Ouch! Abrupt opioid withdrawal increases pain sensitivity
Friday, July 10, 2009 - 12:21
in Health & Medicine
(PhysOrg.com) -- The abrupt withdrawal of morphine-like analgesics - opioids - can increase sensitivity to pain. Experiments have now shown that this effect is caused by a memory-like process, the long-term potentiation of synaptic strength in the spinal cord. The study, which was supported by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), also found ways of avoiding this increase in pain sensitivity. These pioneering results have now been published in the prestigious journal Science.
Read the whole article on Physorg
More from Physorg
Related
- New guidelines for prescribing opioid pain drugs publishedTue, 10 Feb 2009, 19:08:25 EST
- New guideline for prescribing opioid pain drugs publishedFri, 6 Feb 2009, 15:29:07 EST
- Pain thresholds linked to inflammation and sleep problems in arthritis patientsThu, 29 Oct 2009, 6:38:57 EDT
- Risks for painkiller abuse do not outweigh benefits in chronic painFri, 9 May 2008, 9:28:26 EDT
- Researchers find genetic link between physical pain and social rejectionMon, 17 Aug 2009, 13:37:07 EDT