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Contents to Volume 146 (2009)Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
(Source: Pain)
Source: Pain - November 10, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Subject Index to Volume 146 (2009)Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
(Source: Pain)
Source: Pain - November 10, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Author Index to Volume 146 (2009)Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - November 10, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Instructions to authorsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - November 10, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Editorial listEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - November 10, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Inhibition of cardiac baroreflex by noxious thermal stimuli: A key role for lateral paragigantocellular serotonergic cellsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: The present study was designed to identify the neuronal mechanisms causing cardiac baroreflex inhibition associated with thermal nociception in rats. Under urethane-anesthesia, noxious thermal stimuli ⩾48°C were found to inhibit the cardiac baroreflex, whereas noxious stimuli ⩽46°C had no effect. Using double immunohistochemical labeling, noxious stimuli ⩾48°C were found to evoke primarily a strong expression of Fos protein (Fos) encoded by c-fos gene in serotonergic neurons of lateral paragigantocellular reticular nucleus (LPGi). Noxious stimuli ⩽46°C did not evoke Fos expression in any serotonergic ...
Source: Pain - October 30, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Rémi Gau, Caroline Sévoz-Couche, Raùl Laguzzi, Michel Hamon, Jean-François Bernard Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

The case for publishing ‘negative’ clinical trialsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Randomized, controlled clinical trials with negative results are viewed with more skepticism than trials with positive results. A widely held assumption is that negative results are not interesting and therefore do not deserve a place in the peer-reviewed literature. Journals may reject manuscripts in the belief that the results represent a false negative because of a flawed study design or poor trial execution. Which is worse? Reporting a false positive result leads to exposing more people to the risk and expense of the treatment. Reporting a false negative result leads to abandonment of a treatment that might be effectiv...
Source: Pain - October 23, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Michael C. Rowbotham Tags: Editorial Source Type: journals

Interpreting the clinical importance of group differences in chronic pain clinical trials: IMMPACT recommendationsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: An essential component of the interpretation of results of randomized clinical trials of treatments for chronic pain involves the determination of their clinical importance or meaningfulness. This involves two distinct processes—interpreting the clinical importance of individual patient improvements and the clinical importance of group differences—which are frequently misunderstood. In this article, we first describe the essential differences between the interpretation of the clinical importance of patient improvements and of group differences. We then discuss the factors to consider when evaluating the clini...
Source: Pain - October 19, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Robert H. Dworkin, Dennis C. Turk, Michael P. McDermott, Sarah Peirce-Sandner, Laurie B. Burke, Penney Cowan, John T. Farrar, Sharon Hertz, Srinivasa N. Raja, Bob A. Rappaport, Christine Rauschkolb, Cristina Sampaio Tags: Review and recommendations Source Type: journals

The fear-avoidance model of pain: We are not there yet. Comment on Wideman et al. “A prospective sequential analysis of the fear-avoidance model of pain” [Pain, 2009] and Nicholas “First things first: reduction in catastrophizing before fear of movement” [Pain, 2009]Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Catastrophic interpretations of pain as a signal of impending threat usually elicits fear, and escape or avoidance behavior. According to the fear-avoidance (FA) model these behaviors may initially be adaptive, but they paradoxically worsen the situation when engaged in later on. Avoidance behavior may fuel pain, disability and depression. A particular strength of the FA model is that it generates testable hypotheses about the association amongst its constituent elements. Although correlational studies have accumulated, yet few studies have used prospective designs. (Source: Pain)
Source: Pain - October 13, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Johan W.S. Vlaeyen, Geert Crombez, Steven J. Linton Tags: Letters to the Editor Source Type: journals

