What is Neuropathic (nerve-related) pain?
Nerve-related pain, also known as neuropathic pain or neuralgia, is a condition developing from problems related to the nervous system, including central and peripheral nervous systems. About 30% of all neuropathic pain happens because of diabetes, but other diseases like shingles can also cause neuropathic pain.
What are the symptoms of Neuropathic (nerve-related) pain?
Symptoms of neuropathic pain vary in type and severity and may include:
Who is prone to Neuropathic (nerve-related) pain?
Neuropathic pain affects a lot of individuals undergoing chemotherapy treatment, living with diabetes or having suffered a nerve injury. It occurs in about 1 in every 10 adults over age 30.
What causes Neuropathic (nerve-related) pain?
The most common causes for neuropathic pain can be divided into four main categories- disease, injury, infection, and loss of limb. Other causes of nerve-related pain include:
A. Diabetic Neuralgia
What is diabetic neuralgia?
Diabetic neuralgia is a serious and common complication of type 1 and type 2 diabetes. It is a type of nerve damage (neuropathy) caused by long-term high blood sugar levels. The condition usually develops slowly.
There are various types of diabetic neuropathy that affect different areas of body. If you have diabetes, it is important to regularly check your blood glucose levels and contact your doctor if have any symptoms of neuropathy.
What are the symptoms of diabetic neuralgia?
It is common for symptoms of diabetic neuralgia to appear gradually. Symptoms vary depending on the areas affected.
Common symptoms of of diabetic neuralgia:Who is prone to diabetic neuralgia?
Current research shows that persons with longer duration of diabetes, elderly age and higher glycosylated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels are more prone to diabetic neuralgia.
A person is also more likely to develop diabetic neuralgia if he/ she has diabetes andWhat causes diabetic neuralgia?
Diabetic neuralgia is caused by nerve damage due to high blood sugar levels over a long period of time. Other associated factors can also lead to nerve damage, such as:
B. CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome)
What is CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome )?
Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a term used to describe a group of painful conditions. Earlier names for these conditions include Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD), causalgia, etc. The pain in CRPS is constant and either shooting, sharp, or burning. The pain may be severe and it lasts much longer. Few people may not have a history of an injury or surgery before the pain started, but mostly people have such a history, when explored in detail.
What are the symptoms of CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome)?
Symptoms of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) are usually in one arm or leg and include:Who is prone to CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome)?
CRPS can happen to anyone at any age. Females in their 40s to 60s are more likely to get it. CRPS isn't the same for all people. Many have mild symptoms which slowly get better over time. But some people may not recover as expected.
What causes CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome)?
The exact cause of CRPS is still not clear. The pain usually starts after a limb or joint has had a serious injury such as:The injury might also be caused by an accident, a fall, or surgery. In few people, CRPS starts without an apparent reason. It isn't clear why some people get CRPS while others do not.
C. Post-Herpetic Neuralgia
What is Post-Herpetic Neuralgia?
Post-Herpetic Neuralgia is a painful condition that affects nerves and skin. It’s a complication of herpes zoster, called ‘Shingles’. Shingles is a painful, blistering skin rash caused by a reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus. This virus gets into our bodies in childhood or adolescence as chickenpox. The virus can remain dormant in the body’s nerve cells for long time and reactivate decades later. When the pain caused by shingles doesn’t go away after the rash and blisters clear up, the condition is called Post-Herpetic Neuralgia.
What are the symptoms of Post-Herpetic Neuralgia?
The main symptom of Post-Herpetic Neuralgia is intermittent or continuous nerve pain in an area of the skin previously affected by shingles. Common signs and symptoms of Post-Herpetic Neuralgia include:
Who is prone to Post-Herpetic Neuralgia?
Factors that increase the risk of developing Post-Herpetic Neuralgia (PHN) include:
What causes Post-Herpetic Neuralgia?
Once anybody has chickenpox, the virus remains in the body for the rest of life. If the immune system is suppressed at any time later in life, such as from medications or chemotherapy, the virus may reactivate, causing shingles. Post-Herpetic Neuralgia occurs if the nerve fibers are severely damaged during an outbreak of shingles. Increasing age, excessive pain during the early stage of and throughout an episode of shingles may also increase the risk of the condition.
D. Trigeminal Neuralgia
What is Trigeminal Neuralgia?
