Tuesday-Newsday #157

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are “The Suicide Edition”, “To The Relative Who Thinks You’re a Hypochondriac” and “Speaking Out for Caregivers: Back from the Vortex.”

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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*ALERT* - Medical Deception: California doctors reportedly used fake hardware in spine surgeries

*Rx RECALL*: FDA announces voluntary nationwide recall of all non-expired sterile drugs from Unique Pharmaceuticals

*MEDICATION NEWS

FDA Approves Hard-to-Abuse Narcotic Painkiller: Targiniq ER contains naloxone, which blunts euphoria of oxycodone when tablet is crushed or broken

Some Addiction Experts Have Panned 'Abuse-Deterrent' Label for New Opioid, Targiniq ER

Study: Opioid-Induced Constipation May Be Vastly Underreported

Promising medication Naloxegol counteracts constipation caused by opioid painkillers

FDA Wants More Info on AcelRx Pain Drug Device Zalviso

Painkiller patches risk to children: Be very careful when disposing of used Fentanyl patches

*MARIJUANA as MEDICINE

The Marijuana Conundrum

How risky is marijuana? What scientists know and don't know about marijuana's risks & benefits

Pot Researcher Firing Unleashes Rising Veteran Backlash

Marijuana for Arthritis and Pain: Is There a Role?

Does marijuana use cause sleep problems?

Study: how marijuana causes paranoia

More illness from synthetic marijuana likely

Marijuana use linked to cardiovascular complications and death

Colorado: The Land of Pot-Smokers and Busy Cardiologists?

Germany allows chronic pain sufferers to grow their own cannabis

*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS 

Early Palliative Care Cuts Costs for Critically Ill Patients

Researchers Posit Clustering of Good, Poor Pain Centers

Pain & Policies Study Group releases 2013 Progress Report Card and Evaluation Guide for States and Federal Government

Study Says It Is Possible To Push Through The Pain, And Beat It

Group doctor visits may improve life for people with muscle disorders

Food: Can it Ease Your Pain?

Catching up with Mark Johnson, pain science specialist 

The Power of Pain Foundation Article for PAINWEEK Journal

Stanford Health Library has more than 1,000 e-books available at no charge to anyone with an Internet connection

New PBS-TV Special “Learning about Pain Management” will air in August as part of 'Healthy Body, Healthy Mind' series

*BACK PAIN

Acetaminophen May Not Help Against Back Pain

Epidural Steroid Injections ‘No Benefit’ for Spinal Stenosis

Study examines back pain and depression in older Americans: Patients being sought to join 

NIH task force proposes standards for research on chronic low back pain

Study underscores benefits of clinical massage therapy for chronic lower back pain

A YouTube Video Is Doctor's Secret Weapon Against Back Pain

Lower Back Pain Is the Leading Cause of Disability in the World

Doctors should give greater weight to the effects of low back pain on patients' social lives

'Weak association' between back pain and weather

Low Back Pain Leading Cause of Disability Worldwide: Nearly 10 percent of people are affected

Giving back pain the chair: Inventor addresses sedentary work lifestyle

SPECT/CT reveals best treatment for low back pain

Ten-year Follow-up of Strengthening Versus Flexibility Exercises With or Without Abdominal Bracing in Recurrent Low Back Pain

Long-lasting improvements for discogenic low-back pain treated with minimally invasive intradiscal biacuplasty

Stem cell transplant shows 'landmark' promise for treatment of degenerative disc disease

Surgeons are injecting the spine with fat from patient's stomachs in 'promising' new treatment for chronic back pain

Spine surgeons need to screen more patients for anxiety, depression, study suggests

Novel National Registry Measures Lumbar Surgery Effectiveness

New study taps into genetics of spinal pain

Tubes of liquid metal that mend severed nerves: Treatment could bridge the gap between nerve endings

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

The Suicide Edition (AWAP Wednesday)

by Jenni Prokopy, editrix of ChronicBabe

To The Relative Who Thinks You’re a Hypochondriac

by Ilana Jacqueline at Let’s Feel Better

Speaking Out for Caregivers: Back from the Vortex

by Lee Woodruff for PainPathways magazine

UPDATE : No Tuesday-Newsday on 7/22

Just a note that there will not be a Tuesday-Newsday post on July 22. Posts will resume the following week.

