Articles: pain-clinics.
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Review
The transition from acute to chronic pain: understanding how different biological systems interact.
Although pain is an adaptive sensory experience necessary to prevent further bodily harm, the transition from acute to chronic pain is not adaptive and results in the development of a chronic clinical condition. How this transition occurs has been the focus of intense study for some time. The focus of the current review is on changes in neuronal plasticity as well as the role of immune cells and glia in the development of chronic pain from acute tissue injury and pain. ⋯ A better understanding of how chronic pain develops at a mechanistic level can aid clinicians in treating their patients by showing how the underlying biology of chronic pain contributes to the clinical manifestations of pain. A thorough understanding of how chronic pain develops may also help identify new targets for future analgesic drugs.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Feb 2014
Meta AnalysisTransversus abdominis plane block to ameliorate postoperative pain outcomes after laparoscopic surgery: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Meta-analysis of 10 RCTs totalling 633 subjects showed that while pain at rest following laparoscopic surgery was reduced by transverse abdominis plane block, early (0-4 h) pain was only moderately reduced (-2.4 cm) and late pain (24 hours) minimally reduced (-1.3 cm). Pain with movement was not significantly different between TAP blocks and controls.
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This narrative review aims to inform health care practitioners of the current literature surrounding the use of intrathecal (IT) and epidural analgesia in cancer patients with refractory pain at end of life. Topics discussed and reviewed include: patient selection, treatment planning, procedure, equipment, medications, complications, policies and procedures, as well as directions for future research. ⋯ Neuraxial drug delivery gives clinicians more options to manage refractory pain at end of life and should be offered to patients with intractable cancer pain. Teams should be interprofessional with clear delineation of roles and responsibilities. They should discuss advanced discharge planning with the patient prior to implantation as well as provide on-call support.
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Efficient and safe pediatric perioperative pain therapy in the context of a multimodal pain therapy concept requires a slight to moderate opioid analgesic. Nalbuphine is a nearly ideal opioid for this purpose due to its unique pharmacological properties as a μ-receptor antagonist/κ-receptor agonist and a high safety profile. Nalbuphine is used clinically primarily in postoperative pain therapy administered as a bolus, continuous infusion and patient-controlled analgesia. Furthermore, it is administered in different regimens for pediatric diagnostic and interventional sedation.