Instructions to authorsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - October 13, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Editorial listEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - October 13, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Response to Cicero et al.Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Opioid use in non-cancer pain is an important subject for all involved in chronic pain management. Descriptive surveys of opioid use by this patient group in different geographical territories show big differences in use. This is not surprising, because opioid use is subject to major medical, political and social influences. An example of the disparity is evident comparing the data in Cicero et al.’s paper with that reported in Pain from Denmark in 2003 by Eriksen and colleagues (Pain 106 (2003) 221–228 [Table 7]). Extrapolating from their survey results, Eriksen et al. concluded that 3% of the general population was t...
Source: Pain - October 12, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Henry McQuay, R. Andrew Moore Tags: Letters to the Editor Source Type: journals

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor agonism: Progress in the management of neuropathic pain?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
In this issue of PAIN, Rowbotham and co-workers present interesting results of a trial of the neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (NNR) agonist ABT-594 in patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain . ABT-594 produced a statistically significant relief of pain compared to placebo, which supports the preclinical observations that NNR agonism resulting in opening of cationic channels is a relevant target in peripheral neuropathic pain. ABT-594 development followed upon proof of involvement of the α4β2 NNR subtype in pain processing. Thus, ABT-594 was specifically developed to target this receptor subtype to pr...
Source: Pain - October 9, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Søren H. Sindrup Tags: Commentaries Source Type: journals

A response to McQuay and Moore editorial “Opioids in non-cancer pain – A critical read of Cicero et al.”Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The editorial by McQuay and Moore entitled “Opioids in non-cancer pain – A critical read of Cicero et al.” questions the validity of our data and the generality of our conclusion to the international community in our paper entitled, “Co-morbidity and utilization of medical services by pain patients receiving opioid medications: Data from an insurance claims database” . The editorialists suggest that we approached the use of opioids for pain management from an addiction perspective rather than from an advocacy point of view for the appropriate use of opioids in pain management. We did not realize you had to be in ...
Source: Pain - October 5, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Theodore J. Cicero, Gordon Wong, Yuhong Tian, Michael Lynskey, Alexandre Todorov, Keith Isenberg Tags: Letters to the Editor Source Type: journals

A systematic review of adverse events in placebo groups of anti-migraine clinical trialsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: In analgesic clinical trials, adverse events are reported for the painkiller under evaluation and compared with adverse events in the placebo group. Interestingly, patients who receive the placebo often report a high frequency of adverse events, but little is understood about the nature of these negative effects. In the present study, we compared the rates of adverse events reported in the placebo arms of clinical trials for three classes of anti-migraine drugs: NSAIDs, triptans and anticonvulsants. We identified 73 clinical trials in 69 studies describing adverse events in placebo groups: 8 were clinical trials ...
Source: Pain - September 25, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Martina Amanzio, Luca Latini Corazzini, Lene Vase, Fabrizio Benedetti Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

A-kinase anchoring protein 150 controls protein kinase C-mediated phosphorylation and sensitization of TRPV1Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Post-translational modifications on various receptor proteins have significant effects on receptor activation. For the Transient Receptor Potential family V type 1 (TRPV1) receptor, phosphorylation of certain serine/threonine amino acid residues sensitizes the receptor to activation by capsaicin and heat. Although Protein Kinase C (PKC) phosphorylates TRPV1 on certain serine/threonine residues, it is not completely understood how PKC functionally associates with TRPV1. Recent studies have reported that the A-kinase Anchoring Protein 150 (AKAP150) mediates PKA phosphorylation of TRPV1 in several nociceptive models...
Source: Pain - September 22, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Nathaniel A. Jeske, Amol M. Patwardhan, Nikita B. Ruparel, Armen N. Akopian, Mark S. Shapiro, Michael A. Henry Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Medical evaluation of children with chronic abdominal pain: Impact of diagnosis, physician practice orientation, and maternal trait anxiety on mothers’ responses to the evaluationEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
This study examined the effects of diagnosis (functional versus organic), physician practice orientation (biomedical versus biopsychosocial), and maternal trait anxiety (high versus low) on mothers’ responses to a child’s medical evaluation for chronic abdominal pain. Mothers selected for high (n=80) and low (n=80) trait anxiety imagined that they were the mother of a child with chronic abdominal pain described in a vignette. They completed questionnaires assessing their negative affect and pain catastrophizing. Next, mothers were randomly assigned to view one of four video vignettes of a physician-actor reporting resu...
Source: Pain - September 22, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Sara E. Williams, Craig A. Smith, Stephen P. Bruehl, Joseph Gigante, Lynn S. Walker Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Balancing nociception in cycling femalesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Among the most important discoveries in the 60s is the now well-acknowledged fact that the central nervous system exerts a dynamic influence on nociceptive and other somatovisceral information processing. This discovery led to the Gate Control theory and then to the discovery of descending control mechanisms, initially inhibition followed later by facilitation . These discoveries from research in animals, were quickly adopted and applied to human pain. One such translated concept, in addition to Gate Control, was “descending noxious inhibitory control” , or “DNIC,” in which some neurons in the spinal cord are inhib...
Source: Pain - September 21, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Karen J. Berkley Tags: Commentaries Source Type: journals