Tuesday-Newsday #156

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are “Raising kids who can talk with their doctors”, “7 ways chronic illness imposes an extra burden on the young” and “The best thing a doctor ever did to me.”

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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*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS   

IOM Defends Pain Report

Natural-born painkiller found in human saliva

Telecare intervention improves chronic pain

New research: Teaching the brain to reduce pain

Discovery of new means to erase pain

Millions of informal caregivers at risk for chronic pain, injury trying to help disabled family members

How to Talk About Pain

Best Hospitals 2014-15: U.S. News & World Report has published its annual rankings

*MEDICATION NEWS

Naproxen Raises Risk of Heart Problems in Older Women

If color or shape changes, patients more likely to stop taking much-needed drugs

DEA Tosses Tramadol in Class IV

Customized creams relieve chronic pain

(Note from me: I’ve been using a compounded pain cream & sometimes it really does help me)

Managing Pain: Are You Reading Your Medicine Labels?

New film on the hunt for drugs to treat chronic pain - a detective story

Update on Tamper-Proof Hydrocodone Products

Many Anesthesiologists Fail to Wash Hands, Study Shows

*PEDIATRIC CHRONIC PAIN

Spoon Measurements Behind Many Child Drug-Dosing Errors: Study

‘It’s Not If DCF Is Going to Be Called…It’s When’: How Cases Like Justina Pelletier’s Have Parents With Children Who Have Unusual Conditions Afraid

Acupuncture helps young patients manage pain and nausea

Intensive Pain Rehab Improves Kids' Mental Health

Chronic pain: Children face extra challenges

Technology improves transition into adulthood for adolescents with chronic disease

Pediatric patients with specific gene variants may require higher doses of pain-control drugs

The Effects of Mindful Attention and State Mindfulness on Acute Experimental Pain Among Adolescents

Pediatric Pain: Youth athletics may lead to adult chronic pain

Popular film about teens with cancer aims to impart positive message

Increased Palliative Care Needed for Pediatric Oncology Patients

Young adults' privacy potentially jeopardized by insurance plans under Obamacare

U.S. News Ranks Best Children's Hospitals 2014-15

First clinical trial of the effects of therapy dogs on young cancer patients and their families

Blood Thinners May Not Be Needed for Kids' Back Surgery

Cutting Sugar May Ease IBS in Kids

Infant Colic May Be Early Migraine

*MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS

Extended-Release Ampyra Aids Walking in MS

MS symptoms improved in combined therapy trial of Estriol and Copaxone

New analyses confirm efficacy of Gilenya® (fingolimod) across four key measures of Multiple Sclerosis

New Life for Old Injectable MS Drug Interferon Beta

Tysabri Protects Against Relapse in Multiple Sclerosis, According To Study

Medical marijuana may ease some MS; Little evidence for other complementary or alternative therapies

Orphan Drug Designation Granted to IkT-001Pro (Imatinib) Treatment for Rare Multiple Sclerosis Drug Complication

New target: UCSF researchers eye common cold drug Tavist to beat back multiple sclerosis

Strategies for Selecting the Most Effective Treatment for Pain in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Pain Intensity Contributes to Cognitive Dysfunction in Multiple Sclerosis

Some MS Patients Resist Physical Activity Boost

Unique Solutions for MS Gait Problem

Cleveland Clinic Turns iPad Into Powerful Multiple Sclerosis Assessment Tool

Low-fat diet helps fatigue in people with MS, study shows

Does Bee Sting Therapy Help Ease MS Symptoms?

