Pain News and Research

Latest Pain News and Research

Physics professors granted patent for new device that could revolutionize diabetes management

When Furman Professor of Physics Bill Baker was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in 2003, it served as an initiation into a painful club.

14 Oct 2019

Mindfulness and medication for opioid dependence may reduce cravings

People suffering from opioid addiction and chronic pain may have fewer cravings and less pain if they use both mindfulness techniques and medication for opioid dependence, according to Rutgers and other researchers.

14 Oct 2019

Patients eligible for charity care instead get big bills

When Ashley Pintos went to the emergency room of St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, Wash., in 2016, with a sharp pain in her abdomen and no insurance, a representative demanded a $500 deposit before treating her.

14 Oct 2019

Overdose prevention should also focus on alcohol use, study suggests

For several years, the national spotlight has shone on the need to prevent and rapidly treat opioid overdoses. But a new study suggests a need for more focus on the risk of alcohol overdoses among people who use opioids of all kinds, as well as cocaine, marijuana and certain prescription drugs.

14 Oct 2019

Novel clinical trial to examine use of cannabidiol in people with Parkinson's-related psychosis

A pioneering clinical trial will investigate the use of cannabidiol (CBD) - a compound found in the cannabis plant - in people with Parkinson's-related psychosis.

14 Oct 2019

Ophthalmologists find more evidence linking common bladder drug to retinal conditions

A drug widely prescribed for a bladder condition for decades, now appears to be toxic to the retina, the light sensing tissue at the back of the eye that allows us to see.

14 Oct 2019

Caution urged in reducing opioids for pain

After years and decades in which healthcare providers were freely prescribing opiates for all sorts of painful conditions, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published guidelines to help bring down opioid prescription rates and with them, addiction and overdose-related death rates. Though these were not binding, they urged physicians to be cautious in dealing with opioids when prescribing for pain.

13 Oct 2019

Brain protein plays a prominent role in the maintenance of chronic pain

A protein called RGS4 (Regulator of G protein signaling 4) plays a prominent role in the maintenance of long-term pain states and may serve as a promising new target for the treatment of chronic pain conditions, according to research conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published in print October 16, in The Journal of Neuroscience.

11 Oct 2019

Antibody-based eye drop treatment reduces signs and symptoms of dry eye disease

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago are the first to identify the presence of a specific type of antibody, called anti-citrullinated protein autoantibodies, or ACPAs, in human tear fluid.

11 Oct 2019

Using mindfulness approach to tackle opioid crisis

Boston Medical Center was awarded a multi-million dollar grant from the National Institutes of Health to improve function for chronic lower back pain (cLBP) using a non-pharmacologic approach.

11 Oct 2019

Researchers question the effectiveness of exercise system for relieving lower back pain

A paper recently published by researchers from the Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute at the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine questions the effectiveness of a patented exercise system for relieving lower back pain.

11 Oct 2019

Research finds drugs for better long-term treatment of poorly controlled asthma

The waning effectiveness of drugs over time continues to be a major challenge in treating diseases, including asthma.

11 Oct 2019

UC San Diego's CMCR announces research grants to explore cannabis for medical applications

The Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research (CMCR) at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, the nation's oldest research center for scientific inquiry into the safety and efficacy of cannabis, has announced $3 million in research grants to explore new applications of cannabis for a number of novel medical applications.

11 Oct 2019

Women being mistreated during childbirth in Ghana, Guinea, Myanmar and Nigeria

A new study led by the World Health Organization (WHO), published in The Lancet on October 9, 2019, reveals that women in four poorer countries are at risk of being ill-treated if they visit hospitals or other medical facilities for childbirth.

10 Oct 2019

Imperial scientists aim to re-engineer stump skin for more comfortable prosthetics

People who have had limbs removed often use false arms and legs, known as prosthetics, to improve mobility and independence - but 75 per cent of prosthetic-wearing amputees encounter problems like skin tears, ulceration, and blisters.

10 Oct 2019

Osteoarthritis has no cure, but symptoms can be managed

Osteoarthritis can't be ignored. On a grand scale, it is the most common form of arthritis (which actually isn't a specific disease but rather a general term for inflammation in a joint), accounting for more cases than all the other forms combined. It affects an estimated 31 million Americans and is a leading cause of disability among adults.

10 Oct 2019

New microneedle insulin pill avoids injections, applies insulin to gut wall

Quite a few drugs such as insulin are made up of protein and hence can’t be taken internally, as the gut breaks them down, rendering them useless. Thus these have to be administered by injection, and in the case of drugs that have to be taken several times a day this is a definite limitation.

10 Oct 2019

How do gallstones form?

The human body is known to produce stones in various locations, most commonly in the kidneys, the bladder, the gallbladder and the appendix. Many of these stones appear without any obvious reason. However, a new study published in the journal Immunity shows the whole storyline for the first time: how gallstones are formed.

9 Oct 2019

New smart prosthetic sockets aim to improve comfort, performance in prostheses

As a physically active college student Trevor LeMaster is no stranger to bodily aches and pains. He is a runner and a former high school wrestler who experiences soreness and workout injuries. LeMaster is also a transfemoral amputee and has first-hand knowledge of the impacts the fit of his prosthetic device has on his residual limb.

9 Oct 2019