Peripheral NMDA receptors revisited – Hope floatsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Neuropathic pain patients, especially those with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), remain in the category of “poorly treated” in the clinic. Many currently used therapies for these patients have a low success rate, inconsistent results and/or are based on anecdotal evidence. Therefore, the search for novel treatments and therapies is on-going. In a paper published in this volume by Finch et al. the group revisits the use of ketamine, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist for the treatment of CRPS. The use of topical 10% ketamine cream and a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial sets this study apart...
Source: Pain - September 21, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Susan M. Carlton Tags: Commentaries Source Type: journals

Wideman and Sullivan Response to Letter to Editor by Vlaeyen et al.Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
In their letter to the editor, Vlaeyen and his colleagues [The fear-avoidance model of pain: we are not there yet] raise several interesting points regarding our study and the related editorial by Nicholas . Their comments regarding our methodology and the evolution of the Fear-Avoidance (FA) model were greatly appreciated and will no doubt help direct future research. (Source: Pain)
Source: Pain - September 16, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Timothy H. Wideman, Michael J.L. Sullivan Tags: Letters to the Editor Source Type: journals

Perisurgical amitriptyline produces a preventive effect on afferent hypersensitivity following spared nerve injuryEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
This study indicates that tricyclic antidepressants given in the perioperative period may be useful in preventing nerve injury-induced sensory changes that contribute to the development of chronic post-surgical neuropathic pain. (Source: Pain)
Source: Pain - September 14, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Andre Arsenault, Jana Sawynok Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Role of SIP30 in the development and maintenance of peripheral nerve injury-induced neuropathic painEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Using the chronic constriction injury (CCI) model of neuropathic pain, we profiled gene expression in the rat spinal cord, and identified SIP30 as a gene whose expression was elevated after CCI. SIP30 was previously shown to interact with SNAP25, but whose function was otherwise unknown. We now show that in the spinal cord, SIP30 was present in the dorsal horn laminae where the peripheral nociceptive inputs first synapse, co-localizing with nociception-related neuropeptides CGRP and substance P. With the onset of neuropathic pain after CCI surgery, SIP30 mRNA and protein levels increased in the ipsilateral side o...
Source: Pain - September 13, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Yu-Qiu Zhang, Ning Guo, Guangdun Peng, Mei Han, Jeremy Raincrow, Chi-hua Chiu, Lique M. Coolen, Robert J. Wenthold, Zhi-Qi Zhao, Naihe Jing, Lei Yu Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Contents to Volume 145Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - September 9, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Subject Index to Volume 145Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - September 9, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Author Index to Volume 145Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - September 9, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Instructions to authorsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - September 9, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Editorial listEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - September 9, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Baroreceptor reflex is suppressed in rats that develop hyperalgesia behavior after nerve injuryEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: The baroreceptor reflex buffers autonomic changes by decreasing sympathetic activity and increasing vagal activity in response to blood pressure elevations, and by the reverse actions when the blood pressure falls. Because of the many bidirectional interactions of pain and autonomic function, we investigated the effect of painful nerve injury by spinal nerve ligation (SNL) on heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP) and their regulation by the baroreceptor reflex. Rats receiving SNL were separated into either a hyperalgesic group that developed sustained lifting, shaking and grooming of the foot after plantar punctat...
Source: Pain - September 3, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Geza Gemes, Marcel Rigaud, Caron Dean, Francis A. Hopp, Quinn H. Hogan, Jeanne Seagard Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Empathy, sympathy and the perception of painEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Pain serves evolved protective functions not only by warning the suffering person, but also by impelling expressive behaviors that attract the attention of others . The idea, put forward by van Rysewyk, that empathy necessitates the capacity to separate perceptions from aversive self-oriented responses makes a lot of sense. In most definitions of empathy, there is at least a modicum of self-other awareness to distinguish oneself from others, as well as the capacity to regulate one’s own emotional arousal . Unfortunately, many recent neuroimaging experiments ignore, or at best overlook the complexity of the empathy const...
Source: Pain - August 31, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Jean Decety Tags: Letters to the Editor Source Type: journals

