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Pain Management

News, opinions and meeting coverage in geriatrics.

Ablation Possible for Back Pain When Steroid Injections Fail

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. -- Patients with low back pain who don't respond robustly to intraarticular steroid injections may still be candidates for treatment with radiofrequency ablation (RFA), researchers said here.

Short-Acting Opioids May Have Less Impact on Testosterone

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. -- Men who take long-acting opioids for chronic pain may have a higher risk of hypogonadism than those on short-acting formulations of the drugs, researchers said here.

Follow the Money: Pain, Policy, and Profit

When the Federation of State Medical Boards decided it needed to put a model guideline for opioid use into a book, it reached out and touched the makers of opioid drugs to make it happen.

Muscle Massage Rubs Out Inflammation

Heavily stressed muscles responded to massage therapy with a variety of biologic changes associated with reduced inflammation, analysis of tissue specimens showed.

Acetaminophen OD More Deadly if Taken in Stages

Acetaminophen overdoses were more likely to be fatal if patients consumed a series of high doses spread over the course of a day rather than downing, say, a bottle of pills at one time, outcomes among patients admitted to a specialized liver center showed.

ACR: Savella Brings Relief Long-Term in Fibromyalgia

CHICAGO -- Milnacipran (Savella), a selective serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, brought long-term relief to fibromyalgia patients who remained on therapy, researchers said here.

Jumpy Legs in Parkinson's Likely Not RLS

Patients with early Parkinson's disease were more likely to have a movement disorder called leg motor restlessness than true restless legs syndrome, a study found.

High Blood Pressure May Spark Facial Nerve Pain

Patients with hypertension appear to carry a higher risk for developing trigeminal neuralgia, a Taiwanese study showed.

Parkinson's Drug Doesn't Slow Disease Progress, FDA Staff Says

WASHINGTON -- Azilect (rasagiline), which is already approved to treat symptoms of Parkinson's disease, does not appear effective at slowing progression of the neurodegenerative disease, according to an FDA review.

Medtronic Infusion Pump Recalled

Battery problems with two of Medtronic's SynchroMed II implantable infusion pumps have forced the company to recall them, according to the FDA, although the recall only affects products not yet implanted.

Knee Pain Eased With Combo Treatment

Combination treatment using ibuprofen plus acetaminophen provided better relief of chronic knee pain than acetaminophen alone -- but at the cost of increased side effects, a British randomized study found.

No More Infant Dose of OTC Acetaminophen

Over-the-counter drug makers have announced that they will no longer produce acetaminophen in concentrated infant drops; liquid acetaminophen products for children under 12 will be sold only in a 160 mg/5 mL concentration.

Diagnostic Nerve Blocks Costly -- and Controversial

While some guidelines recommend two diagnostic nerve blocks before radiofrequency treatment for chronic low back pain, a randomized trial showed greater success without use of the prior blocks.

Drug Combo Brings Better Pain Relief

For people with neuropathic pain, a combination of two commonly used drugs works better than either alone, researchers said.

Oral Prednisolone and Naproxen (Aleve) Equal for Gout Pain

NIJMEGEN, The Netherlands, May 29 -- For the acute pain of monoarticular gout over four days, it's a tossup between oral prednisolone and naproxen (Aleve), a randomized trial found.

Chinese Herbs Ease Menstrual Cramps Better than NSAIDs

SYDNEY, Australia -- Traditional Chinese remedies may ease painful menstrual cramps better than nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) and other drugs, according to a Cochrane systematic review.

Epidural Steroid Injection Not Useful for Chronic Shingles Pain

UTRECHT, The Netherlands - An epidural injection of steroids with a local anesthetic did not provide the long-term pain relief doctors anticipated for patients suffering from post-herpetic neuralgia, researchers here said.

Botox Helps Patients Face Intractable Facial Pain

CURITIBA, Brazil - Everyone's favorite toxin appears to offer significant relief from intractable facial nerve pain.