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Query: UMLS:C0030193 (pain)
 261,466 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The case of a 17-year-old boy who had been well until the age of four when progressive stiffness of lower limbs developed is reported. Soon walking became difficult and on on his thighs, buttocks and calves one could notice the appearance of myokymia. Painful and intermittent spasms were often present specially after physical strain. This was followed by profuse sweating. Strength was normal but muscle relaxing was slow mainly in the quadriceps. The familiar history for neuromuscular pathology was negative. Muscle enzymes, thyroid function tests were within normal limits and muscular biopsy showed no abnormalities. The EMG disclosed a permanent spontaneous activity, more evident in the quadriceps, which was normal in shape, amplitude and duration. In association to this activity multiplets discharges and low motor units were also observed; in interferencial pattern appeared at maximum contraction but the multiplets and low motor units potentials kept on showing even though voluntary muscular activity ceased. The therapeutic essay with carbamazepin had a dramatic effect upon the course of the patient's conditions. He showed a great improvement with this drug and today leads a normal life being able even to play soccer and ride a bicycle. An interesting remark which should be done is the fact that the flexion of the neck inhibits the quadriceps myokymia whereas the extension makes them to appear and even worsen. Unfortunately is was not possible to carry out a more accurate investigation concerning electropharmacology and hystopathology as the patient was uncooperative and refused to undergo such examinations. However the authors believe that this clinical picture can be considered as a case of "continuous muscle-fibre activity" due to the great similarity it bears to the cases related by Isaacs in 1961. An extensive review concerning the pertinent literature has been done.
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PMID:[Isaacs' syndrome. Report of a case and review of the literature]. 86 37

The focus of trichinellosis was presented comprising 28 patients and resulting from consumption of the wild boar meat. Early confirmation of trichinellosis diagnosis in the first case (index case) and an accurate epidemiological analysis established that the patients became infected with Trichinella spiralis strain originating from natural environment. A severe clinical course was disclosed in the index case, moderate course of trichinellosis in 11 patients, a mild course in 15 cases and an abortive course in one patient. The most frequent trichinellosis symptoms included muscular pain (92.3% cases), fever above 38 degrees C (62.2% cases), conjunctivitis (53.3%), periorbital and facial oedema (42.9% cases); headaches and excessive sweating were less frequent (35.8%), while diarrhoea, hemorrhages to the fingernail beds and skin rush were noted in single cases only. No leukocytosis was detected in 15 patients (53.5%) and number of acidophilic granulocytes was normal in 8 patients (28.5%) including 5 patients with moderate course of the disease. Also, no full correlation was detected between severity of the clinical course and anti-Trichinella antibody titres. Increased activity of a muscular enzymes creatine kinase (CPK) could be detected in 27 patients and increased activity of lactic acid dehydrogenase (LDH) in 9 patients. The increase in muscle enzyme activity (CPK in particular) in some patients failed to correlate with the severity of the clinical course. In 10 patients parasitological and histological study of muscle tissue biopsies was performed to determine intensity of the invasion and the character of pathomorphological lesions.
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PMID:[Trichinellosis focus resulting from consumption of wild boar meat]. 129 44

