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Reaching the Nadir of Medication Overuse in Chronic Migraine.

The introduction of new drug classes for chronic migraine, such as monoclonal antibodies for calcitonin-gene-related peptide or its receptor (CGRPr), or antagonists of the same CGRP, have opened a new scenario in a selected population of individuals with migraine, and those presenting with chronic form of migraine in association with medication overuse. Medication overuse is now considered a complication of chronic migraine and, in fact, the treatment with CGRP(r)-MAbs of chronic migraine with medication overuse results in a clinical improvement of chronic migraine itself, accompanied by a parallel and obvious reduction in the intake of specific and non-specific acute migraine drugs. Education on the correct use of these drugs will be an essential tool to reduce the disability and costs of people suffering from CM complicated by MO, considering the long-term safety of the new therapies targeting the CGRP pathways. Only in this way can medication overuse risk can be reduced at its nadir in the scenario of chronicity of migraines.

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The Link between the Demographic and Clinical Factors and Fatigue Symptoms among Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic systemic disease of connective tissue with periods of exacerbation and remission. Fatigue is excessive strain throughout the body that is disproportionate or unrelated to an activity or lifestyle. Fatigue is an integral part of RA in most patients. The study aimed to assess the level of fatigue in RA patients and establish the relationship between fatigue and demographic and clinical factors. The study group consisted of 128 RA patients according to European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) criteria. The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue and -Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 (SF-36) vitality scores were used to assess the severity of fatigue symptoms. The analyzed variables were gender, age, disease duration, education, marital status, place of residence, work and residence status, pharmacological treatment, pain, morning stiffness, hemoglobin, C-reactive protein (CRP), rheumatoid factor (RF), compression soreness, Richie Articular Index, and DAS28 disease activity. The examined patients experience chronic fatigue-the mean value on the FACIT-F scale was 24.1 ± 9.1 points and on the SF-36 Vitality score was 14.2 ± 1.8 points. There is a relationship between the level of fatigue and pain, long-lasting morning stiffness, active disease, increased soreness of joints, and low hemoglobin values. When analyzing the symptom of fatigue, each patient should be approached individually, using the existing questionnaires or asking key questions to recognize the situation. The presence of fatigue symptoms should be considered during therapy and patient care by searching for and eliminating additional, intensifying stimuli and increasing its level.

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Frequency and burden of neurological manifestations upon hospital presentation in COVID-19 patients: Findings from a large Brazilian cohort.

Scientific data regarding the prevalence of COVID-19 neurological manifestations and prognosis in Latin America countries is still lacking. Therefore, the study aims to understand neurological manifestations of SARS-CoV 2 infection and outcomes in the Brazilian population.

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Analgesic effect of ketorolac added to lidocaine in surgery of traumatic arm injuries: A double-blind, randomized clinical trial.

Acute pain after surgery can cause harmful effects. There are many ways to treat pain after surgery. Bier block technique is also a type of intravenous regional anesthesia that is suitable for short and minor surgeries of the arm, wrist, and fingers, so this study aims to compare the analgesic effect of Ketorolac in intravenous injection and when the lidocaine is added to Bier block. In surgery, traumatic injuries to the upper limbs. This study was a clinical trial, randomized and double-blind. The target population was candidates for upper limb orthopedic surgery. The patients selected based on the entry and exit criteria were randomly assigned to one of the 3 study groups. The intensity of pain, the amount of morphine consumed through the intravenous PCA pump, the incidence of side effects of morphine and ketorolac, as well as the overall patient satisfaction regarding the anesthesia method and pain control were compared between the groups. Data analysis, both descriptive and analytical, was done using SPSS statistical software version 21. The three studied groups were identical and had no differences in terms of quantitative and qualitative demographic variables. The median tourniquet closing time is different between the control group and the intravenous ketorolac and topical ketorolac groups with P=0.002 and P=0.001, respectively. There was no significant difference between the three groups in terms of the time of the first request to receive painkillers after deflating the tourniquet, but the amount of morphine received between the groups was significantly different (P=0.02). Comparison of pain intensity based on NRS, considering Taking the measurement repetition times indicated the significance of the effect of pain intensity between the groups (P=0.001). In terms of overall satisfaction with the quality of analgesia and anesthesia method, no significant difference was observed between the three study groups. In terms of the occurrence of complications related to the use of ketorolac, no complications were observed in any of the groups receiving this drug. In general, by conducting this study, it can be said that the administration of Ketorolac reduces the intensity of postoperative pain in the recovery room and transfer to the inpatient ward, and reduces the amount of morphine received by patients, but the time of the first request for pain relief by the patient It does not significantly delay and does not affect the overall satisfaction of patients with the quality of analgesia during and after the operation and their satisfaction with the anesthesia method they received.

