Current pain and headache reports
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Curr Pain Headache Rep · Sep 2014
ReviewNegotiating the maze: risk factors for suicidal behavior in chronic pain patients.
Chronic pain disorders can exert major negative effects on virtually every aspect of an individual's life. It is not surprising then that many chronic pain sufferers find themselves at a point of emotional fragility where they experience thoughts of ending their life. ⋯ With regard specifically to chronic pain patients, elevated suicide risk is also associated with severe or recurrent headache, ambiguous diagnoses (psychogenic pain, abdominal pain), and medicolegal issues related to the pain. A number of suggestions for clinicians managing chronic pain patients with regards to managing suicide risk are given.
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Myofascial pain is a common musculoskeletal problem, with the low back being one of the commonest affected regions. Several treatments have been used for myofascial low back pain through physical therapies, pharmacologic agents, injections, and other such therapies. This review will provide an update based on recently published literature in the field of myofascial low back pain along with a brief description of a sequenced, multidisciplinary treatment protocol called Skilled Hands-on Approach for the Release of myofascia, Articular, Neural and Soft tissue mobilization (SHARANS) protocol. A comprehensive multidisciplinary approach is recommended for the successful management of individuals with myofascial low back pain.
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Curr Pain Headache Rep · Sep 2014
ReviewHeadache in Behçet's syndrome: review of literature and NYU Behçet's syndrome center experience.
Headache, a common and disabling symptom in Behçet's syndrome, may be associated with a variety of neurologic syndromes and ocular inflammation, or may present as an isolated feature. Our objective is to describe the various neurologic and ocular syndromes of Behçet's syndrome of which headache is a symptom, and to review the features of isolated headaches in Behçet's. We also report results of a study of headache in Behçet's syndrome patients who are followed at NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases, the first study of its kind in North American patients, and the first to document prevalence of both episodic and chronic daily headache in Behçet's.
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Curr Pain Headache Rep · Sep 2014
ReviewReversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome: a comprehensive update.
Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS) is a clinico-radiological syndrome characterized by recurrent thunderclap headache, with or without neurologic symptoms, and reversible vasoconstriction of cerebral arteries. RCVS affects patients in various racial and ethnic groups and in all age groups, although most commonly in the fourth decade of life. Many conditions and exposures have been linked to RCVS, including vasoactive drugs and the peripartum period. ⋯ RCVS generally follows a monophasic course. Associated strokes and cerebral hemorrhages are not uncommon. In this review we will attempt to provide a comprehensive overview of RCVS, with emphasis on the controversies in the field and the newest findings in the reported literature.
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Pseudotumor cerebri syndrome (PTCS) refers to the primary and secondary disorders that cause elevated intracranial pressure without an intracranial mass lesion, ventriculomegaly, or central nervous system infection or malignancy. Headache is the most frequent symptom of PTCS, but there is considerable overlap between the headache features of raised intracranial pressure and the headache features of primary headache disorders. We review headache subtypes that occur in PTCS, non-headache features that help distinguish PTCS from other headache types, changes to the diagnostic criteria for PTCS with and without papilledema, and headache treatment strategies as they apply to PTCS.