Since the first case report by Winter-bottom [106], the problem of intraoperative awareness or recall has received increasing attention from patients, anaesthesiologists and, more recently, even law courts [4, 20, 21, 78]. Our own interest in awareness derives from a study with the opiate agonist tramadol as a supplement to balanced anaesthesia, which revealed an unexpectedly high incidence of about 65% of patients who could recall intraoperative music [55]. It was the aim of the present randomized double-blind study to evaluate, under identical experimental conditions, what the incidence would be with other analgesic supplements to balanced anaesthesia (fentanyl, pentazocine and ketamine). Because few reports on this subject are available in the German literature, it was felt that the result should be discussed within a comprehensive review. PATIENTS AND METHODS. A total of 60 patients (ASA I-II, age 27-66 years, weight 48-93 kg) undergoing elective gynaecological surgery of at least 90 min duration were each randomly assigned to one of three study groups (F, fentanyl; P, pentazocine; K, ketamine). Premedication was performed with diazepam 10 mg p.o. the evening before surgery and pethidine 1 mg/kg i.m.+promethazine 1.5 mg/kg i.m.+atropine 0.5 mg i.m. 60 min before anaesthesia. Induction was performed with alcuronium (2 + 8 mg), methohexital (1.5 mg/kg) and a bolus dose of the analgesic supplement (F, 5 micrograms/kg; P or K, 2 mg/kg), followed by continuous infusion (F, 2 micrograms kg-1 h-1, P or K 0.8 mg kg-1 h-1). Endotracheal intubation was performed with succinylcholine (1 mg/kg). Patients were ventilated to normocarbia using a Takaoka respirator (4 breaths/min, tidal volume 1600 ml, N2O/O2 75:25). If insufficient anaesthesia was suggested by increases in blood pressure or heart rate to more than 20% of preinduction values, excessive sweating or lacrimation, enflurane (0.5-2 vol.%) was added for short periods of time. At the end of surgery, patients were ventilated with 100% O2, and the neuromuscular block antagonized using atropine 0.5 mg and neostigmine 1 mg. Without prior announcement, tape-recorded music (Mantovani, 3 min followed by 3 min silence) was played to all patients via earphones throughout the time period between intubation and the end of nitrous oxide administration. Vegetative parameters, cumulative and relative enflurane application times and retrospective judgement of quality of anaesthesia by the anaesthesiologist were documented. Post-operative recovery and pain were monitored using verbal rating scales. Patients were interviewed immediately after extubation and on the day after surgery to determine the incidence of dreams and recollection of music. Patients were classified as amnestic if they could not recall the music, even with prompting, and partially amnestic if they remembered the music but were unable to define the time when they had heard it. No amnesia was assumed if patients recalled the intraoperative music spontaneously. Groups were statistically compared by means of analysis of variance, Mann-Wilcoxon rank sum test and chi-square test. RESULTS. Mean duration of anaesthesia was 129-134 min in the subgroups. The total analgesic supplement dose was F 614 +/- 129 micrograms, P 238 +/- 38 mg, and K 230 +/- 50 mg (mean +/- SD). Enflurane substitution was necessary in 45 patients, regardless of the type of analgesic supplement. Mean cumulative enflurane application time was 26-28% in the treatment groups, corresponding to about 20% of anaesthesia duration. The most important reasons for enflurane substitution were increases in blood pressure (mostly in groups F and P) or heart rate (K). Recovery was fastest with F, followed by P, and slowest with K. Retrospective judgement of the quality of anaesthesia by the anaesthesiologist did not differ significantly between the treatment groups. Most (93%) of the patients were satisfied with their anaesthesia; 2 patients each who received P and K were dis
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PMID:[Intraoperative awareness in balanced anesthesia. A literature review based on a randomized double blind study using fentanyl, pentazocine and ketamine]. 848 Sep 7

The acute effects of electrical injuries are well known. However, the occurrence and the mechanisms of the delayed sequelae are still unclear. The effects on peripheral nerves and the sympathetic system in particular are poorly documented. A 47-year old man was injured on the left arm by contact with a 380 V tension switch in January 1990. A few hours after the accident he complained of burning pain, dysesthesia, weakness and motor impairment of the arm. Allodynia and anhidrosis without cutaneous trophic lesions were observed. During the subsequent months the symptoms did not change except for the appearance of signs of autonomous nervous system hyperactivity (hyperhidrosis, edema, atrophy of the skin and nails, excessive sweating). One year later thermographic evidence and the effect of anesthetic blockade of the sympathetic chain on the burning pain, stiffness of joints and weakness of the arm confirmed the clinical diagnosis of reflex sympathetic dystrophy. Analgesia and motility improvement were achieved by means of sympathetic blockades although the patient's hand grip force and thumb-little finger grip were still weakened. Any known etiology besides electric shock could be associated with these clinical signs. The cause of the reflex sympathetic dystrophy may be multifactorial. In this patient the electric shock might have damaged peripheral sympathetic fibres or cervical ganglia. Lesions of the peripheral nerves and sympathetic hyperactivity can contribute to the development of such syndrome.
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PMID:[Reflex sympathetic dystrophy following electric shock: description of a clinical case]. 180 13

