• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.68 no.5
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• pp.286-289
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• 2010

A 55-year old woman with advanced stage non-small cell lung cancer was admitted to hospital for the management of severe chest pain, which measured 7 out of 10 on a numerical rating scale (NRS). Despite palliative radiation and the application of multiple epidural blocks, she continued to experience severe cancer pain. We gradually increased the dose of transdermal fentanyl patches from $500{\mu}g/hr$ to $3,650{\mu}g/hr$, for 3 months without any significant side effects. Concomitantly, adjuvant therapy with antidepressants and anticonvulsants were added, decreasing the patient's pain to NRS 3~4 down from 7. After being transferred to a hospice clinic, her chest pain was well-controlled below NRS 4 by means of strong opioid medications, including the highest dose of transdermal fentanyl $4,050{\mu}g/hr$ for more than 16 months.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.10
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• pp.5313-5318
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• 2012

Psycho-educational interventions are not a substitute for analgesics, but they may serve as adjuvant therapy. Nurses can provide psychoeducational programmes to cancer patients to assist them in optimizing behavior that strengthen adjustment. The aim here was to determine the effects of psychoeducation on levels of adjustment to cancer in stage I-II breast cancer patients who met the study criteria (experimental group: 38 women, control group:38 women). The psychoeducational program consisted of eight 90 minute weekly sessions and data were collected using a questionnaire and the Mental Adjustment to Cancer Scale three times: before, six weeks and six months after the intervention. Data analysis was performed using descriptive statistical methods as well as the Chi square test, the Mann Whitney U test, repeated measures analysis of variance, the matched pairs t test and the Post Hoc Bonferroni test. The results at 6 weeks and 6 months after the program revealed that the experimental group had higher levels of "fighting spirit", lower levels of "helplessness/hopelessness, anxious preoccupation and fatalism" but there was no significant change in levels of "avoidance/denial" compared to the control group with regard to adjustment to cancer. In this study, psychoeducation was shown to cause positive changes in levels of adjustment to cancer in breast cancer patients

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.100-104
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• 1993

Malignant tumors of the paranasal sinuses are quite rare entity, with maxillary neoplasms accounting for less than 1 percent of all head and neck malignancies. When considering the paranasal sinuses alone, 77 percent of cancers arise in the maxillary sinuses. There is no situation more frustrating than the management of the patients with chronic facial pain due to cancer. The initial step in managing patients with cancer pain is the use of oncologic therapy in the form of radiotherapy, surgery, chemotherapy, alone or combined, either to effect a cure or decrease the size of the tumor and thus decrease or eliminate the pain. When oncologic therapy is ineffective in providing relief, the pain must be treated by one or more of the followings: Systemic analgesics and adjuvant drugs, psychologic techniques of analgesia, neurostimulating techniques, neuroablative surgical procedures, regional analgesia with local anesthetics or neurolytic blocks. An 82-year old patient had severe pain of the orbital and infraorbital region due to squamous cell carcinoma of the maxillary sinus. We successfully treated this patient with the percutaneous retrogasserian ethanol gangliolysis by a H$\ddot{a}$rtel approach, and the analgesia lasts until the death of the patient.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.170-178
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• 1997

Background: The analgesic efficacy and safety of propacetamol, an injectable prodrug of acetoaminophen, in combination with intravenous morphine PCA were studied in 40 patients after gynecological surgery requiring lower abdominal incision. Methods: Using a double-blind, randomized, parallel-group design, the effects of four(every 6 hr) intravenous injections of 2 g propacetamol(=1 g acetoaminophen) were compared with four injections of placebo(PL) immediately after surgery. Efficacy of cumulative dose of morphine and number of boluses requested was assessed over 24 hours by automated recording on the PCA device. It was assessed on pain scores rated on a ten-point verbal scale along with vital signs, $K^+$, glucose, BUN, creatinine, PT and PTT were measured along with stress hormones(epinephrine, norepinephrine and cortisol). Results: There were no differences in demographic data between two groups. Propacetamol group demonstrated approximately 21% morphine sparing effect compared to placebo group($33.1{\pm}10.4$ mg vs $41.4{\pm}8.0$ mg). No significant differences noted in $K^+$, glucose, BUN, Creatinine, PT and PTT levels. There were significant increases in norepinephrine and cortisol in placebo group postoperatively, compared to preoperative values. At the same time, propacetamol group also showed significant changes in these hormones. Both group revealed high degree of patient satisfaction. Conclusion: Propacetamol showed significant morphine sparing effect to some degree. Side effects were much less in propacetamol group with subsequently high patient satisfaction. The secretion of stress hormone were not blocked by postoperative propacetamol injections. Authors concluded that propacetamol should be considered as an excellent adjuvant analgesics in postoperative pain control in opioid patient controlled analgesia.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.70-74
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• 1999