Multiple sclerosis discovery may explain gender gap

'Treating the MRI' in Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple Sclerosis Foundation Launches First MS Online Radio Station

After The Fall, A Young Man Chronicles His Life With Multiple Sclerosis

Music Professor With MS Featured In PBS Documentary About the Disease

How multiple sclerosis is described and understood - redefined by international

Innovative research tool pinpoints potential therapies for multiple sclerosis

Powerful neuroimaging tools help UNM team advance multiple sclerosis research

Embryonic stem cells offer new treatment for multiple sclerosis

Human Stem Cells Reverse Multiple Sclerosis in Mice

Cell-Targeted Therapy Shows Early Promise Against MS: Patients with relapsing-remitting form of the disease showed fewer brain lesions with Ofatumumab

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

Raising kids who can talk with their doctors

by Sherry Reisner

7 ways chronic illness imposes an extra burden on the young

by Toni Bernhard

The best thing a doctor ever did to me

by Duncan Cross

Tuesday-Newsday #155

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are “Should I Take This New Prescription?”, “How to Respond When Someone Says ‘But You Don't Look Sick!’" and “Pacing: Pain and the Power of 10%”.

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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*UNDIAGNOSED DISEASES NETWORK (UDP)

Medical sleuths seek patients with mystery diseases, offer new tools

Learn more, submit your name to be included in the Undiagnosed Diseases Program 

NIH names six new clinical sites in UDP: These medical centers will select from the most difficult-to-solve patient medical cases and together develop effective approaches to diagnose them  

*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS   

Facebook Chat on July 16th: “When Neuropathy and Fibromyalgia Overlap” 

Acupuncture Pain Killing Mystery Revealed

How Hot Weather Impacts Pain: Here's how you can make yourself more comfortable when temperature and humidity increases.

Early Life Pain May Affect the Next Generation

Number of Pain Sites in Older Adults Linked to Quality of Life

Dancing Can Help Senior Mobility

9 Summer Survival Tools When You Have a Chronic Illness

*MEDICATION NEWS

FDA Gives ‘Priority Review’ to New Hydrocodone Painkiller

More Painkillers May Raise Heart Risks for Older Women, But Finding Not Conclusive

New insights into pain relief drugs

Express Scripts Cuts Payments for Customized Drugs

Coalition Releases Report To Promote Safe Acetaminophen Use

If Pot Is a Drug, Why Aren’t More Pharmacists Involved With Medical Marijuana?

*PATIENT NEWS

Half of all American adults have a chronic disease - CDC

Using Your Health Plan for Doctors Who Don't Take Insurance

Medical scribes keep notes so doctors don't have to

The doctor will spy on your now: Hospitals and insurance companies are using credit card data to monitor how patients eat, whether they belong to a gym and when they smoke

Electronic medical records have security advantages, but systems aren't perfect: Questions arise after paper medical records turn up at a public dumpster

What to do if your healthcare records are compromised

*LYME DISEASE

Lyme Disease Diagnosis Dilemma: An investigation finds many Lyme disease tests are ineffective

Federal Loopholes Compromise Lyme Disease Testing

Hard Science on Lyme: Are FDA-approved tests better or worse?

New rapid test finds “off-season Lyme” and miyamotoi

Lyme Disease: A Growing Epidemic, That’s Hard To Diagnose

Many blacklegged ticks infected with Lyme disease and babesiosis: Single bite can pack double pathogen punch

Lyme disease confirmed in humans from southern states

Reducing deer populations may reduce risk of Lyme disease

Strain-specific Lyme disease immunity lasts for years

Dr. Richard Horowitz, author of "Why Can't I Get Better?" discusses chronic Lyme disease with Kathy Lee & Hoda on the Today Show

Lyme Research Alliance Video Wins 2014 Telly Award

Autism-Lyme Correlation Debunked: Researchers find zero evidence for Lyme-induced autism

*TEMPOROMANDIBULAR DISORDERS (TMD)

