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Pediatric pain assessment and management are frequently underestimated and undertreated. Therefore, those practitioners working in the emergency sector should be ready with strategies. An article in the Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians Open provides suggestions for pain and...
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The Lancet Public Health journal published findings from a study of opioid analgesic consumption in 66 countries and found great disparity. Consumption was measured in milligram morphine equivalent per 1000 inhabitants per day (MME per 1000/day), from 2015 to 2019. Of much concern, “Opioid use in...
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Severe mental illness (SMI) is associated with an earlier death by 15 to 20 years, poor physical health, diabetes, HIV, and a higher burden of pain. A study published in PAIN sought to uncover innovations for the optimization of pain management in this group—defined as schizophrenia spectrum...
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The question posed in an article published in Annals of Internal Medicine: have patients suffering from chronic noncancer pain been affected negatively by state laws curbing opioid prescribing? There have been a few overlapping laws, for prescribing caps, pill mills, enrollment, and mandatory...
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"Elect"ing to say "maybe?" Results have been released from a National Poll on Healthy Aging. Among adults 50 to 80 years of age who considered having elective surgery—including joint, eye, abdominal, cosmetic, foot, or leg—well over 60% said their #1 concern was pain/discomfort. The poll was...
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Does an earlier age for first menstrual cycle lead to chronic widespread pain later in life? Researchers in Norway utilized the Tromsø Study—conducted from 2007-2008 and 2015-2016, with over 12,000 participants aged 30-99—and reported findings in the journal of Pain. The study looked at chronic...
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In a New England Journal of Medicine online editorial, a professor/hematologist commented on a study about sickle cell disease and gene therapy. The study, which also appeared in NEJM, successfully prevented complications from the disease by adding a gene to a patient’s blood stem cells. “Gene...
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In a narrative review published in Cureus, researchers examined acute pain, which is normal postsurgery, and its potential transition to chronic pain. Postsurgery rates of persistent/subacute pain (lasting over a month) range from 10% to 50%; chronic pain (lasting more than 3 months) is seen in 2%...
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The journal Spinal Cord has published an article titled “Psychological morbidity following spinal cord injury and among those without spinal cord injury: the impact of chronic centralized and neuropathic pain.” Researchers compared psychological morbidities—such as mood disorders, sleep problems...
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In an effort to uncover empirical evidence, the National Football League is funding a trial on the efficacy of cannabis. Many professional athletes claim cannabis lessens pain after a game and accelerates recovery, but does it? Via testing and monitoring, the NFL hopes to determine the value, and...