scholarly journals Contemporary treatment neuropathic pain

2011 ◽  
Vol 64 (9-10) ◽  
pp. 443-447
Author(s):  
Milan Cvijanovic ◽  
Svetlana Simic ◽  
Sofija Banic-Horvat ◽  
Zita Jovin ◽  
Petar Slankamenac ◽  
...  

Introduction. Neuropathic pain, or pain associated with disease or injury to the peripheral or central nervous system, is a common symptom of a heterogeneous group of conditions, including diabetic neuropathy, trigeminal neuralgia, postherpetic neuralgia and spinal cord injury. Chronic neuropathic pain should not be thought of as a symptom. It should truly be thought of as a disease with a very complicated pathophysiology. Pathophysiology. The mechanisms involved in neuropathic pain are complex and involve both peripheral and central pathophysiologic phenomenon. The underlying dysfunction may involve deafferentation within the peripheral nervous system (e.g. neuropathy), deafferentation within the central nervous system (e.g. post-thalamic stroke) or an imbalance between the two (e.g. phantom limb pain). Clinical characteristics. Neuropathic pain is non-nociceptive, in contrast to acute nociceptive pain, and it can be described as ?burning?, ?electric?, ?tingling?, and ?shooting? in nature. Treatment. Rational polypharmacy is often necessary and actually it is almost always the rule. It would be an exception if a patient was completely satisfied with his treatment. Treatment goals should include understanding that our patients may need to be titrated and managed with more than one agent and one type of treatment. There should be the balance of safety, efficacy, and tolerability. Conclusion. There are many new agents and new applications of the existing agents being currently studied which will most certainly lead to even more improved ways of managing this very complicated set of disorders.

CNS Spectrums ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 298-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter Zieglgänsberger ◽  
Achim Berthele ◽  
Thomas R. Tölle

AbstractNeuropathic pain is defined as a chronic pain condition that occurs or persists after a primary lesion or dysfunction of the peripheral or central nervous system. Traumatic injury of peripheral nerves also increases the excitability of nociceptors in and around nerve trunks and involves components released from nerve terminals (neurogenic inflammation) and immunological and vascular components from cells resident within or recruited into the affected area. Action potentials generated in nociceptors and injured nerve fibers release excitatory neurotransmitters at their synaptic terminals such as L-glutamate and substance P and trigger cellular events in the central nervous system that extend over different time frames. Short-term alterations of neuronal excitability, reflected for example in rapid changes of neuronal discharge activity, are sensitive to conventional analgesics, and do not commonly involve alterations in activity-dependent gene expression. Novel compounds and new regimens for drug treatment to influence activity-dependent long-term changes in pain transducing and suppressive systems (pain matrix) are emerging.


Author(s):  
Nick Ward

Residual upper limb dysfunction after injury to the central nervous system is a major clinical, socioeconomic and societal problem. Upper limb dysfunction can occur in many disorders of the central nervous system including cervical spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis, but therapeutic approaches for upper limb dysfunction after stroke are the most thoroughly investigated. General approaches to treatment require:�(i)�avoidance of complications such as spasticity, pain, and loss of range; (ii) early high-dose engaging functional motor training; (iii) consideration of how neuroplastic processes might be engaged to enhance the effects of training. The evidence to deliver optimal personalized treatment strategies for all patients is lacking, but there is evidence that higher doses and intensity of upper limb therapy will be beneficial to most patients. Recent work has focused on how technological innovation might be used to promote recovery of upper limb function.


Cornea ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 36 (11) ◽  
pp. 1408-1414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Xiang ◽  
Wenchang Zhou ◽  
Ping Wang ◽  
Hui Yang ◽  
Feng Gao ◽  
...  

RSC Advances ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (32) ◽  
pp. 18677-18686
Author(s):  
Jia Liu ◽  
Kai Li ◽  
Ke Huang ◽  
Chengliang Yang ◽  
Zhipeng Huang ◽  
...  

