Patients can experience many different types of pain, and some patients with chronic pain may believe that only opioids will help them. According to Kelly Weselman, MD, the best way to begin managing pain is to determine its root cause and communicate with the patient about the best approach(es) for decreasing their specific pain…
A lack of quality sleep may exacerbate depression and pain in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, according to Michael R. Irwin, MD. Here are some tips for rheumatologists on how to discuss sleep with patients and help patients reduce sleep disturbance…
When a patient has fibromyalgia, sleep troubles are the last thing they need. Unfortunately, sleep problems affect a large number of fibromyalgia patients, and those problems can turn into a vicious cycle that interplays with daytime pain and fatigue. “Pain and sleep disturbances are a double-edged sword,” says Elika Kormeili, MFT, a licensed clinical psychologist…
SAN DIEGO—Rheumatologists who treat lupus patients gleaned tips on diagnosis and management of renal disease, painful neuropathies and alopecia at a “Curbside Consults” session held Nov. 6 at the ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting in San Diego. Membranous Lupus Nephritis Patients with refractory membranous lupus nephritis (MLN), or Class V lupus nephritis, face “significant morbidity, most of…
(Reuters)—Kentucky accused units of Endo International Plc. on Monday of contributing to drug overdoses by deceptively marketing its painkiller Opana ER, in the latest lawsuit by state or local governments against the drugmaker amid an opioid epidemic. Kentucky Attorney General Steve Beshear said the lawsuit would seek to hold Endo responsible for illegally building a…
Pain, limited mobility and lower quality of life—these aspects of living with osteoarthritis may result in severe depression. New research from Alan Rathbun, PhD, MPH, may enable physicians to better understand the intersection of physical and mental health so they can improve overall patient care…
Two pain treatments, extended-release injectable suspension triamcinolone acetonide (Zilretta) and meloxicam, have seen movement at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In October, the agency approved Zilretta to treat osteoarthritis (OA) knee pain and accepted a new drug application for meloxicam to treat pain. FDA Approves Zilretta On Oct. 6, the FDA approved extended-release,…
(Reuters Health)—People who sleep poorly may be more likely to develop a chronic pain condition and have worse physical health, a study from the U.K. suggests. A general decline in both the quantity and quality of hours slept led to a two- to three-fold increase in pain problems over time, researchers found. “Sleep and pain…
Treat-to-target is a widely used approach for rheumatoid arthritis, in which rheumatologists prescribe treatments to reach established benchmarks of disease activity.1 Is it time for a similar approach for fibromyalgia treatment, even though its pathogenesis, disease-activity measures and treatment algorithms are less well understood? Three fibromyalgia researchers present their case in a new paper, “Treat-to-Target…
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Lady Gaga on Monday called off the European leg of her world tour, saying she was suffering from severe physical pain and was seeking medical treatment. The Born This Way singer, 31, who says she suffers from fibromyalgia, also canceled an appearance at a music festival in Rio de Janeiro last…