Tuesday-Newsday #109

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! There are two Featured Blog Post this week: “Chronic Pain and Narcotic Use: Doctors, please treat me with compassion and understanding, not judgment” by Tracy Rydzy and “It happened to me: I take opiates for chronic pain,” by Anna Hamilton.

Let Me Know: If you’d like me to watch for articles on your pain condition, just drop me a note in the comments section below. 

WARNING:  My goal is to provide the most up-to-date news I can, which you can then take to your personal doctor and debate the merits of before you try it. I do not endorse any of the docs, treatments, info, and meds in anything I post nor can I guarantee they are all effective, especially not for everyone. As is the case with any health info, ALWAYS get your doctor's opinion first!

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*MENINGITIS OUTBREAK and CONTAMINATION OF MEDICINES

Current Count: 749 Cases, 61 Deaths, Joint Infections 35

Fungus From Tainted Steroid Shots Migrated to Base of Brain, Study Shows: Once there, it could help spur the meningitis that killed 58 in last year's outbreak

Compounding pharmacy legislation: Does HELP Bill Go Far Enough?

*PAIN MEDICATION NEWS

Common NSAID Painkiller, Diclofenac, Linked To Heart Attack And Stroke

Survey Shows Opioid “Addiction” Misunderstood

Review: Study Finds NSAIDs Overused for Chronic Pain

FDA Trounces Illegal Online Pharmacies

Medtronic Pain Pump Blamed for 14 Deaths

Negative Physician Attitudes About Opioid Pain Meds Linked With Lower Prescribing

Opioids Ties to Hormonal Upsets Studied: Looking at both sides

Poverty, Race Play Major Roles in Opioid Prescribing

Large-Scale Trial Assesses Cannabis Safety, Abuse Potential in Chronic Pain Patients

New Drug Could End Chronic Pain Forever: Resiniferatoxin (RTX)

How Pain Relievers Work

This neat TEDEducation video explains how humans experience pain and how medicines such as aspirin or ibuprofen relieve pain

Simple Trick Makes Taking Medication More Memorable: Pat your head or tap your toe

*CHRONIC PAIN IN OLDER ADULTS

New ways to help seniors deal with pain and depression

More Clinical Attention Needed for Assessing Pain in Elderly Adults

Older African-Americans’ Pain is Under-Managed

*MIGRAINE / HEADACHE 

Migraine Doctors in Short Supply Across U.S.: Only 416 specialists available nationwide

F.D.A. Rejects New Drug for Migraines (Levadex)

FDA warns pregnant women of migraine drug risk

Most Pregnant Women Treated for Migraines Able to Deliver Vaginally: Three-fourths of women in small, early study had full-term deliveries

Birth Control Tied to Blood Clots in Migraines

Migraine Drug Topamax May Set Stage for Kidney Stones

Drugs Can Sometimes Prevent Migraines, but at a Cost: Study finds many have side effects so bothersome that sufferers stop taking them

FDA finds fraudulent Botox in the U.S.

Migraine Sufferers Face Significant Stigma: They not only have to deal with disabling pain,but the stigma caused by others who tend to discount the impact of the debilitating headaches

American Headache and Migraine Association - Patient Organization Launches

Acupuncture Treats Headaches - New Study

Acupressure Wristband Relieves Migraine Nausea

Hologram-like 3-D brain helps researchers decode migraine pain

Correctly Identifying Migraine Triggers - Formal Experiments Needed, So Work With Your Doctor

Brain Differences Seen in People With Migraines: MRI study suggests changes occur in areas associated with pain

Migraine-Depression Combo Linked to Smaller Brain: But it's unclear what the finding might mean for patients

Gene Mutation Linked to Migraines, Researchers Say

Migraine With Aura May Be Linked to All Stroke Types

Acute Migraines More Apt to Turn Chronic With Poor Treatment: Study compared patients to see who made the jump to frequent headaches within year

Blood Levels of Fat Cell Hormone May Predict Severity of Migraines

Higher Lipids As a Child Ups Later Migraine Risk

Mutation that Causes Rare Sleep Disorder Linked to Migraines

HeadWay, Issue #105 Electricity and Magnets for Migraine?

*FEATURED BLOG POST

Chronic Pain and Narcotic Use: Doctors, please treat me with compassion and understanding, not judgment

by Tracy Rydzy

It happened to me: I take opiates for chronic pain

by Anna Hamilton