Trigeminal neuralgia and radiofrequency.

Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is a painful neurological disorder often mistaken for pain of dental origin by the patient and dentist. Dentists should be acquainted with TN to differentiate it from orofacial pain and prevent unnecessary tooth extraction. TN pain alleviating modalities are numerous, yet not uniformly effective. Radiofrequency, known for 25 years, is a minimally-invasive outpatient procedure used for TN when drugs are ineffective. The authors evaluate radiofrequency in trigeminal neuralgia patients referred from the dental office.

Trigeminal neuralgia and radiofrequency.

Trigeminal neuralgia is a painful neurological disorder often mistaken for pain of dental origin by the patient and dentist. Dentists should be acquainted with TN to differentiate it from orofacial pain and prevent unnecessary tooth extraction. TN pain-alleviating modalities are numerous, yet not uniformly effective. Radiofrequency, known for 25 years, is a minimally invasive outpatient procedure used for TN when drugs are ineffective. The authors evaluate RF in TN patients referred from the dental office.

Comparison of elective lumbar discectomy outcomes between civilians and military personnel.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the results of discectomy surgery for lumbar disc herniation in military personnel and compare it with civilians. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. PLACE AND DURATION: This study was conducted in Neurosurgery Department and Trauma Research Center, Baqiyatallah Medical Sciences University, Tehran, Iran, from February to October 2006. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One-hundred and seventeen military patients (54 subjects as combat forces and 63 as office personnel) and 115 civilians, who underwent discectomy surgery were included. In a mean duration of 50.8 months, the ability to return to full duty and resolution of complaints were assessed and satisfaction was measured using a Visual Analog Scale. RESULTS: Inability to return to previous duty was significantly higher in military personnel compared to civilians (p = 0.002); and in combat forces compared to office personnel (p < 0.001). The mean (SD) satisfaction was 80.09 (17.8) and 79.32 (9.8) percent in civilian and military personnel, respectively; p = 0.02. However, this difference was not seen in military subgroup forces. Military personnel had less complaints after surgery, 32.1% comparing to 42.7% in civilians; but the difference was not statistically significant. Likewise, fewer complaints were observed in combat forces comparing with office forces; 37% vs. 47.6% (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: Surgical intervention had relatively poor outcomes in military personnel, specifically in combat forces. Prevention of injury to back region should be considered in military training programs and in case of presence of disc herniation related symptoms, efforts should be made to save patients' effective function by conservation and medical therapies.

Paraoxon inhibits GABA uptake in brain synaptosomes.

To investigate possible effect of paraoxon (10(-9)-10(-3)M) on GABA uptake, we used rat cerebral cortex synaptosomes. K(m) and V(max) of GABA uptake were determined in presence of paraoxon (10(-3)M). Acetylcholine and its antagonists (atropine and mecamylamine) were used for evaluating cholinergic-dependency of uptake. Type of transporter involved was determined by using glial (beta-alanine) and neuronal (DABA) GABA uptake inhibitors. The results of the study showed that paraoxon at low doses (10(-9)-10(-6)M) increased and at high doses (10(-5)-10(-3)M) decreased GABA uptake. One millimolar paraoxon significantly decreased V(max) (175.2+/-4.23 vs. 80.4+/-2.03, P<0.001) of GABA uptake while had no effect on its K(m). DABA significantly decreased GABA uptake (P<0.001) while beta-alanine had no effect. In conclusion, present data suggests that paraoxon probably acts as non-competitive antagonist of GABA uptake.

Anxiety and depression in patients with lower back pain.

This study investigated the anxiety and depression for a group of 112 patients with Lower Back Pain. 56 patients with Lower Back Pain (21 women, 35 men) were seeking treatment in two clinics. Also, 56 subjects (20 females, 36 males) who had no Lower Back Pain agreed to participate as a control group. Psychological aspects were evaluated on the Symptoms Checklist-90-Revised. Demographic characteristics and information on pain was collected by an author who constructed the questionnaire. The patients reported a higher mean on Anxiety and Depression subscales of SCL-90-R. t tests for means on the SCL-90-R scales between groups indicated statistically significant differences on the anxiety and depression scales.