Pain physician
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Ashi Acupuncture Versus Local Anesthetic Trigger Point Injections in the Treatment of Abdominal Myofascial Pain Syndrome: A Randomized Clinical Trial.
Chronic pelvic pain (CPP) is defined as recurrent or continuous pain in the lower abdomen or pelvis, non-menstrual or non-cyclic, lasting at least 6 months. There is strong evidence that up to 85% of patients with CPP have serious dysfunction of the musculoskeletal system, including abdominal myofascial syndrome (AMPS). AMPS is characterized as deep abdominal pain, originating from hyperirritable trigger points, usually located within a musculoskeletal range or its fascia of coating. In the literature, there are few studies that address AMPS. ⋯ Treatments with ashi acupuncture and local anesthetic injections were effective in reducing clinical pain in women with abdominal myofascial pain syndrome.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The Analgesic Efficacy of Pecto-Intercostal Fascial Block Combined with Pectoral Nerve Block in Modified Radical Mastectomy: A Prospective Randomized Trial.
Pectoral nerve (Pecs) block is one of the most promising regional analgesic techniques for breast surgery. However, Pecs II block may not provide analgesia of the medial aspect of the breast or the entire nipple-areolar complex. ⋯ The combination of Pecs II and PIFB provide better perioperative analgesia for MRM than Pecs II alone.
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Interventional procedures are offered routinely to patients seen in McGill University's interdisciplinary cancer pain management program. However, publications on these procedures are scarce, making it difficult to predict which patients may benefit from them. ⋯ In this cohort of cancer pain patients, interventional cancer pain procedures provided effective pain relief and other benefits, including pain relief, reduced burden of symptoms, and reduction of opioid intake, while demonstrating a favorable safety profile. Patients with poorer ratings of depression and fatigue derived less benefit from procedures, suggesting that offering such procedures as part of patients' treatment plan would be sensible, rather than leaving interventions for later stages.
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Observational Study
Observational Study to Evaluate the Effect of Epidural Steroid Injection on Bone Mineral Density and Bone Turnover Markers.
Epidural steroid injection (ESI) is widely used to manage low back pain. ESIs are commonly performed to treat pain accompanying intervertebral disc prolapse, spinal stenosis, facet joint pathologies, and other degenerative spinal pathologies. Corticosteroids for musculoskeletal conditions, regardless of the route of administration, can reduce bone mineral density (BMD) and increase the risk of fracture. With paraspinal administration of steroids, the severity of risk is enhanced as the steroid is being deposited in close proximity to bone. BMD and molecular markers of bone metabolism are the standard methods to assess the effect of any insult on bone strength and bone metabolism. Carboxy terminal crosslinked telopeptides of type 1 collagen (sCTX) and serum Procollagen Type I N-terminal propeptide (P1NP) are the reference markers of bone resorption and formation, respectively. ⋯ The study's primary limitations included its high dropout rate, a larger reference range for BTMs, making them a less specific tool for comparison, and the absence of a control group. ESI has a negative impact on the BMD of the hip and spine. Reduced BMD should be considered as a potential side effect of ESI.
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Observational Study
A Pilot Study of Full-Endoscopic Annulus Fibrosus Suture Following Lumbar Discectomy: Technique Notes and One-Year Follow-Up.
An annulus fissure or defect will inevitably be left on the posterior annulus fibrosus after almost all kinds of lumbar discectomy, which may lead to unsatisfying postoperative pain relief and recurrence of the disc herniation. ⋯ Full-endoscopic lumbar discectomy and annulus fibrosus suture through either the transforaminal or interlaminar approach are safe and effective minimally invasive spinal surgery techniques that can reduce the recurrence rate of lumbar disc herniation after full-endoscopic lumbar discectomy.