Melzack

BACKGROUND: Provoked vestibulodynia is the most common subtype of chronic vulvar pain. This highly prevalent and debilitating condition is characterized by acute recurrent pain located at the entry of the vagina in response to pressure application or attempted vaginal penetration. Although physical therapy is advocated as a first-line treatment for provoked vestibulodynia, evidence supporting its efficacy is scarce. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to establish the efficacy of multimodal physical therapy compared with topical lidocaine, a frequently used first-line treatment...

INTRODUCTION: With the advancement of technology, peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) has been increasingly used to treat various chronic pain conditions. Its origin is based on the gate control theory postulated by Wall and Melzack in 1965. However, the exact mechanism behind PNS' analgesic effect is largely unknown. In this article, we performed a comprehensive literature review to overview the PNS mechanism of action. DESIGN: A comprehensive literature review on the mechanism of PNS in chronic pain...

OBJECTIVE: To present a history of the development of peripheral nerve stimulation. METHODS: Narrative literature review. RESULTS: Peripheral nerve stimulation has a history stretching from Scribonius Largus and eels in Mesopotamia to Michael Farady's discovery in London, the German-English physician Julius Althaus's application of electricity to a peripheral nerve, the sensational "Electreat" in the United States, to the application by Wall and Sweet of the gate theory proposed by Melzack and Wall to specialized neurosurgeons...

BACKGROUND: Positional pain affect the patient's healing process after the operation. Anti-pressure positioning pads are medical products used to support the patient positioning during surgical procedures. AIMS: The aim of the study was to examine pain related to positioning when anti-pressure gel pads and current visoelastic sponge support options are used during orthopedic surgical cases. DESIGN: The randomized controlled experimental study...

BACKGROUND: We determined the effect of cold application after coronary artery bypass graft surgery on chest incision pain due to deep breathing and coughing exercises. Thoracotomy performed for coronary artery bypass graft surgery is one of the most painful surgical procedures. This pain prevents deep breathing and effective coughing. These problems increase the risk of morbidity in the postoperative period. AIMS: This study aimed to determine the effect of cold application after CABG surgery on chest incision pain due to deep breathing and cough exercises...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Lateral ankle sprains (LASs) are among the most common injuries incurred during participation in sport and physical activity, and it is estimated that up to 40% of individuals who experience a first-time LAS will develop chronic ankle instability (CAI). Chronic ankle instability is characterized by a patient's being more than 12 months removed from the initial LAS and exhibiting a propensity for recurrent ankle sprains, frequent episodes or perceptions of the ankle giving way, and persistent symptoms such as pain, swelling, limited motion, weakness, and diminished self-reported function...

Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) is a minimally invasive therapy used for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain. SCS is a safe and effective alternative to medications such as opioids, and multiple randomized controlled studies have demonstrated efficacy for difficult-to-treat neuropathic conditions such as failed back surgery syndrome. Conventional SCS is believed mediate pain relief via activation of dorsal column Aβ fibers, resulting in variable effects on sensory and pain thresholds, and measurable alterations in higher order cortical processing...

PURPOSE: To characterize predischarge maternal pain and stress after caesarean delivery and short hospitalization. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a descriptive study with 60 women in the postoperative period of caesarean section and 60 control women after vaginal delivery. Pain and stress were measured by McGill Pain Questionnaire (MGPQ) and by the Stress Measure (Psychological Stress Measure (PSM)), respectively, at mother-infant dyad discharge, scheduled at 36 hours after delivery...

PURPOSE: Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is a chronic intraoral pain syndrome featuring idiopathic oral pain and burning discomfort despite clinically normal oral mucosa. The etiology of chronic pain syndrome is unclear, but preliminary neuroimaging research has suggested the alteration of volume, metabolism, blood flow, and diffusion at multiple brain regions. According to the neuromatrix theory of Melzack, pain sense is generated in the brain by the network of multiple pain-related brain regions...