Comment on: Unconscious affective processing and empathy: An investigation of subliminal priming on the detection of painful facial expressions [Pain 2009; 1–2: 71–75]Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Dear Editor, The study published in Pain by Makikio Yamada and Jean Decety investigates the unexplored relation of perceived pain to the emergence of empathic concern. According to the authors, the question itself appears problematic. For, how can detected pain at once urge observers to avoid the source of threat and also instigate approach-behaviors in the form of empathy and provision of care? In this letter, we claim that the pathway to empathy for pain is not paradoxical, but is paved by the human capacity to separate perceptions from aversive self-oriented responses and, thereby, to free up those perceptions to acqui...
Source: Pain - August 31, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Simon van Rysewyk Tags: Letters to the Editor Source Type: journals

Instructions to authorsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - August 31, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Editorial listEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
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Source: Pain - August 31, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: journals

Electrophysiological and morphological properties of neurons in the substantia gelatinosa of the mouse trigeminal subnucleus caudalisEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: The excitability of the second order neurons within the trigeminal subnucleus caudalis underlies pain perception and processing in migraine and trigeminal neuralgia. These neurons were studied with whole-cell patch-clamp technique in slices from mouse brain stem. Electrical and morphological characteristics of 56 neurons were determined. Four categories were distinguished from electrophysiological properties: tonic (39%), phasic (34%), delayed (16%) and single spiking (11%). These categories did not show distinct morphological properties. Neurons had tetrodotoxin-sensitive sodium currents that activated and inact...
Source: Pain - August 24, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Alexander J. Davies, R. Alan North Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Reduction of allodynia in patients with complex regional pain syndrome: A double-blind placebo-controlled trial of topical ketamineEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: A double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trial was used to determine the effects of topical ketamine, an N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, on the sensory disturbances in 20 patients with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). On two occasions separated by at least one week, sensory tests to light touch, pressure, punctate stimulation, light brushing and thermal stimuli were performed in the symptomatic and contralateral limb and on each side of the forehead before and 30min after 10% ketamine cream was applied to the symptomatic or healthy limb. Venous blood for the plasma estimations of ketamin...
Source: Pain - August 24, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Philip M. Finch, Lone Knudsen, Peter D. Drummond Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Psychophysical studies of imagined stimuli: Testing the limits of self-knowledgeEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
There is a coalescing trend in several areas of pain research. Studies endeavoring to measure the extent to which individuals differ in ascribing pain intensity to noxious stimuli are occurring in areas of pain research as diverse as self-assessment questionnaires, genetics, functional neuro-imaging and psychophysics. The article in this issue of Pain by Ruscheweyh et al. highlights on two important points relating to the measurement of individual responses to pain. The first is a point of terminology, the second is a point of critical importance in pain neurobiology: the extent to which responses to imagined stimuli predi...
Source: Pain - August 24, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Beth B. Murinson, David Yarnitsky Tags: Commentaries Source Type: journals

