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Diagnosis and management of complex regional pain syndrome

22 Sep 2017Paid-up subscribers

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a chronic debilitating painful condition comprising unremitting pain, sensory, sudomotor, vasomotor and motor abnormalities in the affected extremity. It has a peak incidence in the 55-75 age group and there is an association with asthma and migraine. CRPS is three times more common in women than men. CRPS should be suspected in any patient presenting with persistent pain in an extremity beyond the expected period of tissue healing following an acute injury, sprain, fracture or surgical procedure. Severe pain in a glove or stocking distribution is the predominant symptom in > 90% of cases.

Aerobic exercise can improve sleep and pain in fibromyalgia

22 Jun 2017Paid-up subscribers

Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition characterised by regional pain at multiple sites, non-restorative sleep and fatigue. In the UK, it is a common cause of musculoskeletal pain and significant disability, affecting around 2% of the population. It has a female preponderance with a female to male ratio of 7:1. Self-help strategies are important. There is strong evidence of benefit from a slow graded increase in daily aerobic exercise which can increase delta sleep and restore descending pain inhibition mechanisms. Sleep hygiene should also be considered to promote delta sleep.

Early referral improves long-term outcomes in rheumatoid arthritis

23 May 2017Paid-up subscribers

Rheumatoid arthritis is a common, chronic systemic inflammatory disease of unclear aetiology leading to synovial hypertrophy and joint inflammation. It typically presents with symmetrical polyarthritis of small joints of the hands or feet, but can also involve larger joints, and have associated extra-articular manifestations. Diagnosis is based on duration of symptoms, joint distribution, level of inflammatory markers and autoantibodies. The presence of synovitis or effusion is essential for diagnosis. Early referral of patients with suspected synovitis results in significant improvements in long-term outcomes.

Improving pain control in diabetic neuropathy

22 Mar 2017Paid-up subscribers

Diabetic neuropathy is thought to affect 1.9% of the world’s population and 50% of patients with a diagnosis of diabetes mellitus which would equate to 2.25 million people in the UK. The term diabetic neuropathy includes multiple distinct clinical entities that have been classified under the broad headings of focal and multifocal neuropathies and symmetrical neuropathies. Peripheral diabetic neuropathy, a chronic distal symmetrical predominantly sensory neuropathy, is the most common form of diabetic neuropathy. The common presentation is of painful symptoms originating in the feet, that then spread to the knees before involving the distal portion of the upper limbs in a ‘glove and stocking’ distribution.

Diagnosis and management of polymyalgia rheumatica

16 Dec 2016Paid-up subscribers

Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is a common condition in the older population. The prevalence in the over 50s is approximately 1 in 133 with a female to male ratio of 2:1.  PMR is an inflammatory condition, however, the exact aetiology is still unknown. Its association with giant cell arteritis (GCA) is well recognised. Half of patients with GCA will have some PMR symptoms and up to one fifth of patients with PMR will have clinical or histological evidence of GCA. If GCA is suspected, then assessment and treatment are urgent. 

Improving joint pain and function in osteoarthritis

16 Dec 2016Paid-up subscribers

Osteoarthritis has become a major chronic pain condition. It affects more than 10% of adults and accounts for almost 10% of health service resources. The impact of osteoarthritis is amplified by underuse of effective muscle strengthening exercises and a focus on often less effective and poorly tolerated analgesic therapies. Muscle strengthening and aerobic exercise have been shown to improve joint pain and function. Weight loss not only improves joint pain and function but has a myriad of other health benefits.

Tailor treatment to the patient with neuropathic pain

23 Sep 2016Paid-up subscribers

Neuropathic pain is defined as pain that is caused by a lesion or disease of the somatosensory nervous system and is estimated to affect 6-8% of the general population. A low threshold of suspicion in conditions associated with neuropathic pain can aid diagnosis. Typical neuropathic descriptors include burning, shooting, electric shock pain with numbness, pins and needles or itching.

Controlling joint pain in older people

25 Jan 2016Paid-up subscribers

The prevalence of chronic pain in older people in the community ranges from 25 to 76% and for those in residential care, it is even higher at 83 to 93%. The most common sites affected are the back, hip, or knee, and other joints. There is increased reporting of pain in women (79%) compared with men (53%). Common conditions include osteoarthritis and, to a lesser extent, the inflammatory arthropathies such as rheumatoid arthritis. The differential diagnosis includes non-articular pain such as vascular limb pain and nocturnal cramp, some neuropathic pain conditions (such as compressive neuropathies and postherpetic neuralgia), soft tissue disorders such as fibromyalgia and myofascial pain syndromes. 

Evaluating the patient with low back pain

22 Dec 2015Paid-up subscribers

In the UK, low back pain is the most common cause of disability in young adults and every year 6-9% of adults consult their GP about back pain. A thorough history and examination is required to exclude an alternative diagnosis, such as pain arising from the hip or trochanteric bursa and to categorise patients as having: serious spinal pathology, nerve root/radicular pain or non-specific back pain.

Diagnosis and management of postherpetic neuralgia

22 Jan 2015Registered users

Risk factors for postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) include: increasing age; a prodrome of pain before rash onset; the degree of spread of the rash, particularly if it extends beyond a single dermatome; and severity of pain during the acute attack. Forty per cent of patients over 50 and 75% of those over 75 develop PHN following resolution of the rash. Patients with severe pain or those whose condition is affecting their daily activities and function should be referred to a specialist in pain management.

Early recognition improves prognosis in elderly onset RA

22 Jan 2014Paid-up subscribers

Age at onset is particularly relevant in RA as the presentation may differ in elderly onset RA (EORA) compared with young onset RA (YORA). Patients with EORA frequently report a more acute presentation, especially if positive for rheumatoid factor (RF). Fever, fatigue and weight loss appear to be more common in EORA. Although small joints are most frequently involved in the RA population overall, there is common involvement of large joints in EORA and these proximal symptoms may mimic polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR). [With external links to the evidence base]

 

Headache

Rapid diagnosis vital in thunderclap headache

25 Apr 2016Registered users

Thunderclap headache is a severe and acute headache that reaches maximum intensity in under one minute and lasts for more than five minutes. Thunderclap headaches may be associated with symptoms such as photophobia, nausea, vomiting, neck pain, focal neurological symptoms or loss of consciousness. Subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) accounts for 10-25% of all thunderclap headaches and, despite advances in medical technology, has a 90-day mortality of 30%. Up to a quarter of cases of SAH are misdiagnosed, often through failure to follow guidance.

 

Migraine is underdiagnosed and undertreated

23 Sep 2014Paid-up subscribers

Migraine is a common neurovascular disorder characterised by attacks of head pain that are typically unilateral and often described as severe and throbbing in association with nausea and sensitivity to sensory input, i.e. light, sound and head movement. NICE guidelines recommend adopting the stepped-down approach to management. They suggest a combination of a triptan, NSAID or paracetamol, and an anti-emetic taken as early as possible during the headache. [With external links to the evidence base]