Journal of pain & palliative care pharmacotherapy
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Chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) is a common problem, with up to a third of patients reporting persistent or intermittent pain 1 year after common operations. A proposed definition is pain that develops after a surgical procedure, which lasts at least 2 months, and where other causes and preexisting pain have been excluded. A variety of preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative factors are thought to contribute to the pathogenesis of CPSP. Preventive strategies include effective postsurgical acute pain management, preoperative administration of gabapentin or pregabalin continued postoperatively, and considering the necessity of the surgical procedure itself and exploring alternatives.
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Questions from patients about pain conditions and analgesic pharmacotherapy and responses from authors are presented to help educate patients and make them more effective self-advocates. The topics addressed in this issue are ziconotide, a novel approach to pain management that is derived from a snail toxin, its uses and possible side effects.