Articles: neuropathic-pain.
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We review and illustrate the radiology of facial pain, emphasizing trigeminal neuralgia, relevant anatomy, current classification, concepts about etiology, and the role of imaging and its influence on the choice of treatment. We discuss glossopharyngeal neuralgia, other neuropathic causes of facial pain, postinflammatory and neoplastic causes, and nociceptive (end-organ) causes of facial pain, as well as referred otalgia. Other conditions that may present with facial pain, including trigeminal autonomic cephalgias and giant cell arteritis, are reviewed briefly. We discuss the elements of a comprehensive MR imaging protocol to enable detection of these diverse causes of facial pain.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The Effect of Erector Spinae Plane Blockade on Prevention of Postherpetic Neuralgia in Elderly Patients: A Randomized Double-blind Placebo-controlled Trial.
Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is the most common chronic complication following the onset of herpes zoster (HZ). Both the incidence of HZ and the proportion of patients with HZ who develop PHN rise with age. Ultrasound-guided erector spinae plane blockade (ESPB) has been reported to relieve neuropathic pain and PHN in elderly patients, but no randomized controlled trials have been conducted regarding the effect of ESPB on elderly patients with HZ in the acute or subacute phases. ⋯ For elderly patients suffering acute or subacute HZ, ESPB reduces the incidence of PHN at 12 weeks after treatment; it also decreases the occurrence of neuropathic pain, sleep disturbance, and anxiety/depression.
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Background. Neuropathic pain (NP) following spinal cord injury (SCI) affects the quality of life of almost 40% of the injured population. The modified brain connectivity was reported under different NP conditions. ⋯ The altered theta band connectivity found in the fronto-parietal network along with a global increase in local efficiency is a consequence of pain only, while altered connectivity in the beta and gamma bands along with a decrease in cluster coefficient values observed in the sensory-motor network is dominantly a consequence of injury only. The outcomes of this study may be used as a potential diagnostic biomarker for the NP. Further, the expected insight holds great clinical relevance in the design of neurofeedback-based neurorehabilitation and connectivity-based brain-computer interfaces for SCI patients.
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About one-third of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) suffers from chronic and excruciating central neuropathic pain (CNP). The mechanism underlying CNP in MS is not clear, since previous studies are scarce and their results are inconsistent. Our aim was to determine whether CNP in MS is associated with impairment of the spinothalamic-thalamocortical pathways (STTCs) and/or increased excitability of the pain system. ⋯ CNP in MS is characterized by a specific impairment of STTC function, the innocuous thermal pathways, and by pain hyperexcitability. Whereas CNP presence is associated with STTC impairment, its severity and extent are associated with pain hyperexcitability. Interventions that reduce excitability level may therefore mitigate CNP severity.