Every day, millions of women dress according to the dictates of fashion – right down to their toes – and complete their outfits with high-heeled shoes in every possible color, fabric, and style. Most women are well aware of discomfort, the difficulty of running for a bus, and the toll on their feet as they… Continue reading Are My High Heels Causing My Chronic Back Pain?
Tag: Pain Management
Five Myths and Five Insights about Chronic Pain
In “acute” pain (caused by a recent injury), the pain signals tissue damage. In ‘chronic’ pain (pain which has lasted after the tissue has healed) the pain is a sort of “ghost”. It no longer indicates ongoing injury. Most doctors are taught that this is true. Because of this belief, they keep looking to the… Continue reading Five Myths and Five Insights about Chronic Pain
Older Adults Support Opioid Rx Limits
Nearly a third of older adults have received a prescription for an opioid pain medicine in the past two years, but many of them didn’t get enough counseling about the risks that come with the potent painkillers, how to reduce their use, when to switch to a non-opioid option, or what to do with leftover… Continue reading Older Adults Support Opioid Rx Limits
New Guidance for Safe Opioid Prescription for Hospitalized Patients with Acute Pain
For hospitalized patients, pain is an all-too-common part of the experience. Among U.S. patients who have not undergone surgery, more than half receive at least one dose of an opioid for acute pain during their stay. Even as current research demonstrates that hospitalized patients’ exposure to opioids has contributed to the nationwide addiction epidemic,… Continue reading New Guidance for Safe Opioid Prescription for Hospitalized Patients with Acute Pain
3 Things to Understand About America’s Opioid Crisis and Pain Pill Addiction
Each time the American people think the nation’s opioid crisis can’t get any worse – it gets worse. In 2016, 42,249 people died from opioid overdoses, which comes to 116 deaths every day, according to the United States Department of Health and Human Services. In addition, 11.5 million people misused opioids. But, in a nation… Continue reading 3 Things to Understand About America’s Opioid Crisis and Pain Pill Addiction
Using Multiple Methods to Manage Pain After Joint Replacement Reduces Opioid Prescriptions and Resulting Complications
A multimodal approach to pain management (using two or more different methods or medications to manage pain) rather than using opioids alone was associated with a decrease in opioid use, opioid prescriptions and common opioid-related complications in patients undergoing total hip or knee replacements, according to a study published March 1st 2018 in the Online… Continue reading Using Multiple Methods to Manage Pain After Joint Replacement Reduces Opioid Prescriptions and Resulting Complications
A Pain in the Butt: Piriformis Syndrome
I experienced my first prolonged pain in the butt after moving to Delray Beach, Florida, and immersing myself in an intense barre exercise class – guaranteed to firm the butt and slim the waist. Healing a broken heart after my 35-year marriage blew up, the idea was to challenge myself with such a strenuous workout… Continue reading A Pain in the Butt: Piriformis Syndrome
Scientists Take a Big Step Toward Building a Better Opioid
For the first time, scientists at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and collaborators solved the crystal structure of the activated kappa opioid receptor bound to a morphine derivative. They then created a new drug-like compound that activates only that receptor, a key step in the development of new pain medications. A release… Continue reading Scientists Take a Big Step Toward Building a Better Opioid
Mind-Body Therapies Immediately Reduce Unmanageable Pain in Hospital Patients
Mindfulness training and hypnotic suggestion significantly reduced acute pain experienced by hospital patients, according to a study done at the University of Utah and published in July 2017 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. A release from the university notes that after participating in a single, 15-minute session of one of these mind-body therapies,… Continue reading Mind-Body Therapies Immediately Reduce Unmanageable Pain in Hospital Patients
Hospitalized Seniors Resist Medical Marijuana, but Opiates Prescribed for Nonsurgical Conditions Result in Poor Outcomes
In one of the first studies of its kind, nearly one-third of 10,000 older adults were prescribed opiate pain medications such as morphine, Percocet and OxyContin while hospitalized for non-surgical conditions. This course of care was significantly linked to poor outcomes such as being restrained and requiring bladder catheterization, according to research done in May… Continue reading Hospitalized Seniors Resist Medical Marijuana, but Opiates Prescribed for Nonsurgical Conditions Result in Poor Outcomes
Sex Differences in Brain Activity Alter Pain Therapies
A female brain’s resident immune cells are more active in regions involved in pain processing relative to males, according to a March 2017 study by Georgia State University researchers. A release from the university explains that the study, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, found that when microglia — the brain’s resident immune cells —… Continue reading Sex Differences in Brain Activity Alter Pain Therapies
Caring for Elders: Tips for Managing Pain
Older adults are more likely to experience pain than the general population but they may be less likely to be treated for it. The most common reason that pain in elders is under treated is that it is under reported. Many elders consider pain a natural consequence of aging – something they just have to… Continue reading Caring for Elders: Tips for Managing Pain
Is There a Link Between Pain and Depression?
Pain and depression are closely related. Depression can cause pain — and pain can cause depression. Sometimes pain and depression create a vicious cycle in which pain worsens symptoms of depression, and then the resulting depression worsens feelings of pain. In many people, depression causes unexplained physical symptoms such as back pain or headaches. This… Continue reading Is There a Link Between Pain and Depression?
Ending Chronic Pain With New Drug Therapy
A brain region controlling whether we feel happy or sad, as well as addiction, is remodeled by chronic pain, according to a Northwestern Medicine study. The paper was published December 21st 2015 in Nature Neuroscience. A release from the university reports that in a significant breakthrough for the millions of Americans suffering from chronic pain,… Continue reading Ending Chronic Pain With New Drug Therapy
Learning to Live with Chronic Pain
Chronic pain comes in a wide variety of forms, and the causes are many. Recent studies show that nearly one third of us — more than 100 million Americans each year, suffer from back pain, joint pain, arthritis; neck and muscle pain, headache and other types of recurrent pain. People who suffer from chronic pain… Continue reading Learning to Live with Chronic Pain
Preventing Knee Pain in At-Risk Adults with Diabetes
Knee pain in older adults, often caused by osteoarthritis, usually means more visits to the doctor and also can be a harbinger of disability. A study led by Daniel White, assistant professor of physical therapy at the University of Delaware, found that an intensive regimen of regular exercise and a healthy diet might reduce the… Continue reading Preventing Knee Pain in At-Risk Adults with Diabetes
One in Four Patients Prescribed Opioids Progresses to Long-Term Use
Opioid painkiller addiction and accidental overdoses have become far too common across the United States. To try to identify who is most at risk, Mayo Clinic researchers studied how many patients prescribed an opioid painkiller for the first time progressed to long-term prescriptions. The answer: 1 in 4. People with histories of tobacco use and… Continue reading One in Four Patients Prescribed Opioids Progresses to Long-Term Use
New Local Anesthetic Would Last Longer Than Lidocaine
Researchers at the University of Missouri have discovered a new compound, boronicaine, that offers longer lasting painkilling effects than the currently popular injectable, lidocaine. A release from the university quotes George Kracke, Ph.D., associate professor of anesthesiology and perioperative medicine at the MU School of Medicine and lead author of the study, as saying, “Because… Continue reading New Local Anesthetic Would Last Longer Than Lidocaine