Should we switch from analgesics to the concept of “Pain Modifying Analgesic Drugs (PMADs)” in osteoarthritis and rheumatic chronic pain conditions?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
In this issue of Pain, Chappel et al. , for the first time demonstrate a significant analgesic effect of antidepressants in osteoarthritis (OA), with appropriate methodology. Several trials have been performed with antidepressants in rheumatic conditions, such as OA, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and spondylarthropathies (SA) . However, in most of these trials, the patients with different joint diseases were pooled, and the analgesic effects were not convincing. An important exception is a study performed by Lin , using antidepressants in a large and diverse population of older adults with arthritis (mostly osteoarthritis) and...
Source: Pain - August 20, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Serge Perrot Tags: Commentaries Source Type: journals

Randomized controlled trial of an Internet-delivered family cognitive–behavioral therapy intervention for children and adolescents with chronic painEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
This study evaluates a more accessible treatment approach for chronic pediatric pain using an Internet-delivered family CBT intervention. Participants included 48 children, aged 11–17years, with chronic headache, abdominal, or musculoskeletal pain and associated functional disability, and their parents. Children were randomly assigned to a wait-list control group or an Internet treatment group. Primary treatment outcomes were pain intensity ratings (0–10 NRS) and activity limitations on the Child Activity Limitations Interview, both completed via an online daily diary. In addition to their medical care, the Internet tr...
Source: Pain - August 19, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Tonya M. Palermo, Anna C. Wilson, Meaghan Peters, Amy Lewandowski, Hannah Somhegyi Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

NMDA NR2A and NR2B receptors in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex contribute to pain-related aversion in male ratsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: NMDA receptors, which are implicated in pain processing, are highly expressed in forebrain areas including the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). The ACC has been implicated in the affective response to noxious stimuli. Using a combination of immunohistochemical staining, Western blot, electrophysiological recording and formalin-induced conditioned place avoidance (F-CPA) rat behavioral model that directly reflects the affective component of pain, the present study examined formalin nociceptive conditioning-induced changes in the expressions of NMDA receptor subunits NR1, NR2A, and NR2B in the rostral ACC (rACC) an...
Source: Pain - August 19, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Ting-Ting Li, Wen-Hua Ren, Xiao Xiao, Jia Nan, Long-Zhen Cheng, Xue-Han Zhang, Zhi-Qi Zhao, Yu-Qiu Zhang Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Is it possible to develop an animal model of fibromyalgia?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Animal models of disease states are valuable tools for development of new treatments, as well as examining underlying mechanisms. An animal model of disease should mimic the symptoms and pathology of the disease and importantly be predictive of effective treatments. Fibromyalgia is a unique pain syndrome because it is diagnosed by symptoms, not by underlying pathology. In contrast, arthritic diseases are diagnosed by pathology in addition to patient symptoms. The symptoms of fibromyalgia include widespread pain, which includes the trunk, and pain to pressure stimuli at 18 distinct tender points. Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS)...
Source: Pain - August 19, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Kathleen A. Sluka Tags: Commentaries Source Type: journals

