Comparison of preoperative pain and medication use in emergency patients presenting with irreversible pulpitis or teeth with necrotic pulps.

OBJECTIVE: This retrospective study compared differences in preoperative pain and medication use in patients with moderate to severe pain who sought emergency endodontic care for teeth with irreversible pulpitis and for symptomatic teeth with necrotic pulps. STUDY DESIGN: A total of 323 patients seeking emergency endodontic treatment completed questionnaires regarding their biographical information, pain, pain history, and medications. Teeth were tested for vitality, mobility, percussion, and palpation pain. Lymphadenopathy was also evaluated. RESULTS: Patients with irreversible pulpitis waited significantly (P <.05) longer before seeking emergency care (9 days vs 4 days) than patients with symptomatic teeth with necrotic pulps. No differences (P >.05) were found between the groups in terms of analgesic or antibiotic use and pain relief from preoperative narcotic medications. Nonnarcotic analgesics were reported to significantly reduce pain more often in patients with symptomatic teeth with necrotic pulps. There were sex differences in the group of patients with irreversible pulpitis: More women than men were taking analgesic medications and, in the group having symptomatic teeth with necrotic pulps, more men than women reported pain relief from their analgesic medications. CONCLUSION: Patients with irreversible pulpitis wait longer to seek emergency treatment. A majority (81%-83%) of emergency patients with moderate to severe pain will have taken some type of medication(s) to help control their pain, and more women than men with irreversible pulpitis will take an analgesic. By taking their preoperative medication(s), this group of patients will get relief 62% to 65% of the time; furthermore, more men than women with symptomatic teeth with necrotic pulps will experience pain relief.

Radiotherapy for pain relief in locally recurrent colorectal cancer.

Eighteen patients with local recurrence of colorectal cancer have been treated by external beam radiotherapy for pain relief. Seven received a fractionated course of 4500cGy and the remainder received single fractions of 1000cGy, a number being treated more than once. The median survival for all patients once recurrence had produced pain was 7 months. Treatment benefit was recorded in 71% treated by fractionated courses and in 66% by single fractions. The duration of pain relief was 3 months for each method. The repeatability of single fraction treatment indicates that this is a worthwhile alternative technique, particularly for those in poor general condition.

Factors predicting orofacial pain patient satisfaction with improvement.

AIMS: To determine psychosocial predictors of patients' ratings of satisfaction with improvement and subjective pain relief. This study also examined the underlying components of patient satisfaction with improvement, as assessed at follow-up. METHODS: The sample consisted of 107 chronic orofacial pain patients evaluated at a university-based orofacial pain clinic and referred for treatment with individualized treatment plans. Pain and psychosocial functioning were assessed with standard, reliable, validated self-report instruments administered at the initial evaluation. Follow-up data were collected via a telephone-administered structured interview 8 months after the initial evaluation. Regression methodology was used to determine prediction models for satisfaction with improvement and subjective pain relief. Patient ratings of the quality of the caregiver communication were used as a control variable in all analyses. RESULTS: Quality of caregiver communication predicted approximately 10 to 14% of the variance in outcomes in all models. Greater initial use of cognitive coping strategies and reduced depression predicted higher ratings of satisfaction with improvement and increased pain relief. When concurrent relationships among variables at the follow-up were examined, greater subjective pain relief since the evaluation, lower current pain, and higher ratings of overall mood were significant predictors of patient satisfaction with improvement. CONCLUSION: This study is one of the first to report that the use of certain cognitive coping strategies is associated with positive outcome for patients suffering from orofacial pain. These findings underscore the importance of individual differences on behavioral and psychosocial parameters in the prediction of patients' subjective evaluation of treatment outcome.

Neurolytic celiac plexus block for pancreatic cancer pain.

Neurolytic celiac plexus block (NCPB) is an effective method for relief of the pain of pancreatic cancer, but many physicians are reluctant to use the technique because of the perception that the incidence of complications is high. We analyzed the incidence of complications and the quality of pain relief obtained during the use of NCPB in 136 patients with pancreatic cancer. Eighty-five percent of the patients had good pain relief that, in 75% of cases, lasted through the patients' remaining life. No permanent neurologic complications resulted, although two patients had a pneumothorax. Radiographically guided needle placement did not affect quality of pain relief or the incidence of complications. This neurolytic pain block is effective, has a low incidence of neurologic complications, and deserves more widespread use in patients with pancreatic cancer.