OBJECTIVE: This study assessed the effectiveness of alpha lipoic acid (ALA) plus omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs) in combination with amitriptyline therapy in patients with vestibulodynia/painful bladder syndrome (VBD/PBS). METHODS: Women with VBD/PBS were randomly assigned to receive amitriptyline or amitriptyline plus a commercially available preparation (ALAnerv Age; Alfa Wassermann, Bologna, Italy) containing, in 2 capsules, ALA 600 mg plus docosahexaenoic acid 250 mg and eicosapentaenoic acid 16...

Pain is a complex and multidimensional perception, embodied in our daily experiences through interoceptive appraisal processes. The article reviews the recent literature about interoception along with predictive coding theories and tries to explain a missing link between the sense of the physiological condition of the entire body and the perception of pain in chronic conditions, which are characterized by interoceptive deficits. Understanding chronic pain from an interoceptive point of view allows us to better comprehend the multidimensional nature of this specific organic information, integrating the input of several sources from Gifford's Mature Organism Model to Melzack's neuromatrix...

The gate control theory of pain proposed by Melzack and Wall in 1965 is revisited through two mechanisms of neuronal regulation: NMDA synaptic plasticity and intrinsic plasticity. The Melzack and Wall circuit was slightly modified by using strictly excitatory nociceptive afferents (in the original arrangement, nociceptive afferents were considered excitatory when they project to central transmission neurons and inhibitory when projecting to substantia gelatinosa). The results of our neurocomputational model are consistent with biological ones in that nociceptive signals are blocked on their way to the brain every time a tactile stimulus is given at the same locus where the pain was produced...

INTRODUCTION: Provoked vestibulodynia (PVD) is suspected to be the most frequent cause of vulvodynia in premenopausal women. Previous research has been inconclusive as to whether higher vulvovaginal pain ratings are associated with lower sexual function and satisfaction in women with PVD. Whether pain intensity correlates with sexual impairment is an important question given its implications for treatment recommendations. AIM: To examine the associations among self-reported and objective pain measurements, sexual function, and sexual satisfaction in a large combined clinical and community sample of premenopausal women diagnosed with PVD...

Pain during delivery is unique because it is accompanied by powerful emotions. Emotions that occur in women during labor and delivery are closely tied to upbringing and culture in which they were raised and consequently with the sensation of experienced pain. According to the Melzack-Wall Theory of Pain, general mood is directly related to the intensity and quality of pain and it is therefore justifiable to presuppose that certain psychosocial factors will be linked with the intensity and quality of pain experienced during childbirth...

The pathogenesis of painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN) is very complex and its detailed understanding often beyond the remit of the diabetologist or the diabetes multidisciplinary team. Nonetheless it is a very common and difficult to treat complication of diabetes, with significant co-morbidity and mortality, and some basic understanding may help the health care professional with its day to day management. In this review, we discuss the basic pathological mechanisms of PDN, and its clinical manifestations, and present both scientific and real world data on its management, in an attempt to help improve patient care and outcomes...

The "gate control theory of pain" of 1965 became famous for integrating clinical observations and the understanding of spinal dorsal horn circuitry at that time into a testable model. Although it became rapidly clear that spinal circuitry is much more complex than that proposed by Melzack and Wall, their prediction of the clinical efficacy of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation and spinal cord stimulation has left an important clinical legacy also 50 years later. In the meantime, it has been recognized that the sensitivity of the nociceptive system can be decreased or increased and that this "gain control" can occur at peripheral, spinal, and supraspinal levels...

INTRODUCTION: Provoked vestibulodynia (PVD) is the most frequent cause of genito-pelvic pain/penetration disorder (GPPPD) and is associated with negative psychological and sexual consequences for affected women and their partners. PVD is often misdiagnosed or ignored and many couples may experience a sense of injustice, due to the loss of their ability to have a normal sexual life. Perceiving injustice has been documented to have important consequences in individuals with chronic pain...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Pain has many valuable functions. It often signals injury or disease, generates a wide range of adaptive behaviors, and promotes healing through rest. Despite these beneficial aspects of pain, there are negative features that challenge our understanding of the puzzle of pain, including persistent phantom limb pain after amputation or total spinal cord transection. Pain is a personal, subjective experience influenced by cultural learning, the meaning of the situation, attention, and other psychological variables...