Researchers develop new diagnostic criteria for TMD

Study Examines Treatment Responses in TMD Patients

New implant eases Rotator Cuff pain: Already in use in Europe and Israel, the InSpace Balloon cushions between two rubbing bones, alleviating pain and shortening the rehab process

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

Should I Take This New Prescription? Here’s how I make educated choices on taking new prescriptions

by Ilana Jacqueline at Let’s Feel Better

AWAP: How to Respond When Someone Says "But You Don't Look Sick!"

by Jenni Prokopy, editrix of ChronicBabe

Pacing: Pain and the Power of 10%

from Pain Pathways magazine

Tuesday-Newsday #154

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are “3 Things the Chronically Ill Wish Their Loved Ones Knew”, “On accepting limits, drawing borders, and finding what’s ‘just right’ and “Illness, Stress and Marriage.”

Remember that even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

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!

====++++====++++====++++====++++====++++===

*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS   

Device startup raises $2M to build iPod-sized wearable that uses ultrasound for pain

Back pain sufferer died after burning his buttocks in boiling-hot bath he took in bid to ease pain of excruciating condition 

Eye Color a Potential Cue to Pain Tolerance

Judge Ruling Favors Calmare® Pain Therapy Reimbursement In Personal Injury Case Against Allstate Insurance

Gate Control Theory and Pain Management

Midnight Friends: How Wired Patients Are Transforming Chronic Illness

ReWalk Robotic Exoskeleton Suit Gets FDA Approval

FDA OKs First Device for Restless Legs Syndrome: Relaxis

*MEDICATION NEWS

Senators Claim Doctors Pressured by Medicare Survey to Prescribe Painkillers

Some questioning statistic of 100 million Americans in chronic pain 

Prescriptions for Powerful Painkillers Vary Widely Among States, CDC says

Minnesota's medical marijuana fight now turns to those in chronic pain

The Hazy Issue of Marijuana in the Workplace (for Medical Marijuana Users)

The anti-inflammatory effect of aspirin reduced in African American women

Coalition Releases Report To Promote Safe Acetaminophen Use

Researchers On A Path To Lower-Risk Painkillers

Pharmacists are Untapped Resource for Patients: what your pharmacist can do for you

Five surprising herbs that can damage your liver

*SICKLE CELL ANEMIA

Be The Match® Urges African Americans to Sign Up To Save Lives — July is African American Bone Marrow Awareness Month

For patients with sickle cell disease, blood donors are a matter of life and death

Molecular blood group typing technique developed

Researchers testing to see if medical marijuana can treat chronic pain caused by sickle cell disease

Bone Marrow Expert Sees New Hope For Adults With Sickle Cell Disease

Gaming pilot study at Children's National engages sickle cell  youth in their own care

Tackle Sickle Cell campaign, spearheaded by NFL stars & twin brothers Jason & Devin McCourty: click to campaign page HERE

Medical trials need minorities

Educate And Ask: Key To Living With Sickle Cell Disease

Houston Doctors Discover Breakthrough With Sickle Cell Disease

Biochemists Reduce Sickling, Progression of Sickle Cell Disease in Mice

World Sickle Cell Day 2014: Why Raising Awareness About This Condition Matters

FDA Salutes World Sickle Cell Awareness Day

Historic fear cripples blacks in fight against Sickle Cell disease

Sickle cell trait in African-American dialysis patients affects dosing of anemia medications

Bacterial adaptation contributes to pneumococcal threat in sickle cell disease patients

Pulmonary hypertension: First guidelines for patients with sickle cell disease

Engineered T Cells Fight Viruses After Transplants

A CRISPR Way To Fix Faulty Genes

Stem-cell advances may quell ethics debate

Stem Cells: Baby Cord Blood Is Excellent Source

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

3 Things the Chronically Ill Wish Their Loved Ones Knew

by Toni Bernhard

On accepting limits, drawing borders, and finding what’s “just right”

by Sandi's Ow at CreakyJoints

Illness, Stress and Marriage

by Helena at Chronic Marriage: Helping Couples with Chronic Illness build extraordinary marriages