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a traumatic injury to the central nervous system (CNS) with a high rate of disability and a low capability of self-recovery.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilse Bollaerts ◽  
Jessie Van houcke ◽  
Lien Andries ◽  
Lies De Groef ◽  
Lieve Moons

Damage to the central nervous system (CNS) is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in elderly, as repair after lesions or neurodegenerative disease usually fails because of the limited capacity of CNS regeneration. The causes underlying this limited regenerative potential are multifactorial, but one critical aspect is neuroinflammation. Although classically considered as harmful, it is now becoming increasingly clear that inflammation can also promote regeneration, if the appropriate context is provided. Here, we review the current knowledge on how acute inflammation is intertwined with axonal regeneration, an important component of CNS repair. After optic nerve or spinal cord injury, inflammatory stimulation and/or modification greatly improve the regenerative outcome in rodents. Moreover, the hypothesis of a beneficial role of inflammation is further supported by evidence from adult zebrafish, which possess the remarkable capability to repair CNS lesions and even restore functionality. Lastly, we shed light on the impact of aging processes on the regenerative capacity in the CNS of mammals and zebrafish. As aging not only affects the CNS, but also the immune system, the regeneration potential is expected to further decline in aged individuals, an element that should definitely be considered in the search for novel therapeutic strategies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caleb Morton ◽  
Fen-Lei Cheng

Background and Purpose:   Injury to the central nervous system (CNS) is often detrimental to the health, functionality, and quality of life in both the short- and long-term. Injuries that fall under this umbrella include traumatic brain injury (TBI), traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI), and stroke. These types of injuries vary in what initiates them, but their proposed mechanisms leading to cell dysfunction and death are strikingly similar. There has been pre-clinical and limited retrospective data supporting the idea that gabapentin and pregabalin both have neuroprotective qualities and may alleviate some of the sub-acute damage initiated by these different injuries. The purpose of this study is to determine whether patients taking either gabapentin or pregabalin at the time of their injury tend to have better outcomes than patients with similar injuries who were not taking either one of the two medications.  Methods:  This is a retrospective chart review analysis of 600 patients admitted to Parkview Hospitals from 2016-2019 for TBI, TSCI, or stroke. The outcomes of patients taking either gabapentin or pregabalin with one of the prior diagnoses will be compared to patients with the same diagnosis who were not taking either of the medications mentioned. Statistical analysis will be performed to evaluate if any significant difference exists between the outcomes at discharge of patients taking either medication versus patients who were not.  Results:  Results will be listed as comparisons between patients grouped by injury, and sub-grouped by medication usage. P-values will be included to show significance of comparisons.  Conclusion and Potential Impact:   The main impact of this study is to provide evidence and support leading to a potential method to improve outcomes in patients with CNS injuries. Secondary impacts are providing basis for development of a CNS injury registry and support for developing a unified CNS injury assessment scale to allow comparison of the treatments of different CNS injuries. 


Author(s):  
SUBHRANSU SEKHAR JENA ◽  
MONALISA JENA ◽  
NIBEDITA PATRO ◽  
SWATI MISHRA ◽  
MAITREYEE PANDA ◽  
...  

Objective: Neuropathic pain arises from damage or pathological changes in the peripheral or central nervous system. The pain is difficult to treat as standard treatment with conventional analgesics doesn`t typically provide effective relief of pain. Methods: It was a one-year study of utilization and analysis of prescriptions for PNDs (Painful neuropathic disorders). The parameters evaluated were demographic profile of the patient (age and gender), type and etiology of PNDs, drug data (name of the group of drugs with individual drugs, mono or polytherapy, number of drugs per prescription, formulation) and associated adverse drug reactions (ADR) with the prescribed drug. Results: Maximum number of patients of PNDs resides in the age group of 18 – 35 yrs (41.2%) & more common in females. The most common PND encountered was painful diabetic neuropathy (43.9%) followed by cervical and lumbar radiculopathy, postherpetic neuralgia. 2942 drugs were prescribed in 1020 prescriptions out of which 96.8% were oral and 3.2% were topical formulations. Most frequently prescribed group of the drug was tricyclic antidepressants (27.3%) followed by anticonvulsants (25.3%). Polypharmacy was seen 89.7% as compared to monotherapy (10.3%). Only 132 ADRs of various types were seen. The most common organ system affected was the central nervous system followed by gastro intestinal systems. The most common drugs implicated for ADRs were TCAs (24.4%), anticonvulsants (16.6%), and Pregabeline (9.8%). There were no fatal adverse events. Mild to moderate ADRs included constipation, nausea, vomiting, drowsiness, dryness of mouth. Conclusions: The choice of drug depends on etiology of neuropathic pain, drug efficacy and availability and also on ADR profile.


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