Pain News and Research

Latest Pain News and Research

Scientists solve structure of infection tool used by Yersinia bacterium

Abdominal pain, fever, diarrhoea -- these symptoms could point to an infection with the bacterium Yersinia. The bacterium's pathogenic potential is based on a syringe-like injection apparatus called injectisome.

1 Aug 2013

Research identifies important mechanism behind bladder cancer

Bladder cancer is a common condition - an estimated 10,000 people are diagnosed with the disease each year in the UK. It is the seventh most common cancer in the UK, affecting men more than women.

1 Aug 2013

CCTA offers alternative means of improving triage of chest pain patients: Study

A study of two sets of 894 matched Emergency Department patients presenting with chest pain revealed that the use of coronary computed tomographic angiography led to fewer hospital admissions and shorter ED stays. According to lead researcher Michael Poon, MD, of Stony Brook University School of Medicine, the findings provide evidence that CCTA offers an alternative means of improving the triage of chest pain patients.

1 Aug 2013

FDA recalls Nova Max Blood Glucose Test Strips due to faulty readings

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is working with Nova Diabetes Care to recall 21 lots of glucose test strips marketed under the brand names Nova Max Blood Glucose Test Strips and Nova Max Plus Glucose Meter Kits. Nova Diabetes Care announced a recall on July 26, 2013.

1 Aug 2013

Severe arthritis pain treatments: an interview with Professor Walsh, University of Nottingham and Professor Wood, UCL

Pain is defined by the sufferer’s experience. Pain may be severe because it is intense, frequent or sustained, and because it is distressing. The severity of pain is not simply due to what is going on in the joint, but is also affected by how the body processes the pain signals, and the context in which it is experienced.

31 Jul 2013

Study: Full Body Illusions can be accompanied by changes in body temperature

Researchers from the Center for Neuroprosthetics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Switzerland, show that people can be "tricked" into feeling that an image of a human figure -- an "avatar" -- is their own body. The study is published in the open-access journal Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience.

31 Jul 2013

Nektar completes enrollment in NKTR-102 BEACON trial in patients with metastatic breast cancer

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NKTR) today announced that enrollment is complete in the pivotal clinical study of etirinotecan pegol (NKTR-102) in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

31 Jul 2013

HHS Inspector General raises concerns about Medicare policy on observation care

The report also finds that policies on admitting patients or keeping them under observation -- a distinction that can have dramatic financial impact on the patients -- varies substantially among hospitals.

31 Jul 2013

Study: About 50% of fibromyalgia patients have nerve damage

About half of a small group of patients with fibromyalgia - a common syndrome that causes chronic pain and other symptoms - was found to have damage to nerve fibers in their skin and other evidence of a disease called small-fiber polyneuropathy (SFPN). Unlike fibromyalgia, which has had no known causes and few effective treatments, SFPN has a clear pathology and is known to be caused by specific medical conditions, some of which can be treated and sometimes cured.

31 Jul 2013

Study finds doctors not following medical guidelines on back pain

Researchers report that physicians are often overly aggressive by prescribing addictive narcotics to patients instead of other recommended drugs and too often using surgery and unneeded imaging tools.

31 Jul 2013

Study reveals breast reduction surgery can improve health and quality of life

Breast reduction surgery produces measurable improvements in several important areas of health and quality of life, reports a study in the August issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery-, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

31 Jul 2013

First Edition: July 30, 2013

Today's headlines include a USA Today story reporting that personal health care costs rose in the 12 months ending in May at the slowest rate in the last 50 years -- a finding that makes the White House happy.

30 Jul 2013

WHO aims to increase global rate of breastfeeding for six months to 50% by 2025

Only 37 countries, or 19% of those reporting, have passed laws reflecting all the recommendations of the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, according to a new World Health Organization (WHO) report published during World Breastfeeding Week. The week is celebrated in more than 170 countries from 1 to 7 August.

30 Jul 2013

FDA grants orphan-drug designation to Convergence's CNV1014802 for treatment of TN

Convergence Pharmaceuticals Limited, the company focused on the development of novel and high value analgesic medicines for the treatment of chronic pain, is pleased to announce that its novel sodium channel blocker, CNV1014802 ('802), has been granted orphan-drug designation by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia.

30 Jul 2013

FDA accepts NDA for MNK-795 oral formulation

Depomed, Inc. (NASDAQ: DEPO) announced today that the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for filing a New Drug Application (NDA) from Mallinckrodt (NYSE: MNK) for MNK-795.

30 Jul 2013

Researchers uncover genetics behind what makes some people susceptible to Takayasu arteritis

Researchers have uncovered the genetics behind what makes some people susceptible to Takayasu arteritis, a debilitating disease that can lead to poor circulation, easy tiredness in the legs and arms, organ damage and stroke.

30 Jul 2013

Hope for treatment of childhood infections may come straight from the gut: Therapeutic poop

Call it therapeutic poop, if you will, but the best hope yet for an effective treatment of childhood infections with the drug-resistant bacterium C. difficile may come straight from the gut, according to recent research.

30 Jul 2013

FDA approves Rebiotix's IND application to begin RBX2660 Phase 2 study for recurrent CDI

Rebiotix Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the company's Investigational New Drug application to begin the Phase 2 clinical study of RBX2660 for the treatment of recurrent Clostridium difficile infection.

30 Jul 2013

Saudi and UK scientists provide detailed picture of MERS coronavirus

Saudi and UK scientists provide the most detailed picture yet of the clinical and laboratory characteristics of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus, revealing a wide range of clinical symptoms and an extremely high death rate among patients with co-existing medical conditions.

29 Jul 2013