Studies have attempted to define predictive indicators of diagnosis and/or prognosis for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in the emergency department and to identify the need for hospital admission in patients with chest pain. Because prehospital predictors have not been defined, dispatchers, paramedics, and base station physicians continue to triage based on patient history. We reviewed 401 patients presenting in one year to an urban paramedic system with chest pain, normal vital signs, and stable rhythms to identify predictors of AMI and unstable angina. Thirty-one percent (123) had a diagnosis of AMI, 26% (105) unstable angina, and 43% (173) "other" diagnoses. Two-hundred seventy-eight patients required nitroglycerin administration, 182 required IV morphine, 14 developed arrhythmias requiring lidocaine, and two suffered cardiac arrest in the field. Nine other patients had a cardiac arrest after arrival in the ED. When comparing AMI and unstable angina patients to the "others," 64% (132) versus 36% (74) had radiation of pain (P less than .003), 72% (95) versus 28% (37) had diaphoresis (P less than .0001). Neither difficulty breathing, nausea/vomiting, vital signs, initial rhythm, nor past history of myocardial infarction were helpful in discriminating AMI and unstable angina from others. Comparing AMI alone versus others, the presence of ST segment elevation on lead II was present in 15% (18) AMIs, 3% (3) unstable angina, and 8% (14) others (P = .005). Diaphoresis also was a predictor of diagnosis with 51% (63) of the AMIs and 25% (69) of others exhibiting this sign (P less than .001).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Limitations of prehospital predictors of acute myocardial infarction and unstable angina. 368 92

The symptoms and signs of 51 patients with a history of scorpion sting were studied. Acute pulmonary oedema with peripheral circulatory failure due to myocarditis developed in 10. Pulmonary oedema appeared within thirty minutes to ten hours after the sting. 5 out of 7 male patients in whom pulmonary oedema subsequently developed presented with priapism. Profuse sweating, mydriasis, vomiting, and peripheral circulatory failure were also seen, and, in 1 patient, the clinical picture was suggestive on pancreatitis. The remaining 40 patients has severe local pain only and no subsequent cardiac manifestations. There appears to be a positive correlation between occurrence of priapism in a male and the later development of cardiac manifestations after a scorpion sting.
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PMID:Diagnostic cardiac premonitory signs and symptoms of red scorpion sting. 612 Apr 3

A double-blind study was designed to test the hypothesis that local side-effects during i. v. administration of erythromycin lactobionate depend on the drug concentration and that they can therefore be minimized by dissolving erythromycin in a larger infusion volume. Forty healthy students were assigned in a randomized sequence to four 30 min infusions: 120 and 250 ml of erythromycin lactobionate (1 g in 0.9% NaCl) and 120 and 250 ml of placebo (0.9% NaCl). An unexpectedly high incidence (95% and 80% for the infusion volumes of 120 and 250 ml, respectively) of severe systemic side-effects was observed during the first 79 infusions. Because all of these systemic side-effects were associated with the infusion of erythromycin, the study was terminated at this point. Side-effects included abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, dizziness and profuse sweating. The postulated positive effect of lower erythromycin concentrations in the infusion on local side-effects (pain at the infusion site, erythema) was marginal (63% vs. 45%). Compared to the systemic side-effects, the problem of local tolerance is less important. In young adults, 30 min infusions of 1 g erythromycin lactobionate are associated with a high incidence of systemic side-effects which may be due to an age-dependent effect of the drug on smooth muscle.
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PMID:Side-effects due to the intravenous infusion of erythromycin lactobionate. 688 76

