http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Knee replacement surgery is a very common procedure. However, it does not always resolve function or pain in all the recipients of new knees. A study by Robert Barrack, MD and his colleagues from the Washington University School of Medicine wanted to determine if any socioeconomic factors were associated with less successful outcomes of knee replacement surgery. Their study, which appears in Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, published by Springer, found that lower-income individuals reported higher levels of dissatisfaction and poorer function than those with higher incomes. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-people-higher-incomes-happier-knees.html Other Tue, 21 May 2013 11:50:36 EST news288355827 Dr. Marsha Campbell-Yeo and her team of researchers at Dalhousie's School of Nursing are exploring how maternal-driven interventions can help improve outcomes for at-risk preterm and fullterm infants. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-mothers-at-risk-babies-pain.html Health Wed, 08 May 2013 09:40:02 EST news287221064 First-of-its-kind research presented today showed microwave ablation (MWA) therapy cut pain in half for patients with painful bone and soft-tissue tumors and took less time to complete than radiofrequency ablation. Pain relief lasted over 4 months on average and up to 15 months in some patients, according to results reported at the 29th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-microwave-ablation-mwa-relieve-painful.html Cancer Thu, 11 Apr 2013 17:59:54 EST news284921977 Researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) sought to shed light on the biopsychosocial and spiritual effects of taking prescribed opioids to treat noncancer pain. Such questions have received little examination and impact the challenging decision of when and how to use opioids, the study authors wrote in a scientific poster presented today at the 29th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine. They found that taking opioids had many and diverse consequences for patients in terms of biological, psychological, social and spiritual functioning. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-effects-opioids-patients-sickle-cell.html Medications Thu, 11 Apr 2013 16:59:50 EST news284918384 Changing the parameters used to deliver radiofrequency (RF) treatment greatly affects the size of the resulting heat lesion, researchers reported today in a study expected to deliver greater precision and more treatment options in interventional pain management. Results were presented at the 29th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-full-range-treatment-effects-radiofrequency.html Cancer Thu, 11 Apr 2013 16:57:25 EST news284918238 Patients who experience chronic pain may experience improvement in symptoms if their primary care providers are specifically trained in multiple aspects of pain, including emotional consequences. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-pain-primary.html Health Tue, 05 Mar 2013 14:46:01 EST news281717154 Opioids are frequently prescribed for pain management in noncancer patients, but recommended clinical guidelines for monitoring effectiveness and signs of drug abuse are often not implemented. Alongside well-documented racial disparities in prescribing opioid medications for pain, researchers report racial differences in the use of recommended opioid monitoring and follow-up treatment practices. The study is published in the current issue of PAIN. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-reveals-racial-disparities-chronic-pain.html Medications Wed, 13 Feb 2013 11:30:01 EST news279975813 In the fifth Series paper, researchers led by Professor Hans Hogerzeil from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands say that most NCDs could be treated with a small range of inexpensive, off-patent medicines, and suggest that substantial improvements in availability of life-saving drugs in poorer nations could be achieved within existing budgets by more careful selection and sourcing of generic versions, and better targeting of people at highest risk. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-ncds-small-cheap-drugs.html Medications Mon, 11 Feb 2013 18:40:01 EST news279822340 (HealthDay)—About one-quarter of women who've had breast cancer surgery have significant and persistent breast pain six months after the procedure, a new study finds. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-chronic-pain-breast-cancer-surgery.html Cancer Tue, 22 Jan 2013 18:30:01 EST news278100117 For individuals with agonizing pain, it is a cruel blow when the gold-standard medication actually causes more pain. Adults and children whose pain gets worse when treated with morphine may be closer to a solution, based on research published in the January 6 on-line edition of Nature Neuroscience. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-pain-puzzle-uncovering-morphine-people.html Neuroscience Sun, 06 Jan 2013 13:00:17 EST news276686238 (HealthDay)—The management of pain outcomes for terminally ill cancer patients varies widely between inpatient palliative care centers and is affected by organizational factors such as human resources adequacy, according to a study published in the Nov. 15 issue of Cancer. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-pain-varies-palliative-centers.html Cancer Mon, 05 Nov 2012 18:40:01 EST news271358523 (HealthDay)—Steps to manage pain and stress in pediatric emergency medical care are recommended, according to a clinical report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) published online Oct. 29 in Pediatrics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-systematic-pain-children-er.html Pediatrics Mon, 29 Oct 2012 15:20:01 EST news270741384 Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have identified reliable predictors of pain by surveying patients throughout their hospital stays about the severity of their pain and their levels of satisfaction with how their pain was managed by hospital staff. Using this data, interdisciplinary teams treating patients were able to identify patients at higher risk for pain prior to, or immediately upon, their admission to the hospital, and create and implement intervention plans resulting in patients reporting lower levels of pain and higher levels of satisfaction with their pain management. The study is published online in the American Journal of Medical Quality. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-predictors-inpatient-pain.html Health Fri, 21 Sep 2012 11:46:41 EST news267446793 (Medical Xpress)—Chronic pain sufferers may benefit from learning the Alexander Technique in NHS outpatient pain clinics according to a new service evaluation project. More than half of the service users in the study stopped or reduced their use of medications between the start of the lessons and three months, making cost savings to the NHS. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-reveals-benefits-alexander-technique-lessons.html Health Thu, 20 Sep 2012 07:27:00 EST news267344810 Inhaled pain relief appears to be effective in reducing pain intensity and in giving pain relief in the first stage of labour, say Cochrane researchers. These conclusions came from a systematic review that drew data from twenty-six separate studies that involved a total of 2,959 women, and are published in The Cochrane Library. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-inhaled-pain-relief-early-labor.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Tue, 11 Sep 2012 12:49:24 EST news266586556 (HealthDay)—Intraoperative bolus epidural fentanyl is effective at alleviating early postoperative pain after lumbar canal decompression, according to a study published online Aug. 27 in The Spine Journal. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-bolus-epidural-fentanyl-post-spinal-decompression.html Surgery Fri, 07 Sep 2012 12:30:01 EST news266238316 (HealthDay)—Major and minor themes have been identified by emergency nurses who often provide end-of-life (EOL) care in the emergency department setting, according to a study published in the September issue of the Journal of Emergency Nursing. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-themes-end-of-life-er.html Other Wed, 05 Sep 2012 18:50:01 EST news266084767 (Medical Xpress) -- Given the amount of time they spend with patients, it's nurses more often than physicians who tend to a patient's pain. But few studies have shown how nurses can work with patients to best determine that degree of pain – and what effect standardizing these interactions has on keeping the hurt at bay while boosting patients' agency in, and satisfaction with, their pain management. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-scripted-interactions-patient-pain.html Other Tue, 05 Jun 2012 06:22:26 EST news258096140 (HealthDay) -- The majority of patients with long-bone fractures receive inadequate pain medication in the emergency department, and disparities in management exist, according to a study published in the May issue of the Journal of Emergency Nursing. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-inadequate-pain-meds-er-patients.html Other Mon, 21 May 2012 05:40:02 EST news256792169 Neuropathic pain, caused by nerve or tissue damage, is the culprit behind many cases of chronic pain. It can be the result of an accident or caused by a variety of medical conditions and diseases such as tumors, lupus, and diabetes. Typically resistant to common types of pain management including ibuprofen and even morphine, neuropathic pain can lead to lifelong disability for many sufferers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-drug-resistant-chronic-pain.html Neuroscience Mon, 30 Apr 2012 13:10:01 EST news255009100 Primary care physicians are faced with treating a large proportion of chronic pain patients, but many do not often have specific training in the assessment and management of chronic pain, including the use of opioid medications for chronic pain management. Recognizing the significant role prescribers can play in reducing the risk of addiction, unintentional overdose, and death from the misuse and abuse of opioids, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has made prescriber education a central part of its Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) requirements for manufacturers of long-acting and extended-release (LA/ER) opioids. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-critical-skills-pcps-safely-opioid.html Other Fri, 16 Mar 2012 13:08:15 EST news251122085 The pain suffered by older adults is the shared focus of the two newest entries in The Gerontological Society of America's (GSA) From Publication to Practice series. Together they address both pain management and new labeling changes for one of the most popular pain medications, acetaminophen. Both issues aim to provide readers with information on how new advances in pain prevention, treatment, and management may improve care and quality of life for older adults. The From Publication to Practice series was launched last year to promote the translation of research into meaningful health outcomes. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-gsa-resources-foundation-relieving-seniors.html Health Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:00:33 EST news247240826 Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center, who teamed with colleagues at five universities around the United States, analyzed past studies of cancer-related pain reduction and found that psychosocial interventions can have a beneficial effect on cancer patients' pain severity. They also found that certain psychosocial interventions provide better pain management and are effective in reducing the degree to which pain related to cancer and its treatment interferes with patients' lives. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-cancer-patients-pain-psychosocial-interventions.html Cancer Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:29:22 EST news247163304 The amount of needless suffering caused by both acute and chronic pain in the United States is a major, overlooked medical problem that requires improved education at multiple levels, stretching from the implementation of new public health campaigns to better training of primary care physicians in pain management. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-epidemic-unnecessary-stanford-dean-major.html Health Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:00:05 EST news246105930 A new study finds that people 75 years old or older are less likely to receive any pain medication in hospital emergency departments than middle aged people – those between 35 and 54 years old. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-elderly-emergency-patients-pain-medication.html Health Fri, 11 Nov 2011 12:11:05 EST news240235856 There are several "gifts" we start receiving after age 50. Unfortunately, one of them could be chronic pain. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-chronic-pain-doctor.html Health Fri, 14 Oct 2011 15:20:01 EST news237818961 Doctors have been prescribing codeine for postpartum pain management for many years, and, until recently, it was considered safe to breastfeed while taking the opioid. But the death of an infant exposed to codeine through breast milk has many health care providers questioning the safety of the drug when used by breastfeeding mothers. Because of the potential risks, some doctors have begun the practice of prescribing oxycodone as an alternative to codeine; however, a new study soon to be published in The Journal of Pediatrics finds that oxycodone is no safer for breastfed infants than codeine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-mother-postpartum-oxycodone-safer-breastfed.html Health Tue, 06 Sep 2011 12:13:01 EST news234529962 Improved management of chronic pain can significantly reduce disability in older adults, according to the latest issue of the WHAT'S HOT newsletter from The Gerontological Society of America (GSA). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-04-effective-pain-crucial-older-adults.html Health Mon, 11 Apr 2011 13:05:51 EST news221745945