Background: Preemptive analgesia has been suggested recently as an another technique of postoperative pain control. Combination of low dose opioid and NSAIDs was used to lessen systemic opioid side effect, however, the use of NSAIDs may hinder their side effects in perioperative period. The local application of small dose at the target site can be effective without systemic effect. The aim of this study is evaluating the additive effect and side effect of transdermal piroxicam as preemptive adjuvant to intravenous nalbuphine on pain relief after major abdominal surgery. Methods: We reviewed the records of patients received piroxicam patch for preemptive analgesia before operation and compared it with control group. Two sheets of piroxicam patch to the skin incision site for 12 hours before operation were attached (Group 1, n=20) and no patch were applied (Group 2, n=20). Both groups were received nalbuphine continuously after operation using two days infuser (2 ml/hr) containing 80 mg (96 ml). Pain is evaluated by VAS score at each time; 30 min, 1, 6, 12, 24, 36, 48 hours after operation and side effects of NSAIDs were observed for 3days postoperatively. Results: There was no significant VAS score difference between two groups following time in progress. And no significant side effect was noted in both groups, either. Conclusion: There is no preemptive or synergistic analgesic effect of piroxicam patch attached at planned operation site before operation.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.279-284
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• 2018

Objective: To compare the analgesic effects and adverse drug reactions (ADRs) of fentanyl intravenous patient-controlled analgesia (ivPCA) with nefopam, a centrally acting analgesic agent with demonstrated opioid sparing activity, as compared to ketorolac in a tertiary teaching hospital. Methods: A retrospective evaluation of electronic medical records was conducted on patient records including either nefopam or ketorolac with opioid ivPCA for post-operative pain management in general surgery department from January to December 2014. The status of pain control and ADRs were collected. Results: Out of 6,330 general surgery cases, nefopam was given in 153 prescriptions (6.9%) and ketorolac in 81 prescriptions (3.6%). The level of pain control was not different between two groups (70.9% vs. 75.3%; p = 0.51), but ADRs were more frequently reported in nefopam group (9.8% vs. 2.5%; p < 0.05). New ADRs of hot flushes (n = 1) and paresthesia in hands (n = 1) were reported in nefopam group and they were unlisted in the approved package insert. No serious ADRs were reported in both groups. Conclusion: Our findings presented that nefopam showed a similar analgesic effect and higher ADR rates compared to ketorolac as an adjuvant to fentanyl iv PCA for post-operative pain management in general surgery patients in South Korea.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.3-11
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• 2019

Going back to basics prior to mentioning the use of antipsychotics in patients with pain, the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) definition of pain can be summarized as an unpleasant experience, composed of sensory experience caused by actual tissue damage and/or emotional experience caused by potential tissue damage. Less used than antidepressants, antipsychotics have also been used for treating this unpleasant experience as adjuvant analgesics without sufficient evidence from research. Because recently developed atypical antipsychotics reduce the adverse reactions of extrapyramidal symptoms, such as acute dystonia, pseudo-parkinsonism, akathisia, and tardive dyskinesia caused by typical antipsychotics, they are expected to be used more frequently in various painful conditions, while increasing the risk of metabolic syndromes (weight gain, diabetes, and dyslipidemia). Various antipsychotics have different neurotransmitter receptor affinities for dopamine (D), 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), adrenergic (${\alpha}$), histamine (H), and muscarinic (M) receptors. Atypical antipsychotics antagonize transient, weak $D_2$ receptor bindings with strong binding to the $5-HT_{2A}$ receptor, while typical antipsychotics block long-lasting, tight $D_2$ receptor binding. On the contrary, antidepressants in the field of pain management also block the reuptake of similar receptors, mainly on the 5-HT and, next, on the norepinephrine, but rarely on the D receptors. Antipsychotics have been used for treating positive symptoms, such as delusion, hallucination, disorganized thought and behavior, perception disturbance, and inappropriate emotion, rather than the negative, cognitive, and affective symptoms of psychosis. Therefore, an antipsychotic may be prescribed in pain patients with positive symptoms of psychosis during or after controlling all sensory components.