedures, although ultrasound guidance is preferable.
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Burnout is a prolonged response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors on the job, defined by 3 dimensions: exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment. While there is a growing body of research on burnout in physicians, there is a dearth of literature on burnout in pain medicine physicians. ⋯ Pain medicine physicians in the United States reported high levels of emotional exhaustion, often considered the most taxing aspect of burnout. Job dissatisfaction appeared to be the leading agent in the development of all 3 components of burnout in pain medicine physicians in the United States.
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The effectiveness of splanchnic nerve neurolysis (SNN) for cancer-related abdominal pain has been investigated using numeric pain intensity rating as an outcome variable. The outcome variable in this study used the grid method for obtaining a targeted pain drawing score on 60 patients with pain from pancreatic or gastro-intestinal primary cancers or metastatic disease to the abdominal region. Results demonstrate excellent inter-rater agreement (intra-class correlation [ICC] coefficient at pre-SNN = 0.97 and ICC at within one month post-SNN = 0.98) for the grid method of scoring the pain drawing and demonstrate psychometric generalizability among patients with cancer-related pain. ⋯ Specifically, the effect size difference from pre- to within one month post-SNN was r = 0.42 for pain drawing versus r = 0.23 for pain intensity rating. Based on a smaller subset of patients who were seen within 1 - 6 months following SNN, the effect size difference from pre-SNN was r = 0.46 for pain drawing versus r = 0.00 for pain intensity rating. Collectively, these data support the use of the pain drawing as a reliable outcome measure among patients with cancer pain for procedures such as SNN that target specific location and dispersion of pain.
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At present, posterior interbody fusion surgery with pedicle internal fixation is the gold standard for the treatment of lumbar degenerative disc diseases. However, an increasing number of studies have shown that because fused lumbar vertebrae lose their physiological activity, the compensatory range of motion (ROM) of the adjacent levels increases. To address this issue, dynamic internal fixation systems have been developed. ⋯ The treatment of lumbar degenerative disc diseases with the Isobar TTL dynamic internal fixation system can effectively relieve pain, improve quality of life, and preserve the lumbar ROM of the stabilized segment with a satisfactory clinical therapeutic effect.