Pain News and Research

Latest Pain News and Research

Knowing opioid use following cesarean delivery can inform individualized prescriptions

Knowing the amount of opioids taken following cesarean section surgery and before discharge can inform individualized prescriptions and cut down on unnecessary, leftover pills that could be used for non-medical purposes, according to a new study from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

9 Mar 2020

Major grant expands regenerative rehabilitation research at Kessler Foundation

A major award by the Derfner Foundation expands the capacity of Kessler Foundation to conduct regenerative rehabilitation research aimed at developing new ways to restore function to people with disabilities caused by musculoskeletal and neurological injuries.

9 Mar 2020

Obesity linked to pancreatitis, study finds

A study by researchers at Mayo Clinic in Arizona published in the the Journal of Clinical Investigation has found that obesity is not only implicated in chronic diseases such as diabetes, but also in sudden-onset diseases such as pancreatitis.

9 Mar 2020

TB bacteria produce fatty acid that triggers a pain-response cough to spread the disease

Tuberculosis is distinguished primarily by the persistent cough that serves to spread the disease. Stopping whatever triggers that cough could greatly reduce the transmission of the disease, which annually kills more than 1.3 million people worldwide.

7 Mar 2020

New route for total synthesis of tetrodotoxin

In Japan, puffer fish is considered a delicacy, but the tickle to the taste buds comes with a tickle to the nerves: fugu contains tetrodotoxin, a strong nerve toxin.

6 Mar 2020

New data model helps identify areas where Lyme disease cases may go unreported

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention receives reports of about 30,000 cases of Lyme disease each year. The real number, according to the agency, is closer to 300,000.

5 Mar 2020

Tuberculosis bacteria facilitate their spread by producing a molecule that triggers cough

The bacteria that cause the deadly lung disease tuberculosis appear to facilitate their own spread by producing a molecule that triggers cough, a new study led by UTSW researchers shows.

5 Mar 2020

Newly developed mobile app helps reduce pain in osteoarthritis patients

By performing a few simple physical exercises daily, and receiving information about their disease regularly, 500 osteoarthritis patients were able to on average halve their pain in 6 months - and improve their physical function.

5 Mar 2020

Back pain can be linked to humans' evolutionary past and vertebral shape

The cause of back pain can be linked to humanity's evolutionary past, according to new research from a team of bioarchaeologists at Simon Fraser University, the University of Liverpool, and the University of Sydney.

5 Mar 2020

Researchers identify mechanism that explains why women experience more pain than men

Imagine taking a pill to control your pain and, instead, the medication actually increases the pain you feel.

5 Mar 2020

Smartphone users have more headaches, find less relief from the medication

A new study published in the March 2020 issue of the journal Neurology Clinical Practice reports that smartphone use by people who have headaches is associated with greater use of medication but less relief, compared to those who do not use smartphones when they have headaches. This does not prove that smartphone use is responsible for the increased need for drugs or the relative intractability of the headaches, but shows a linkage.

4 Mar 2020

A new report on health spending by Americans

There have been several studies showing that spending on health by Americans is on the rise, and around 18 percent of the US economy is individual spending on health. A study titled, “US Health Care Spending by Payer and Health Condition, 1996-2016,” was published in the latest issue of JAMA today.

3 Mar 2020

Study provides new insight on neural processes behind our desire for revenge

New insight on the neural processes that drive a desire for revenge during conflict between groups has been published today in the open-access journal eLife.

3 Mar 2020

New step towards the development of non-addictive painkillers

Opioid-containing painkillers are virtually indispensable in clinical practice and are typically used in postoperative patients and patients undergoing cancer treatment.

3 Mar 2020

The changing face of the COVID-19 epidemic

The SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) virus, which hit China with the disease now named COVID-19 in December 2019 and has since spread to over 70 countries, has caused over 90,000 cases, and 3,117 fatalities, with 95% or more of both being in China.

2 Mar 2020

New multipronged program helps surgeons reduce opioid prescriptions by two-thirds

Opioid prescriptions have been a known driver of the opioid epidemic, and it's now known that opioid prescriptions that last longer than five days are a risk factor for longer-term opioid use.

2 Mar 2020

New step-by-step framework to assist providers treating older patients with chronic pain

Pain management can be safely optimized with a plan that balances the risks and benefits of treatments, according to a commentary in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Treating chronic pain is best achieved when pharmacologic strategies and nondrug therapies are used at the same time.

2 Mar 2020

Corralling hard-to-reach voters with traveling voting machines

Instrumental string music filtered into the sprawling multipurpose room, where a dozen people rolled their hips, stretched their arms and twisted from side to side. Nearby, small groups of women huddled over elaborate needlepoint embroidery while men and women shuffled dominoes and mahjong tiles at game tables.

2 Mar 2020

UTSA scientists discover link between a person's culture and sickness sensations

The physical and mental sensations we associate with feeling sick are a natural biological response to inflammation within the body.

2 Mar 2020

Experimental drug offers hope for improving movement symptoms of Parkinson's

Results from a study looking at an experimental drug to tackle the debilitating side effect of dyskinesia, have offered hope that it may have potential as a future treatment for people with Parkinson's.

2 Mar 2020