Contradictory correlations between derived scales.

In a clinical trial one scale of pain relief is scored backwards relative to another (high on one corresponding to low on the other), with a consequent large negative correlation. But two derived scales of total pain, obtained by multiplying average pain relief on each scale by duration of pain (common to both pain relief measurements) gave an almost zero correlation. This apparent contradiction is explained by the inverse relationship between the pain relief scales and the large differences in duration of pain experienced by the patients.

Radiotherapy for symptomatic osseous metastases: special reference to the analysis of patients achieved complete pain relief

A total of 223 patients with 498 symptomatic osseous metastases treated by radiotherapy between July 1985 and June 1991 were retrospectively analyzed. Most sites, 409 (82%), were irradiated by conventional fractionation, while the remaining 89 sites were irradiated by dose-increment fractionation, low-dose short schedules or hyperfractionation. The total dose ranged from 5.4 to 74 Gy (mean, 41.4 Gy). Daily pain assessment was done by patients themselves on an 11-point scale, i.e., 10: pretreatment pain, 0: disappearance of pain following radiotherapy. In addition, improvement in performance status (PS) and the duration of complete pain relief were assessed. The following results were obtained. 1) pain relief: Of 498 evaluated sites, complete pain relief and partial pain relief were achieved in 403 sites (81%) and 64 sites (13%), respectively. No significant difference was seen in the incidence of complete pain relief between weight-bearing bone and non-weight-bearing bone. Patients with PS 1, 2 or 3 were significantly superior to those with PS 4 in terms of complete pain relief (P < 0.05-0.001). The complete response rate increased in accordance with the dose delivered, i.e., 49% at 20 Gy, 70% at 30 Gy and 77% at 40 Gy, in all of the 498 sites irradiated; 60%, 86% and 95% of 403 sites, respectively, achieved complete pain relief. Regarding the fractionation regimens, dose-increment fractionation was superior to both conventional fractionation and low-dose short schedules in terms of complete pain relief rate. 2) Improvement of PS: Of 223 evaluated patients, PS was improved 1 to 3 steps in 162 (73%) at the completion of radiotherapy. The improvement rates of patients with PS 2 or 3 were significantly better than those with PS 4 (P < 0.025, 0.001). 3) Duration of complete pain relief: Of 288 appraisable sites, the recurrence of pain was recognized in 23 (9%) at intervals of 3 to 21 months (median, 5 months). On the other hand, the duration of pain relief was 16 to 79 months (median, 32 months) in 26 sites of survivors, and 1 to 28 months (median, 5 months) in 239 sites of decreased patients. The mean total dose was 48.5 Gy (TDF: 82) to 62 sites with a duration of pain relief of more than 13 months. 4) Re-irradiation to the same site: Of 14 sites retreated after initial complete response with a total dose of 30 to 50 Gy (mean, 48 Gy), 11 (79%) were in weight-bearing bone and 9 (64%) responded completely. 5) Patients with unsatisfactory pain relief (pain score > or = 6): Of 31 sites, 27 (94%) were in patients with PS 4, and 19 (61%) received a total dose below 30 Gy. 6) The 11-point scale for patient self-assessment of pain relief following radiotherapy was thought to be useful and easy to adopt in general clinics.

Single-dose oral Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) for acute postoperative pain: a quantitative systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) and Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) sodium are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs used in a variety of painful conditions, including the treatment of postoperative pain. This review aims to assess the efficacy, safety and duration of action of a single oral dose of Naproxen ( Naprosyn )/Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) sodium for moderate to severe acute postoperative pain in adults, compared with placebo. METHODS: The Cochrane Library (issue 4 2002), EMBASE, PubMed, MEDLINE and an in-house database were searched for randomised, double blind, placebo controlled trials of a single dose of orally administered Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) or Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) sodium in adults with acute postoperative pain. pain relief or pain intensity data were extracted and converted into dichotomous information to give the number of patients with at least 50% pain relief over 4 to 6 hours. Relative benefit and number-needed-to-treat were then calculated. The percentage of patients with any adverse event, number-needed-to-harm, and time to remedication were also calculated. RESULTS: Ten trials with 996 patients in met the inclusion criteria. Six trials compared Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) sodium 550 mg (252 patients) with placebo (248 patients); the NNT for at least 50% pain relief over six hours was 2.6 (95% confidence interval 2.2 to 3.2). There was no significant difference between the number of patients experiencing any adverse event on treatment compared with placebo. Weighted mean time to remedication was 7.6 hours for Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) sodium 550 mg (206 patients) and 2.6 hours for placebo (205 patients). Four other trials used lower doses. CONCLUSION: A single oral dose of Naproxen ( Naprosyn ) sodium 550 mg is an effective analgesic in the treatment of acute postoperative pain. A low incidence of adverse events was found, although these were not reported consistently.

