Pain News and Research

Latest Pain News and Research

Gut-directed hypnosis more effective for treating irritable bowel syndrome

Therapeutic hypnosis is an effective and safe complementary technique in surgery and the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. This is the conclusion of a systematic review by Winfried Häuser and his co-authors in the latest issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International.

23 May 2016

JBCPP journal publishes new evidence for clinical efficacy of cannabis therapy

New evidence for the clinical efficacy of cannabis therapy is presented in the latest issue of the Journal of Basic and Clinical Physiology and Pharmacology, a De Gruyter publication.

23 May 2016

Researchers developing web-based, decision-support tool for osteoarthritis patients

Researchers at UMass Medical School are developing a web-based, decision-support tool for osteoarthritis patients that will provide individualized, evidence-based information in real time to guide optimal knee and hip care, including joint replacement.

23 May 2016

New study aims to identify biomarkers linked to cartilage degradation in OA patients

Joint injury can lead to post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA). In fact, about half of all people who rupture the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in their knee will develop PTOA within 10-20 years of the injury.

20 May 2016

Arthroscopic surgery may not be best option for older, arthritis patients

For patients with serious, ongoing hip pain, sometimes surgery is their best bet for relief. Given the choice between minimally invasive hip surgery and total hip replacement, most patients would choose the less invasive procedure, often done on an outpatient basis.

20 May 2016

Radiation-immunotherapy combination can help treat melanoma

Combining radiation treatments with a new generation of immunotherapies is showing promise as a one-two-punch against melanoma, Loyola Medicine researchers report in a review article.

20 May 2016

Maternal pregabalin exposure linked to major birth defect risk

First trimester exposure to pregabalin may be associated with an increased risk of major birth defects, an observational study suggests.

19 May 2016

Simple tips to reduce pain from sunburn

The British Skin Foundation has sun safety tips available to the public on this page and our primary advice is to follow these to avoid sunburn in the first place. However, we realise that sometimes accidents can happen.

19 May 2016

Hydroxyurea treatment improves pulmonary function decline in children with sickle cell disease

For the first time, researchers were able to demonstrate that children diagnosed with sickle cell disease showed improvement in lung function after treatment with hydroxyurea, a treatment that is underused despite its demonstrated benefits.

19 May 2016

Taking pregabalin drug during pregnancy could lead to major birth defects

A drug commonly used to treat pain, epilepsy, anxiety and other brain health disorders may be associated with an increased risk of major birth defects, according to a study published in the May 18, 2016, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

19 May 2016

Easy, immediate access to effective antidotes could help reduce deaths from opioid overdose

Over the past 15 years, deaths caused by heroin and prescription opioid overdoses have quadrupled despite the existence of a highly effective antidote. The cover story in Chemical & Engineering News, the weekly news magazine of the American Chemical Society, explores what it might take to turn the tide.

19 May 2016

CML treatment-free remission criteria outlined

Treatment-free remission may be feasible in many patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia, say researchers who set out clinical and logistical requirements for discontinuing tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy.

18 May 2016

Study demonstrates effectiveness of NeuroStar TMS Therapy System in women with postpartum depression

An unfortunate fact facing mothers in the U.S. is that postpartum depression is the most common complication of childbirth. Approximately 10 to 15 percent of women who give birth each year – or roughly 600,000 women – experience postpartum depression symptoms.

18 May 2016

The world's first Hackathon for chronic pain

Definition - A hackathon (also known as a hack day, hackfest or codefest) is an event in which computer programmers and others involved in software development and hardware development collaborate intensively on software projects.

18 May 2016

RDAVR system improves survival of patients with severe aortic stenosis

When replacing a defective aortic valve with a new one, restoring function is the first priority. However, variables such as durability, length of surgery, duration of heart stoppage, size of the surgical incision, postoperative pain, and complications are other important considerations.

17 May 2016

Exposing headache sufferers to pure-wavelength green light can lessen severity of migraines

Most migraine and post-traumatic headache sufferers find their headaches get worse in light, leading them to quit their most fundamental daily tasks and seek the comfort of darkness.

17 May 2016

Experimental hepatitis C drug slows down development of Zika in mice

Virologists from KU Leuven, Belgium, have shown that an experimental antiviral drug against hepatitis C slows down the development of Zika in mice. The research team was led by Professor Johan Neyts from the Laboratory of Virology and Chemotherapy.

17 May 2016

WHO/PAHO statement on Zika virus and the 2016 Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) recognize that athletes and visitors are seeking more information on the risks of Zika and ways to prevent infection while attending the 2016 Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games (5 August to 18 September 2016).

16 May 2016

GammaCore both effective and cost effective for the treatment of cluster headache

A paper in the Journal of Headache and Pain reports that non-invasive stimulation of the vagus nerve (nVNS) is a cost effective therapy for cluster headache. These findings were based on reductions in medication use and improvements in quality of life. The publication also notes that further economic benefits would have been found had reduced visits to clinics been taken into account.

16 May 2016

Pluristem completes enrollment in Phase II intermittent claudication trial

Pluristem Therapeutics Inc., a leading developer of placenta-based cell therapy products, today announced it has completed the planned enrollment of 150 patients in a global Phase II trial of its PLacental eXpanded (PLX)-PAD cells for the treatment of intermittent claudication (IC), a peripheral artery disease (PAD). The double blind, randomized, placebo controlled trial enrolled 50 patients since October 2015 in the U.S., Germany, Israel, and South Korea.

16 May 2016