Mixed Bag

Chronic Pain Perspectives: Targeting systemic inflammation in patients with obesity-related pain: One practice's success with platelet-rich plasma therapy
The 3 cases presented here represent the kind of success that one pain center is having with platelet-rich plasma therapy for the treatment of musculoskeletal pain. Lundquist W, Stanford R. J Fam Pract. 2013 Sep;62(9 Suppl 1):S10-5. PMID: 24080566

'Love Hormone' May Mediate Placebo Effect (CME/CE)
Intranasal oxytocin, sometimes called the "love hormone," intensified the painkilling effect of placebo in a clinical study, suggesting a physical basis for the placebo effect, researchers said. Among 75 healthy young men exposed to painful heat stimuli on their forearms in the randomized, double-blind study, ratings of a placebo cream's analgesic effect were greater after the participants received active intranasal oxytocin than when they snorted a saline solution, with a difference of 5.76 points out of 60 (95% CI 0.59-10.93, P=0.03), according to Ulrike Bingel, MD, of the University of Duisberg-Essen in Germany, and colleagues.

"To our knowledge, our study provides the first experimental evidence that placebo responses can be pharmacologically enhanced by the application of intranasal oxytocin," they wrote in a research letter appearing in the Oct. 23/30 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. MedPage Today

Study finds testosterone therapy may reduce risk of cardiovascular disease
In this observational study, BUSM researchers investigated the effects of testosterone treatment in 255 hypogonadal men between the ages of 33-69 and followed them for a period of five years. They found that men treated with testosterone therapy experienced a gradual reduction of their total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL/bad cholesterol), triglycerides and increased high density lipoprotein (HDL/(good cholesterol). "In addition to improving their cholesterol levels, we found that the testosterone treatment resulted in marked reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure as well, suggesting amelioration of hypertension," explained lead author Abdulmaged M. Traish, MBA, PhD, professor of biochemistry and urology as well as Research Director of the Institute of Sexual Medicine at BUSM. Eurekalert!

Complete care improves patient outcomes
Complete Care, a collaborative approach to meeting patient needs, is improving outcomes for Kaiser Permanente patients. Results from the program are featured in the November 2013 issue of The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety, and described in a journal editorial as, "a dramatic and impressive example of what is possible with a carefully designed and implemented system-level intervention."

"Complete Care leverages Kaiser Permanente's technology, our integrated system, and our dedicated care teams to ensure that patients with complex chronic conditions receive the proactive support, coordinated care, and follow up they need to maintain optimal health," said Michael Kanter, MD, regional medical director of quality and clinical analysis, Southern California Permanente Medical Group, and lead author for the article. Eurekalert!

Opioids for chronic pain: Study looks at how patients and their doctors talk about risks
'''I'm Not Abusing or Anything': Patient-physician communication about opioid treatment in chronic pain" is published in the November issue of Patient Education and Counseling, the official journal of the American Academy on Communication in Healthcare and of the European Association for Communication in Healthcare. The study followed 30 patients with chronic pain. They were audio-recorded during visits with their primary care doctor and then interviewed about their pain care as well as their relationship with their physicians. Eurekalert!

'Common courtesy' lacking among doctors-in-training
Johns Hopkins investigators have found that doctors-in-training are unlikely to introduce themselves fully to hospitalized patients or sit down to talk to them eye-to-eye, despite research suggesting that courteous bedside manners improve medical recovery along with patient satisfaction. A report on the research, published online this month in the Journal of Hospital Medicine, calls for some simple adjustments to intern communications to make the whole experience of a hospital stay better. MedicalXpress