Articles: analgesics.
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Curr Opin Anaesthesiol · Aug 2024
ReviewProgress in the validation of nociception monitoring in guiding intraoperative analgesic therapy.
This article summarizes the current level of validation for several nociception monitors using a categorized validation process to facilitate the comparison of performance. ⋯ This review proposes a stepwise structure for validation of new monitoring technology, which facilitates comparison between the level of validation of different devices and identifies the need for future research questions.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Aug 2024
Should subanaesthetic ketamine be considered when managing opioid refractory cancer pain?
In the cancer pain setting, ketamine has been typically employed as a co-analgesic for opioid refractory and neuropathic pain. One controversial topic is whether subanesthetic ketamine be considered when managing opioid refractory cancer pain. In this "Controversies in Palliative Care" article, three clinicians independently answer this question. ⋯ Three independent clinicians reported a divergence of opinion regarding the usefulness of subanesthetic ketamine for managing opioid refractory cancer pain. All investigators acknowledged the lack of high-quality trials. All agreed on the need for adequately powered trials, the development of standardized methodology, and the exploration of any patient sub-populations that may benefit from ketamine for cancer related pain.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Aug 2024
Creating a Palliative Care Clinic for Patients with Cancer Pain and Substance Use Disorder.
Opioids are a first-line treatment for severe cancer pain. However, clinicians may be reluctant to prescribe opioids for patients with concurrent substance use disorders (SUD) or clinical concerns about non-prescribed substance use. ⋯ The formal collaboration with addiction psychiatry and the integration of harm reduction principles and practices into ambulatory palliative care improved our ability to provide treatment to a previously underserved patient population with high symptom burden.
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Journal of anesthesia · Aug 2024
Comment Letter Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyThe efficacy and safety of opioid‑free anesthesia combined with ultrasound‑guided intermediate cervical plexus block vs. opioid‑based anesthesia in thyroid surgery: a randomized controlled trial.
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The pressing need for safer, more efficacious analgesics is felt worldwide. Preclinical tests in animal models of painful conditions represent one of the earliest checkpoints novel therapeutics must negotiate before consideration for human use. Traditionally, the pain status of laboratory animals has been inferred from evoked nociceptive assays that measure their responses to noxious stimuli. ⋯ The analgesia conferred by meloxicam and gabapentin was compared in the monosodium iodoacetate knee osteoarthritis model, with meloxicam more effectively ameliorating digging deficits, in line with human patients finding meloxicam more effective. Finally, in a visceral pain model, the decrease in digging behavior correlated with the extent of disease. Ultimately, we make a case for adopting ethological assays, such as digging, in studies of pain in laboratory animals, which we believe to be more representative of the human experience of pain and thus valuable in assessing clinical potential of novel analgesics in animals.