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The live varicella-zoster vaccine can effectively prevent shingles in rheumatoid arthritis patients starting treatment with the drug tofacitinib, according to results of 2 recently-published studies in Arthritis & Rheumatology. Shingles causes a painful rash that may appear as a stripe of blisters on the trunk of the body. Pain can persist even after the rash is gone […]
The inherent potential of stem cells to engender any cellular form and function drives the field of regenerative medicine. In recent years, stem cell research has witnessed prolific growth particularly in disease-modeling, drug discovery and patient-specific cell therapy. A major challenge in stem cell-mediated therapy is to understand and promote integration of transplanted stem cells
Neurobiologist Clifford Woolf discusses the importance of pain points and the surprising twists of his latest research Pain—feared, misunderstood and even poeticized in works of art and literature—has long captivated the scientific imagination of Clifford Woolf since his days as a medical student in South Africa. Woolf, a Harvard Medical School professor of neurobiology and neurology at
A study led by Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) has shown that chronic pain may occur when pain receptors migrate from the nerve cell’s surface to the cell’s inner chambers, out of the reach of current pain medications. The discovery, in rodents, may lead to the development of a new class of medications for chronic
Clinical results reported at the 2017 North American Neuromodulation Society meeting show that peripheral nerve stimulation can help stroke patients. And that peripheral nerve stimulation provides meaningful relief for people suffering from post-stroke shoulder pain (PSSP). Post stroke shoulder pain is experienced by anywhere between 30 and 70 percent of stroke sufferers. Dr. Porter McRoberts
Nearly every advance in modern medicine, from diagnosis to treatment, has benefited from animal studies. Basic research has made vital contributions to all aspects of medical care, including our understanding of pain pathophysiology. However, the applicability of these findings to humans remains limited. “Translation from animal to human is hindered by many obstacles, in particular
That a finger can distinguish the texture of satin from suede is an exquisite sensory discrimination. Largely relying on small sensory organs in the fingertips called Merkel discs containing Merkel Cells. Jianguo Gu, Ph.D., of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, has now unraveled how the sensory information is processed in the Merkel discs. As
Visceral pain relates to pain in the organs of the body. So it could be the chest, or more likely, the abdomen or the pelvis. It is somewhat unlike other pain syndromes. In a sense that visceral pain activates the autonomic nervous system, specifically the parasympathetic nervous system, the sympathetic nervous system, or both. Which
A therapeutic intervention involving confronting and expressing emotional and traumatic experiences shows greater improvement in fibromyalgia pain. When compared with conventional cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), randomized trial results show. It was also linked to significant pain reductions when offered as a one-time intervention in the primary care setting, researchers report. “Current evidence-based psychological interventions for fibromyalgia,
What is neuroinflammation and why does it cause severe burning pain even when there seems to be no injury? Let me explain it as simply as I can. Say you sprain your ankle. Your ankle then hurts, swells, discolors, and the pain limits use. The swelling occurs because of “healing” chemicals that move into the
