Copyright 2010 Medical News TodayLatest Health News and Medical News posted throughout the day, every day.http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/pain/admin@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Admin)editors@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Editors)en-us Tue, 09 Feb 2010 02:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xpdhttp://mnt.to/f/3xpdResearchers at the Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center have shown that a simple, inexpensive test can determine whether it is safe to send home a patient who comes to the emergency room with chest pain. "It is imperative to accurately diagnose patients who come to the emergency department with chest pain," said Dr...Pain / Anesthetics Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xnphttp://mnt.to/f/3xnpAustralian general practitioners often treat patients with low back pain in a manner that does not appear to match the care endorsed by international clinical guidelines, according to a report in the February 8 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals...Back Pain Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xnqhttp://mnt.to/f/3xnqFewer than half of individuals who have "non-specific" chest pain (not explained by a well-known condition) experience relief from symptoms following standard medical care, according to a report in the February 8 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. In addition, one-tenth of those with persistent chest pain undergo potentially unnecessary diagnostic testing...Pain / Anesthetics Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xnChttp://mnt.to/f/3xnCCara Therapeutics, Inc. announced positive data in a Phase II proof-of-concept clinical trial of its peripherally-restricted kappa opioid agonist, CR845. The 46 patient Phase II, multi-center, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted at eight hospitals in the United States and evaluated the efficacy and safety of CR845 in women following laparoscopic-assisted hysterectomy...Pain / Anesthetics Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xn6http://mnt.to/f/3xn6Differences might exist in the amount of pain medicine given to Latino and white children after surgery, found a new, small study in which Latino children received 30 percent less opioid analgesics (morphine or morphine-like drugs) than white children did...Pain / Anesthetics Mon, 08 Feb 2010 03:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xmwhttp://mnt.to/f/3xmwAddex Pharmaceuticals / Addex: ADX71943 Demonstrates Analgesic Effects in Pain Models processed and transmitted by Hugin AS. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement...Pain / Anesthetics Fri, 05 Feb 2010 03:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xgjhttp://mnt.to/f/3xgjIn a unique and comprehensive literature review of poisoning deaths involving opioids from 1999 -- 2009, the deaths involving methadone were found to be disproportionately high. Methadone represented less than five percent of all opioid prescriptions but is responsible for a third of the deaths...Pain / Anesthetics Fri, 05 Feb 2010 02:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xfYhttp://mnt.to/f/3xfYResearch presented at the American Academy of Pain Medicine's 26th Annual Meeting provides early published data analyzing information gathered from California's prescription monitoring program, known as the Controlled Substances Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES)...Pharmacy / Pharmacist Fri, 05 Feb 2010 02:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xg5http://mnt.to/f/3xg5Estimates of pain care treatment costs exceed $1 billion annually in the United States. Today at the American Academy of Pain Medicine's 26th Annual Meeting two abstracts looked at the issue. One evaluated intrathecal drug delivery (a targeted medicine delivery system) that could save costs over time. The other analyzed the differences between the costs of treatment for chronic pain treatments...Pain / Anesthetics Fri, 05 Feb 2010 02:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xg7http://mnt.to/f/3xg7Findings from a retrospective analysis of a three-week treatment program for chronic pain revealed African Americans experienced worse outcomes compared to a matched group of Caucasians. The research was presented at the American Academy of Pain Medicine's 26th Annual Meeting in San Antonio...Pain / Anesthetics Thu, 04 Feb 2010 02:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3xcfhttp://mnt.to/f/3xcfKing Pharmaceuticals®, Inc. launched PainBalance®, a new educational initiative which provides quality information, practical tools, and essential resources to healthcare professionals and others, helping them provide optimal, appropriate care for all patients with pain...Pain / Anesthetics Wed, 03 Feb 2010 03:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x8zhttp://mnt.to/f/3x8zAllergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN) announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) approval of JUVEDERM(R) XC, a new formulation of the currently FDA-approved JUVEDERM(R) dermal filler and the latest advancement1 in hyaluronic acid (HA) dermal fillers...Pain / Anesthetics Wed, 03 Feb 2010 01:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x7Khttp://mnt.to/f/3x7KPhosphagenics Limited ("Phosphagenics") (ASX: POH; OTCQX: PPGNY) today announced positive results from a Phase 1B clinical study using the Company's patented TPM™ (Targeted Penetration Matrix) for the transdermal delivery of oxycodone...Pain / Anesthetics Wed, 03 Feb 2010 01:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x7Lhttp://mnt.to/f/3x7LAbout one-third of doctors and their patients with diabetes do not see eye to eye on the most important health conditions to manage, according to a survey by the University of Michigan Medical School...Diabetes Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x78http://mnt.to/f/3x78One of the holy grails of local anesthesia is the ability to achieve a long-lasting nerve block that eliminates pain sensation while not affecting motor function. Now, researchers at Children's Hospital Boston have discovered an anesthetic approach that seems to do just that...Pain / Anesthetics Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x7chttp://mnt.to/f/3x7c Decreased muscle strength is associated with difficulty in performing functional activities such as stooping, crouching, or kneeling (SCK) in older adults, according to an observational study published in the January issue of Physical Therapy, (PTJ) the scientific journal of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA)...Rehabilitation / Physical Therapy Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x6Bhttp://mnt.to/f/3x6BNorthwestern University researchers are the first to design a bioactive nanomaterial that promotes the growth of new cartilage in vivo and without the use of expensive growth factors. Minimally invasive, the therapy activates the bone marrow stem cells and produces natural cartilage. No conventional therapy can do this. The results will be published online the week of Feb...Stem Cell Research Tue, 02 Feb 2010 04:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x67http://mnt.to/f/3x67Severe muscle injuries - such as crush injuries suffered in earthquakes, car accidents and explosions, and muscle damage from excessive exercise or statin drug interactions - can cause life-threatening kidney damage. Treatment has been limited to intravenous fluids and dialysis, but a new study suggests that the commonly used pain reliever acetaminophen may protect the kidneys from damage...Urology / Nephrology Tue, 02 Feb 2010 04:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x69http://mnt.to/f/3x69A study published online on February 1 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine shows that antiviral proteins called type I interferons (IFNs) are needed to fend off infection with an exotic mosquito-borne virus called Chikungunya virus...Tropical Diseases Tue, 02 Feb 2010 03:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3x5Thttp://mnt.to/f/3x5TScientists at the University of Liverpool have discovered that treating the immune system of patients with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CPRS) leads to a significant reduction in pain. CRPS is an unexplained chronic pain condition that usually develops after an injury or trauma to a limb, and continues after the injury has healed...Pain / Anesthetics Fri, 29 Jan 2010 05:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3wXMhttp://mnt.to/f/3wXM The Los Angeles Times reports that the Food and Drug Administration "this week released a draft of voluntary guidelines to assist drug makers in figuring out which compounds should be placed under the Controlled Substances Act...Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Fri, 29 Jan 2010 00:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3wVDhttp://mnt.to/f/3wVDThe brains of people under anesthesia respond to stimuli as they do in the deepest part of sleep - lending credence to a developing theory of consciousness and suggesting a new method to assess loss of consciousness in conditions such as coma...Pain / Anesthetics Thu, 28 Jan 2010 22:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3wW5http://mnt.to/f/3wW5With a season of record-breaking snowfalls and eight weeks of winter to go, Washingtonians have become all too familiar with the icy sidewalks, the sore muscles, and the coughs and colds that come along with winter weather...Pain / Anesthetics Thu, 28 Jan 2010 04:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3wTQhttp://mnt.to/f/3wTQPrenatal alcohol exposure is widely known to impair brain development in exposed offspring. Rodent studies have shown that developmental deficits in newborns related to altered levels of a brain chemical called serotonin (5-HT), leading to subsequent alterations in patterns of neonatal acute pain responses and/or hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) stress reactivity...Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Wed, 27 Jan 2010 01:00:00 PSThttp://mnt.to/f/3wP2http://mnt.to/f/3wP2The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Morphine Sulfate Oral Solution for the relief of moderate to severe, acute and chronic pain in opioid-tolerant patients. This medicine will be available in 100 milligrams per 5 mL or 20 milligrams per 1 mL. This is the only FDA approved morphine sulfate oral solution available at this concentration...Pain / Anesthetics