Reproducibility of placebo analgesia: Effect of dispositional optimismEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Placebo has been shown to be a powerful analgesic with corresponding reduction in the activation of the pain matrix in the brain. However it is not clear whether the placebo response is reproducible within individuals and what role personality traits might play in predicting it. We induced placebo analgesia by conditioning subjects to expect pain reduction following a sham-treatment in the guise of a local anaesthetic cream applied to one arm. Pain ratings were assessed before, during and after treatment. The procedure was repeated in a second session to assess the degree of reproducibility of the response. A hig...
Source: Pain - August 18, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Debbie L. Morton, Alison Watson, Wael El-Deredy, Anthony K.P. Jones Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Were we wrong about the role of psychiatric comorbidities in primary headache?Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Interest in the relationship between headache disorders and psychiatric comorbidities has evolved over the last 20years, growing out of epidemiological studies showing elevated rates of depressive, anxiety, bipolar, and personality disorders among migraine patients, which in turn were followed by similar findings in individuals with chronic tension type headache (TTH). These studies have linked psychiatric comorbidities among primary headache patients to increased medical costs, headache-related disability, risk for medication overuse and headache chronification, and reduced quality of life. (Source: Pain)
Source: Pain - August 18, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Todd A. Smitherman, Donald B. Penzien Tags: Commentaries Source Type: journals

Endogenous opioids may buffer effects of anger arousal on sensitivity to subsequent painEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
In this study, we test the extent to which analgesic effects of acute anger arousal on subsequent pain sensitivity are opioid mediated by subjecting healthy participants to anger-induction and pain either under opioid blockade (oral naltrexone) or placebo. Participants were 160 healthy individuals. A double-blind, placebo-controlled, between-subjects opioid blockade design is used, with participants assigned randomly to one of two drug conditions (placebo or naltrexone), and to one of two Task Orders (anger-induction followed by pain or vice versa). Results of ANOVAs show significant Drug Condition×Task Order interactions...
Source: Pain - August 17, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: John W. Burns, Stephen Bruehl, Ok Y. Chung, Edward Magid, Melissa Chont, James K. Goodlad, Wesley Gilliam, Justin Matsuura, Kristin Somar Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Meta-analysis of the relevance of the OPRM1 118A>G genetic variant for pain treatmentEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Regard of functional pharmacogenetic polymorphisms may further the success of pain therapy by adopting individualized approaches. The μ-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1) 118A>G polymorphism is a promising candidate for both opioid effects and pain because of both biological reasonability and apparent experimental and clinical evidence. We analyzed its importance for pain therapy using a meta-analytic approach to studies relating it to opioid pain therapy. Data from suitable studies selected from hits of a PubMed search for “OPRM1” were independently extracted by two authors. The meta-analysis included phenotypes ...
Source: Pain - August 17, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Carmen Walter, Jörn Lötsch Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Intrathecal glycine for pain and dystonia in complex regional pain syndromeEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Since glycinergic neurotransmission plays an important inhibitory role in the processing of sensory and motor information, intrathecal glycine (ITG) administration may be a potential therapy for both pain and movement disorders in patients with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). Aims of the current study, which is the first report on ITG in humans, were to evaluate its safety and efficacy. ITG treatment during 4weeks was studied in CRPS patients with dystonia in the period before they received intrathecal baclofen treatment. Twenty patients were assessed and after exclusion of one patient, the remaining 19 pa...
Source: Pain - August 16, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Alexander G. Munts, Anton A. van der Plas, Joan H. Voormolen, Johan Marinus, Irene M. Teepe-Twiss, Willem Onkenhout, Joop M. van Gerven, Jacobus J. van Hilten Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Latency to facial expression change following noxious stimulation in infants is dependent on postmenstrual ageEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Change in facial expression over a fixed time after a noxious stimulus is the key measure used to calculate pain scores in preterm and newborn infants. We hypothesised that the latency of facial motor responses would be longer in the youngest premature infants and that behavioural scoring methods of pain may need to take this into account. One hundred and seventy-two clinically required heel lances were performed in 95 infants from 25 to 44weeks postmenstrual age (PMA). Sixty-four percentage of the heel lances evoked a change in facial expression. Change in facial expression was observed in infants across the who...