Analgesic effect of neurolytic celiac plexus block guided by ultrasonography in advanced malignancies

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the analgesic effect of celiac plexus block with anhydrous alcohol in patients suffering form advanced abdominal malignancies. METHODS: Ultrasonographically demonstrated and guided, 20 to 50 ml of anhydrous alcohol is injected into the celiac plexus and superior mesenteric plexus by fine needle of 22G. The injecting angle between the needle and the aorta is 20 to 30 degree. The injecting fields mainly located around the celiac plexus and the dorsal part of tumor are also injected. Sometimes if the tumor is rather large, an appropriate amount of alcohol was injected inside too. RESULTS: Twenty-eight cases of advanced abdominal malignancies were treated, among whom 96.4% achieved analgesic effect of different degree, 53.6% (15 cases) achieved the period of pain relief over three days, and 42.8% (12 cases) achieved partial relief. The analgesic effect is correlated with the amount of alcohol injected, i.e. no complete relief was observed in the four patients who received less than 12 ml, while two out of six could get transient complete relief in those who received 15 to 28 ml. In the group of 30 to 50 ml, 72.2% (13 cases) could get complete pain relief. Nine cases with big tumor received injection in side the tumor, with six tumors resulting in shrinkage or necrosis, significant pain relief also achieved in these cases. Complications occurred in nine cases (32.1%), with four cases of postural hypotension, two cases of vomiting, two cases of hiccup and one case of diarrhea. CONCLUSION: Neurolytic celiac plexus block guided by ultrasonography is a safe and effective modality in the management of intractable pain resulted from advanced abdominal malignancies.

Management and relief of pain in an emergency department from the adult patients' perspective.

To estimate the prevalence of pain in adult patients attending an emergency department (ED) and to identify risk markers for insufficient pain relief, a cross-sectional survey was conducted for 16 days, 24 hours each day, in the ED of a Paris university hospital. A structured questionnaire was used to collect characteristics of pain and its management from patients. Pain intensity was evaluated both on arrival and before discharge using two scales (a numerical descriptor scale or a verbal pain intensity scale). On arrival, 78% of the patients complained of pain; among them, 54% complained of intense pain and 47% suffered procedural pain. Insufficient pain relief was assessed in 289 (77%) patients. We identified the following risk markers for insufficient pain relief: moderate or low pain intensity, no intervention in the ED before the medical examination, and no use of medication before arrival.

Degenerative conditions of the lumbar spine treated with intervertebral titanium cages and posterior instrumentation for circumferential fusion.

Thirty-five consecutive patients were evaluated at an average follow-up time of 20 months after circumferential lumbar spinal fusion. All patients had degenerative conditions of the lumbar spine and same-day anterior spinal fusion by using titanium cages packed with autograft bone and posterior instrumentation combined with a posterolateral autogenous bone graft. The purpose of this study was to determine whether anterior titanium cage placement and posterior instrumentation with autologous bone graft was a safe and efficacious procedure in patients with degenerative disease of the lumbar spine. Fusion rates, complications, pain relief, medication use, and work status were specifically analyzed. Although previous reports documented the use of this technique for trauma and tumor cases, few studies assessed clinical and radiographic results in patients with degenerative conditions of the lumbar spine. Plain radiographs were used to determine spinal fusion at each spinal level. All patients were administered preoperative and postoperative questionnaires regarding three specific clinical-outcome parameters. These consisted of pain level, medication use, and work status. Intraoperative and postoperative complications were also documented. Radiographic results showed that 61 (97%) of 63 lumbar levels undergoing an arthrodesis procedure fused either anteriorly, posteriorly, or both. Of the 35 patients in this series, 33 (94%) fused at all levels, and two did not. Substantial pain relief was reported in 46% of all patients. Thirteen (37%) patients had one or more surgical complications. Circumferential spinal fusion in patients with degenerative etiologies yields excellent radiographic fusion rates and good pain relief. The procedure is technically demanding and is associated with a high rate of complications.