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Adjusting to Changing Environments: Virtual Preseason SCAT5 Assessment in Canadian Male Youth Football Players.

To provide preseason reference scores for Canadian youth tackle football players on the Sport Concussion Assessment Tool 5 (SCAT5) and to examine whether age, concussion history, and self-reported medical diagnoses are associated with SCAT5 subcomponent performance.

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Temporomandibular Disorders and Bruxism among Sex Workers-A Cross Sectional Study.

Sex workers are a highly underprivileged population which is present all around the world. Sex work is associated with negative social stigma which affects all aspects of the sex workers' lives including healthcare, service providers and police. The stigma may result in increased stress, mental health problems, feelings of isolation and social exclusion. In the present study, 36 sex workers (SW) and 304 subjects from the general population in Israel (GP) were evaluated for the presence of bruxism and Temporomandibular disorders (TMD), with the use of Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (DC/TMD- Axis I). When compared to the general population, sex workers presented larger maximal assisted mouth opening and higher prevalence of the following TMD diagnoses: Disc displacement with reduction, Myalgia, Myofascial pain with referral, Arthralgia (left and right) and Headache attributed to TMD. The odds of sex workers suffering from one of these diagnoses were twice to five times higher than those of the general population. The study shows that health problems of sex workers go beyond venereal diseases, HIV and mental disorders which are commonly studied. Oral health, TMD and oral parafunctions are some of the additional health issues that should be addressed and explored in this population.

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Immediate Effects of Dry Needling on Central Pain Processing and Skin Conductance in Patients with Chronic Nonspecific Neck Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Although current evidence supports the use of dry needling for improving some clinical outcomes in people with neck pain, no previous research explored the effects of dry needling on the central processing of pain and autonomic nervous system in this population. Therefore, this clinical trial aimed to compare the effects of real and sham dry needling on autonomic nervous system function, pain processing as well as clinical and psychological variables in patients with chronic nonspecific neck pain. A double-blinded randomized clinical trial including 60 patients with neck pain was conducted. Patients were randomized to the real needling ( = 30) or sham needling ( = 30) group. Skin conductance (SC), pressure pain thresholds (PPTs), temporal summation (TS), conditioned pain modulation (CPM) as well as pain intensity, related-disability, catastrophism, and kinesiophobia levels were assessed by an assessor blinded to the allocation intervention. The results did not find significant group * time interactions for most outcomes, except for the global percentage of change of SC values (mean: F = 35.90, < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.459; minimum: F = 33.99, = 0.839, ηp2 = 0.371; maximum: F = 24.71, < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.037) and PPTs at C5-C6 joint in the same side of needling (F = 9.982; = 0.003; = 0.147), in favor of the dry needling group. Although the proportion of subjects experiencing moderate to large self-perceived improvement after the intervention was significantly higher (X2 = 8.297; = 0.004) within the dry needling group ( = 18, 60%) than in the sham needling group ( = 7, 23.3%), both groups experienced similar improvements in clinical and psychological variables. Our results suggested that dry needling applied to patients with chronic nonspecific neck pain produced an immediate decrease in mechanical hyperalgesia at local sites and produced an increase in skin conductance as compared with sham needling. No changes in central pain processing were observed. A single session of sham or real dry needling was similarly effective for decreasing related disability, pain intensity, catastrophism, and kinesiophobia levels. Further studies are needed to better understand the clinical implications of autonomic nervous system activation on central sensitization and pain processing in the long-term after the application of dry needling.

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Identification of Responders to Balneotherapy among Adults over 60 Years of Age with Chronic Low Back Pain: A Pilot Study with Trajectory Model Analysis.

