Everyday pain management ideas

A new study out of Brigham and Women's Hospital puts a new twist on the adage, "You are what you eat."  In this instance, researchers were looking at the "gut brain" and how it plays a role in inflammation of the human brain. Human Fetal Astrocyte The researchers found that bacteria in the gut produce molecules known as astrocytes . These molecules are derived from tryptophan, which is an amino acid found in high protein foods such as chicken, turkey, fish, and nuts.  These astrocytes, once formed, reside in the brain and spinal cord and serve to limit inflammatory activity there. During this study, it was found that multiple sclerosis patients had low levels of these tryptophan -derived molecules. Tryptophan is also essential in the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that regulates mood and mental activity.  According to the study author, "Deficits in the gut flora, deficits in the diet, or deficits in the ability to uptake these prod

In recent weeks, we all were shocked and horrified about the death of pop star Prince. At the time, the cause of death was not apparent.  The coroner would not speculate but instead said that the results were inconclusive pending toxicology results. Just last week, the toxicology results were in--and the cause of Prince's death was said to be an accidental overdose of the pain killing drug fentanyl.  This might not mean much to the average citizen, but I see a huge red flag here.  First of all, fentanyl is one of the most potent opioids out there. To give you some perspective, fentanyl is one-hundred times more potent than morphine (intravenous use)! This tells me a couple of things: 1)  Fentanyl would not be a first choice drug for a person with chronic pain.  It's pretty safe to assume that Prince was using pain medication for a while, and was prescribed fentanyl when other medications did not provide adequate pain relief. 2) This scenario can play out--and ha

For this last day of Fibromyalgia Week, I have two things for you, my readers. First, I have a quiz...just to see how much you know, or have learned, about fibromyalgia this week.  Click the link below if you want to try it out! How much do you know about Fibromyalgia? » online quizzes Secondly, and very importantly...I have found something that some of readers may find quite useful.  There are lots of "apps" for smartphones out there, and some for fibromyalgia. Today I am sharing a link for "FibroMapp", which is available for Android and Kindle.  Sadly, there is not an Apple platform for this app but we can only hope that some day....  There are other apps like this available, but this one seems to have lots of good reviews.  Here is a link if you would like to check it out. Click here FibroMapp App http://www.fibromapp.com/ repost from 2014  

On this day 4 of fibromyalgia week, I am going to focus my writing on treatments for this mysterious condition.  As discussed in earlier posts, this condition tends to be chronic --and while it is debilitating, it is not life threatening.  There is no inflammatory process involved either. Pharmacotherapy for fibromyalgia  Drug treatment for fibromyalgia is still sort of in the trial and error phase.  There has been good response to some of the SSRI and tricyclic antidepressants to date.  Other drugs that have some use in fibromyalgia are NSAIDs (ibuprofen for example), COX 2 inhibitors (a specific category of NSAID such as celecoxib) and antiepileptics (eg Gabapentin). There have been some trials of naltrexone and also Immune Globulin . To date, these last two studies look promising but at this point they are not conventional therapy.  At one time, guaifenesin was thought to be promising but there is no clinical or scientific data to support its use as a treatment for fibro

Today, I am sharing some thoughts about what causes fibromyalgia.  Current understanding of this debilitating disorder suggests that central pain processing in fibromyalgia patients is altered.  Somehow, the central nervous system (CNS)  has some faulty wiring problems, resulting in an amplified physical pain. In the adult population, it seems that more women are affected by fibromyalgia than are men.  In children and adolescents the gender ratio is 1:1. There are a few theories out there as to the root cause of fibromyalgia.  Some ideas: 1) Genetic Basis -- it seems that fibromyalgia "runs in families", suggesting that there is a specific gene  that may be involved in the perception of pain. 2) Biochemical Imbalances --Some findings in fibromyalgia show that these patients have very low levels of serotonin,which has been linked to problems with sleep,pain perception,headaches, and mood disorders. Other studies have shown that people with fibromyalgia have eleva

Tender points...click caption for WebMD animation Tender points are a unique feature of fibromaylgia.  There are 18 such points on the human body (9 pairs as shown).  Using special technique by hand or a dolorimeter, a fibromyalgia patient will experience pain in at least 11 points, and there will be at least one painful tender point in each quadrant of the body! One study found that up to 96% of fibromyalgia patients suffer from sleep disorders. It is believed that this is responsible for a deprivation of delta sleep, during which human growth hormone is produced. This hormone is essential to tissue repair. Other common problems in fibromyalgia are fatigue, concentration/memory ("fibro fog"), and depression.  There is no doubt in my mind that just enabling the patient to sleep well on a regular basis would be of great benefit! It is not uncommon for fibromyalgia patients to have coexisting conditions--some of these are lupus, disease, irritable bowel syndrome, l

I have been watching the statistics on this blog since I started it, and I could not help but notice that some of the most popular posts pertained to fibromyalgia.  So, I thought,  why not devote a whole week to the subject?  So, without further ado, on this first day of Fibromyalgia Week, I shall begin with an overview. The American Medical Association  gave official recognition to fibromyalgia back in 1987. Before that time, this disorder was considered a "wastebasket" diagnosis, but in more recent years it is being recognized as a true illness. Here are some interesting facts about fibromyalgia: The characteristic feature of fibromyalgia is chronic, widespread musculoskeletal pain, associated wit symptoms of fatigue, insomnia, and other symptoms such as stiffness, headache, and chest pain. An interesting and unique feature of fibromyalgia is "tender points"--which are specific targeted areas where people with this disorder feel an amplified pain