[Rheumatic diseases and neuropathic pain : Diagnosis and treatment].

[Rheumatic diseases and neuropathic pain : Diagnosis and treatment].
Z Rheumatol. 2020 Dec 23;:
Authors: Lassen J, Baron R
Abstract
Pain is a leading symptom in inflammatory rheumatic diseases. For a long time it has been assumed that this pain is of nociceptive origin; however, in about one fifth of all patients the pain remains despite successful anti-inflammatory treatment and is not typically described as nociceptive by those affected. Recent studies indicate that some patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) experience pain with a neuropathic pain component. The treatment of neuropathic pain with damage to the somatosensory system differs markedly from the treatment of nociceptive pain in which the pain processing system is intact. Thus, the recognition and, above all, the more precise differentiation of the pain symptoms of affected patients make a decisive contribution to a successful treatment. With the help of a few points in the history and a physical examination, the assumption of the diagnosis neuropathic pain can often be rejected or substantiated. Pain with a neuropathic component does not adequately respond to typical analgesics. Instead, the high efficacy of co-analgesics, such as anticonvulsants and antidepressants, has been repeatedly proven.
PMID: 33355701 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Source: Zeitschrift fur Rheumatologie - December 23, 2020 Category: Rheumatology Authors: Lassen J, Baron R Tags: Z Rheumatol Source Type: research