Balneotherapy may be a relevant treatment for chronic low back pain (LBP) in individuals > 60 years old. This pilot study aimed to determine the effectiveness of balneotherapy for chronic LBP in people > 60 years old and to determine profiles of responders with trajectory model analysis. This was a pilot prospective open cohort study, with repeated measurements using validated questionnaires; participants were their own controls. The primary endpoint was the proportion of participants with a change in pain intensity between the start of treatment and 3 months after treatment assessed with a numeric scale (NS) from 0 to 100 mm, with an effect size (ES) > 0.5. The assessments involved questionnaires that were self-administered on days (D) 1 and 21 and at months 3 and 6. The secondary objective was to determine the profile of responders to balneotherapy. We included 78 patients (69.2% women), mean age 68.3 ± 5.3 years. The mean pain score on the NS was 48.8 ± 19.9 at D1 and 39.1 ± 20.5 at 3 months ( < 0.001). The ES was 0.47 [95% confidence interval [CI] 0.25 to 0.69] for the whole sample; 36% (28/78) had an ES > 0.5; 23% (18/78) had a moderate ES (0 to 0.5); and 41% (32/78) had an ES of zero (14/78) or < 0 (18/78), corresponding to increased pain intensity. The pain trajectory model showed that the change in pain between D1 and D21 for trajectory A (larger reduction in pain intensity) was -50% [95% CI -60 to -27], and for trajectory B (smaller reduction in pain intensity), it was -13% [-33 to 0] ( < 0.001). Between Day 1 and month 3, the change for trajectory A was -33% [-54; 0] and for trajectory B was -13% [-40 to 0] ( = 0.14). Finally, between D1 and month 6, the change for trajectory A was -50% [-60 to 0] and for trajectory B was -6% [-33 to 17] ( = 0.007). The patients in trajectory A reported performing more physical activity than those in trajectory B ( = 0.04). They were also less disabled, with a mean Oswestry Disability Index of 40.4 versus 45.7 for those in trajectory A and B, respectively, ( = 0.03) and had a higher total Arthritis Self-Efficacy Scale score. This real-life study of the effectiveness of balneotherapy on chronic LBP identified distinct pain trajectories and predictive variables for responders. These criteria could be used in decision-making regarding the prescription of balneotherapy, to ensure personalized management of chronic LBP.

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Assessing the Anti-inflammatory Effects of Bacopa-Derived Bioactive Compounds Using Network Pharmacology and Studies.

is reported as a potent Indian medicinal plant that possesses numerous pharmacological activities due to the presence of various bioactive compounds. These pharmacological activities were used in the ancient medicine system to cure inflammatory conditions. Bacopa has the ability to reduce acute pain and inflammation by inhibiting the enzyme cyclo-oxygenase-2 () and reducing -arbitrated prostanoid mediators. Moreover, the anti-inflammatory property may also be associated with the neuroprotective activity of Bacopa. Considering this importance, the current pilot study focused on the anti-inflammatory potential of various phytocompounds of bacopa and their interaction with inflammation responsible genes such as , , , , , and through pharmacology analysis of its systems. Docking results revealed that, quercetin (QR) showed significant binding energies with inflammatory genes. Hence, we selected QR as a potential phytocompound for further experiments. This existing study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of QR as a potent anti-inflammatory compound against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages. The analysis concludes that QR effectively reduces the production of nitric oxide (NO) in LPS-induced RAW264.7 cells and downregulates the expression of and genes due to the inhibitory potential of QR on LPS-stimulated NO production.

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Hyperacusis: Loudness intolerance, fear, annoyance and pain.

Hyperacusis is a debilitating loudness intolerance disorder that can evoke annoyance, fear and aural facial pain. Although the auditory system seems to be the "central" player, hyperacusis is linked to more than twenty non-auditory medical disorders such as Williams syndrome, autism spectrum disorder, fibromyalgia, migraine, head trauma, lupus and acoustic shock syndrome. Neural models suggest that some forms of hyperacusis may result from enhanced central gain, a process by which neural signals from a damaged cochlea are progressively amplified as activity ascends rostrally through the classical auditory pathway as well as other non-auditory regions of the brain involved in emotions, memory and stress. Imaging studies have begun to reveal the extended neural networks and patterns of functional connectivity in the brain that enrich sounds with negative attributes that can make listening unbearable and even painful. The development of animal models of hyperacusis have enabled researcher to begin to critically evaluate the biological bases of hyperacusis, identify therapies to ameliorate the symptoms and gain a better understanding of the neural mechanisms involved in loudness coding in normal and hearing impaired subjects.

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