11 acromegalics were treated with bromocriptine for 2--18 months. Their hormonal response was assessed by an acute suppression test with bromocriptine (AST), an oral glucose tolerance test (GTT), and by measuring growth hormone (GH) concentrations during a day of hospital life. The GTTs and the 24-hour profiles were performed before and after bromocriptine. During the AST all patients showed a decrease of GH concentrations ranging from 33 to 86% of the basal. Following bromocriptine, the mean GH concentration was lowered in 7 out of 11 patients during the GTT, and in 8 out of 11 during the profile, but it was within the normal range in 4 patients only during the GTT, and in 1 during the profile. Bromocriptine normalises radioimmunoassayble GH levels in a percentage of patients (12%) which is less than those following conventional treatment of acromegaly, surgery (80%) and pituitary irradiation (70%). Clinically, however, bromocriptine was more effective than judged by the changes of GH levels. Subjective and objective symptoms of acromegaly, such as articular pain, excessive sweating, hypertension, amenorrhoea, urinary hydroxyproline excretion and heel pad thickness decreased in our patients after bromocriptine. A specific action of bromocriptine on the degradation rate of 'little' GH may result in a selective reduction of the bioactive monomeric component of GH and may explain the discrepancy between the clinical and the biochemical response to bromocriptine. This discrepancy might also be explained by a specific action of bromocriptine on the somatomedin levels.
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PMID:Reappraisal of bromocriptine treatment for acromegaly. 739 Apr 5

The three types of pain related to exercise are 1) pain experienced during or immediately following exercise, 2) delayed onset muscle soreness, and 3) pain induced by muscle cramps. Each is characterized by a different time course and different etiology. Pain perceived during exercise is considered to result from a combination of factors including acids, ions, proteins, and hormones. Although it is commonly believed that lactic acid is responsible for this pain, evidence suggests that it is not the only factor. However, no single factor has ever been identified. Delayed onset muscle soreness develops 24-48 hours after strenuous exercise biased toward eccentric (muscle lengthening) muscle actions or strenuous endurance events like a marathon. Soreness is accompanied by a prolonged strength loss, a reduced range of motion, and elevated levels of creatine kinase in the blood. These are taken as indirect indicators of muscle damage, and biopsy analysis has documented damage to the contractile elements. The exact cause of the soreness response is not known but thought to involve an inflammatory reaction to the damage. Muscle cramps are sudden, intense, electrically active contractions elicited by motor neuron hyperexcitability. Although it is commonly assumed that cramps during exercise are the result of fluid electrolyte imbalance induced by sweating, two studies have not supported this. Moreover, participants in occupations that require chronic use of a muscle but do not elicit profuse sweating, such as musicians, often experience cramps. Fluid electrolyte imbalance may cause cramps if there is profuse prolonged sweating such as that found in working in a hot environment. Thus, despite the common occurrence of pain associated with exercise, the exact cause of these pains remains a mystery.
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PMID:Exercise-induced muscle pain, soreness, and cramps. 783 Mar 83

Post-traumatic syringomyelia is now a well known entity and occurs months or years after a spinal cord injury. The presenting symptoms are usually pain, progressive motor weakness, sensory changes, and increased spasticity. Profuse sweating or hyperhidrosis can be a symptom of the post-traumatic syrinx or can occur in autonomic dysreflexia provoked by peripheral stimuli. We present two patients with cervical spine fractures whose presenting symptom of post-traumatic syringomyelia was hyperhidrosis affected by posture. The pathophysiology involved and the management of these patients is discussed.
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PMID:Hyperhidrosis as the presenting symptom in post-traumatic syringomyelia. 809 May 51


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