Pain physician
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Editorial Comment Historical Article
Back to the future: the end of the steroid century?
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Preliminary results of a randomized, equivalence trial of fluoroscopic caudal epidural injections in managing chronic low back pain: Part 1--Discogenic pain without disc herniation or radiculitis.
Intervertebral discs, facet joints, ligaments, fascia, muscles, and nerve root dura have been described as tissues capable of transmitting pain in the low back. The pathophysiology of spinal radicular pain is the subject of ongoing research and controversy with discogenic pain assuming a major role as a cause of non-specific low back pain. Even though epidural injections are frequently administered in managing axial low back pain, the evidence is lacking. ⋯ Caudal epidural injections with or without steroids may be effective in patients with chronic function-limiting low back pain without facet joint pain, disc herniation, and/or radiculitis in over 70% of the patients.
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Cervicogenic headache descriptors include its unilateral nature, "signs and symptoms linking it to the neck," and trauma of the neck. Since the pain often occurs over the C2 or C3 nerve root, we used a modification of the deep cervical block technique for treatment of this refractory type headache. ⋯ These results showed that for some patients this series of blocks provided effective pain relief for 3 months post treatment but by 6 months the pain had returned to pre-treatment levels. This block technique significantly diminished pain after the initial as well as the last treatment. These clinically significant changes in pain relief suggest that more aggressive selective therapy targeting these nerve routes might provide longer lasting relief.
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Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) may be helpful in treating pain and vascular insufficiency associated with inoperable peripheral vascular disease (PVD). Often decision-making regarding progression from trial to implantation is based on subjective measures. Transcutaneous oxygen pressure, a measure of microcirculation and tissue perfusion, provides information on changes that may occur in PVD patients that undergo SCS trials and may provide predictive information for patient outcomes. ⋯ We provide a review on transcutaneous oxygen pressure monitoring, along with emphasis on the technical aspects of transcutaneous oxygen pressure monitoring and its incorporation into practice. The decision to implant a SCS should be based on not only subjective measures of improvement, but also objective measures of improvement in transcutaneous oxygen pressure. Additional research is warranted to develop transcutaneous oxygen pressure predictive indices to assist in the selection of patients for progression to permanent implantation.
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This article examines the association between smoking and pain intensity and functional interference in a heterogeneous group of patients evaluated at a tertiary outpatient pain clinic. Current smoking is associated with less favorable clinical presentations. ⋯ In patients who completed evaluation in an outpatient pain clinic, current cigarette smokers reported significantly greater pain intensity and pain interference with functioning. Symptoms were more pronounced in smokers with more severe nicotine dependence.