Source: Pain - August 16, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Rebeccah Slater, Anne Cantarella, Jan Yoxen, Deborah Patten, Henry Potts, Judith Meek, Maria Fitzgerald Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Expressive dimensions of pain catastrophizing: An observational study in adolescents with chronic painEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Investigated was the relationship between pain catastrophizing and pain intensity in adolescents suffering from chronic pain (n=38) and the extent to which they expressed communicative pain and pain-related protective behaviours. Adolescents were observed on video performing a 2-Min Walk Test (2MWT). Behaviours were coded on videotape. The adolescents’ verbalizations about the 2MWT were also rated by their parents. Analyses revealed that higher levels of catastrophic thinking about pain were associated with higher levels of facial pain expressions and verbalizations about their pain experience, beyond the effec...
Source: Pain - August 16, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: T. Vervoort, L. Goubert, C. Eccleston, M. Vandenhende, O. Claeys, J. Clarke, G. Crombez Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Development and psychometric analysis of the PROMIS pain behavior item bankEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: The measurement of pain behavior is a key component of the assessment of persons with chronic pain; however, few self-reported pain behavior instruments have been developed. We developed a pain behavior item bank as part of the Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS). For the Wave I testing, because of the large number of PROMIS items, a complex sampling approach was used where participants were randomly assigned to either respond to two full-item banks or to multiple 7-item blocks of items. A web-based survey was designed and completed by 15,528 members of the general population and 967 ...
Source: Pain - August 16, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Dennis A. Revicki, Wen-Hung Chen, Neesha Harnam, Karon F. Cook, Dagmar Amtmann, Leigh F. Callahan, Mark P. Jensen, Francis J. Keefe Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Unity vs. diversity of neuropathic pain mechanisms: Allodynia and hyperalgesia in rats selected for heritable predisposition to spontaneous painEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Do contrasting neuropathic pain diagnoses share common pathophysiological mechanisms? Selective breeding was used to derive rat lines with a common genetic background but a striking difference in the degree of spontaneous pain behavior expressed in the neuroma model of neuropathic pain (HA rats (high autotomy) and LA rats (low autotomy)). The contrasting pain phenotype in these lines is attributable to allelic differences at a small number of genetic loci. Here we show that HA and LA rats also differ in their nocifensive response to applied stimuli in the Chung (spinal nerve ligation, SNL) model of neuropathic pa...
Source: Pain - August 16, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Sagit Ziv-Sefer, Pnina Raber, Shahar Barbash, Marshall Devor Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Supraspinal role of protein kinase C in oxaliplatin-induced neuropathy in ratEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Abstract: Oxaliplatin is a platinum-based chemotherapy drug characterized by the development of a painful peripheral neuropathy which is reproduced in rodent animal models with features observed in humans. Our focus was to explore the alterations of intracellular second messengers at supraspinal level in oxaliplatin-induced mechanical hyperalgesia. In our experiments, chronic administration of oxaliplatin to rats induced mechanical hyperalgesia which lasted for many days. When the hyperalgesic rats were submitted to paw pressure test in the presence of selective PKC inhibitor Calphostin C supraspinally administered, hypera...
Source: Pain - August 16, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: M. Norcini, E. Vivoli, N. Galeotti, E. Bianchi, A. Bartolini, C. Ghelardini Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals

Upregulation of adrenomedullin in the spinal cord and dorsal root ganglia in the early phase of CFA-induced inflammation in ratsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
This study was undertaken to investigate the role of AM in a model of complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA)-induced inflammatory pain. Injection of CFA, but not of saline, in the unilateral hindpaw produced an increase in the expression of AM-like immunoreactivity (AM-IR) in laminae I–II of the spinal cord as well as in small- and medium-sized dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons at 48h. The content of AM in DRG on the side ipsilateral to CFA injection started to increase at 4h and remained at high levels at 24 and 48h. The selective antagonist of AM receptors, AM22–52, administered intrathecally (i.t.) 24h after CFA inject...
Source: Pain - August 16, 2009 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Yanguo Hong, Yushan Liu, Jean-Guy Chabot, Alain Fournier, Rémi Quirion Tags: Research papers Source Type: journals