Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Pain Management for February 2011. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
Cochrane Review Examines Safety of Biologic Agents
MONDAY, Feb. 28 (HealthDay News) -- Patients taking biologic agents for rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory conditions may experience a higher rate of adverse events, withdrawals from studies due to adverse events, and tuberculosis reactivation, compared to placebo, according to a literature review published online Feb. 16 in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
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Definitions of Rheumatoid Arthritis Remission Proposed
FRIDAY, Feb. 25 (HealthDay News) -- The American College of Rheumatology and the European League Against Rheumatism have developed two provisional definitions of remission in rheumatoid arthritis that can be applied uniformly and used as outcome measures in clinical trials, according to an article published in the March issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.
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Equations Predict Quadriceps Strength in Knee Osteoarthritis
THURSDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Predictive equations can be used to assess maximal quadriceps strength in individuals who have osteoarthritis in a knee joint, according to a study published in the February issue of Arthritis Care & Research.
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Herpes Zoster Risk Tied to COPD
WEDNESDAY, Feb. 23 (HealthDay News) -- Patients suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), especially those using oral steroids, are at increased risk of developing herpes zoster, according to a study published online Feb. 22 in CMAJ, the journal of the Canadian Medical Association.
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Kyphoplasty Effective for Vertebral Fractures
MONDAY, Feb. 21 (HealthDay News) -- Balloon kyphoplasty appears to be a safe and effective means for reducing pain and improving function in cancer patients with vertebral compression fractures (VCFs), according to research published online Feb. 17 in The Lancet Oncology.
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Fostamatinib Safe, Not Effective in Rheumatoid Arthritis
MONDAY, Feb. 21 (HealthDay News) -- Fostamatinib disodium (R788), an oral spleen tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is safe but ineffective for treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who failed biologic therapies, according to a study published in the February issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.
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Low Pay for New Female Doctors Tied to Gender, Not Job
MONDAY, Feb. 21 (HealthDay News) -- In 2008, male physicians who were newly trained in New York State made an average of $16,819 more than newly trained female physicians, compared to a $3,600 difference in 1999, according to a study published in the February issue of Health Affairs.
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Different Therapies Improve Chronic Fatigue Outcomes
FRIDAY, Feb. 18 (HealthDay News) -- For chronic fatigue patients, cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) and graded exercise therapy (GET) may moderately improve outcomes when added to specialist medical care (SMC), according to research published online Feb. 18 in The Lancet.
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Insomnia in Arthritis Tied to Pain, Depression Ups Risk
FRIDAY, Feb. 18 (HealthDay News) -- Sleep disturbances are more prevalent among adults with arthritis compared to those without the disease, with the greatest risk affecting those with anxiety and depression, according to a study published in the February issue of Arthritis Care & Research.
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Analgesic Efficacy Altered by Patient Beliefs
THURSDAY, Feb. 17 (HealthDay News) -- An individual's expectation of a drug's effect influences both its therapeutic efficacy and the pain-related brain pathways that are activated during treatment, according to a study published in the Feb. 16 issue of Science Translational Medicine.
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New U.S. Report on the Nation's Health 2010 Released
WEDNESDAY, Feb. 16 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics' 34th annual report, presenting the latest information on health status and determinants, utilization of health care, health care resources, expenditures, and a special feature on death and dying, was published Feb. 16.
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Most Recalled Medical Devices Given Lenient Approval
TUESDAY, Feb. 15 (HealthDay News) -- The majority of medical devices recalled from 2005 to 2009 for risk of serious health hazard or death were approved by the less strict 510(k) process intended for devices considered low or moderate risk, according to a study published online Feb. 14 in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
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High Body Mass Index Linked to Poor Infliximab Response
TUESDAY, Feb. 15 (HealthDay News) -- Patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who have a high body mass index (BMI) respond less well to infliximab, even when adjusting for disease activity and anti-citrullinated protein antibody status, according to a study published in the February issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.
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Researchers Explore Nature of Difficult Clinical Encounters
MONDAY, Feb. 14 (HealthDay News) -- Both patients and physicians can bring qualities to a clinical encounter that result in its being perceived as difficult, and patients involved in these types of encounters have worse short-term outcomes, according to research published online Jan. 25 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
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Addison's Disease Is a Risk Factor for Hip Fracture
FRIDAY, Feb. 11 (HealthDay News) -- Clinically diagnosed and undiagnosed cases of Addison's disease (AD) are associated with hip fractures in patients aged 30 years or older, with the highest risk in women aged 50 years or younger, according to a study published online Jan. 19 in the Journal of Internal Medicine.
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Surgery for Migraines Has Long-Lasting Positive Impact
FRIDAY, Feb. 11 (HealthDay News) -- Long-term follow-up indicates that surgical manipulation of migraine trigger sites can reduce the frequency, duration, and intensity of migraines, according to a study published in the February issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
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Public Sector Plays Big Role in Drug Research
WEDNESDAY, Feb. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Public-sector research institutions (PSRIs) appear to play a bigger role in drug discovery than was previously thought, contributing to the discovery of about 10 to 20 percent of drugs approved for new drug applications since 1990, according to research published in the Feb. 10 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Errors in Hospital Analgesia Prescriptions Nearly 3 in 1,000
WEDNESDAY, Feb. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Analgesic drug errors in hospitals occur at a rate of almost three per 1,000 prescriptions, and more than twice that among pediatric patients, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of Pain.
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Rheumatic Diseases Afflict 1 in 12 Women, 1 in 20 Men
WEDNESDAY, Feb. 9 (HealthDay News) -- About 8 percent of women and 5 percent of men will develop an inflammatory autoimmune rheumatic disease such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) during their lifetime, according to research published online Dec. 28 in Arthritis & Rheumatism.
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Surgery Reduces Leg Pain More Than Low Back Pain
TUESDAY, Feb. 8 (HealthDay News) -- Surgical treatment improves leg pain more than low back pain in patients with degenerative spondylolisthesis (DS) and spinal stenosis (SpS), according to a study published in the Feb. 1 issue of Spine.
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Data Collection Shows Fibromyalgia Symptoms Pattern
TUESDAY, Feb. 8 (HealthDay News) -- Longitudinal data collection by hand-held Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) devices, which record daily symptoms of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), reveals small but significant temporal relationships between pain, fatigue, and emotional distress, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of Pain.
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Age, Race, and Wealth Affect Arthritis Drug Receipt
TUESDAY, Feb. 1 (HealthDay News) -- Among Medicare-managed rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, receipt of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) varies based on demographic and other factors, according to a study published in the Feb. 2 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Imaging for Low Back Pain Often Useless, Harmful
TUESDAY, Feb. 1 (HealthDay News) -- For most patients, routine imaging for low back pain is an expensive intervention that may do more harm than good, according to a clinical guideline published in the Feb. 1 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
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