Trigeminal neuralgia is an ongoing pain condition that affects certain nerves in the face. It is also called “tic douloureux”. It is a craniofacial pain disorder characterized by episodes of severe, sharp, lancinating, "electric-like" bolts of pain. Trigeminal neuralgia is either classic / idiopathic (primary), or due to a structural lesion involving the trigeminal system or associated with some other neurologic process (secondary).
What are the symptoms of Trigeminal Neuralgia?
Common symptoms of trigeminal neuralgia include:Who is prone to Trigeminal Neuralgia?
Trigeminal neuralgia affects women more often than men, and it's more likely to occur in people who are older than 50. Some other risk factors are:
What causes Trigeminal Neuralgia?
Trigeminal Neuralgia occurs when the trigeminal nerve is compressed and becomes inflamed. Some causes are:
E. Post-Surgical Chronic Pain
What is Post-Surgical Chronic Pain?
Post-Surgical Chronic Pain is pain that has developed after a surgical procedure and lasts for at least 3 months. It is one of the most frequent complications after surgery, with an important negative impact on patients' quality of life that constitutes significant economic and healthcare burdens. Obesity, inflammatory diseases and increased life expectancy have resulted in an increasing volume of surgeries such as hip and knee arthroplasty that are associated with a high risk of Post-Surgical Chronic Pain.
What are the manifestations of Post-Surgical Chronic Pain?
Post-Surgical Chronic Pain frequently has a neuropathic component to it namely: spontaneous sharp, stabbing pain, increased sensitivity over the skin. There may also be sensory loss over the surgical incision.
Associated symptoms include:Who is prone to Post-Surgical Chronic Pain?
It can’t be predicted who will develop chronic pain after operation, but some risk factors have been identified. These include preoperative pain, the type of surgery (with higher risk for thoracotomy, mastectomy, amputation, hernia repair, and coronary artery bypass surgery), degree of postoperative pain, anxiety and depression.
What causes Post-Surgical Chronic Pain?
Several clinical reports emphasize nerve damage during surgery as one of the main factors of chronic postoperative pain. Central nervous system changes contribute to the development of persistent pain following surgical trauma and nerve injury.
Phantom Limb PainWhat is Phantom Limb Pain?
Phantom limb pain feels like it’s coming from a body part that’s no longer there. This type of pain occurs mostly in people whose arm or leg has been amputated. The disorder may also occur after surgeries to remove other body parts, such as the breast, penis, eye or tongue. It ranges from mild to severe and can last for seconds, hours, days or longer. If one of the limbs is amputated, it feels like the limb is still there. This is called phantom sensation. Phantom sensation may feel like:
What are the manifestations of Phantom Limb Pain?
Phantom limb pain feels as if the pain comes from a body part that no longer remains.
Characteristics of phantom limb pain include:
Who is prone to Phantom Limb Pain?
An important factor that increases the risk of phantom pain is pain in the area before amputation. Approximately 60%–80% of amputees experience phantom limb sensations. An estimated 8 out of 10 people who lose a limb experience some degree of phantom pain.
What causes Phantom Limb Pain?
The exact cause of phantom limb pain is not clear, but it appears to originate in the spinal cord and brain. There are number of other factors believed to contribute to phantom limb pain, including damaged nerve endings, scar tissue at the site of the amputation and the physical memory of pre-amputation pain in the affected area. A few possible reasons are widely believed:
F. Carpal Tunnel syndrome
What is Carpal Tunnel syndrome?
Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a painful condition that occurs when the median nerve in the wrist is compressed. It’s a pressure on a nerve in wrist. It causes tingling, numbness and pain in hand and fingers.
CTS often results from repetitive wrist movements, and therefore, it is more commonly linked to computer use. If not treated, CTS can have a negative impact on a person’s quality of life. The median nerve can become severely damaged eventually. As a result, there may be permanent numbness in the fingers and weakness in the muscles that are innervated by the median nerve.
What are the symptoms of Carpal Tunnel syndrome?
The symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome include
Who is prone to Carpal Tunnel syndrome?
Mostly people have a CTS between the ages of 40 and 60 years, and the prevalence increases with age. This condition can appear in one or both wrists. It is also more common in females than in males. People with diabetes or other metabolic disorders directly affect the body's nerves and make them more susceptible to compression are also at very high risk. Carpal tunnel syndrome is a progressive condition that can worsen without proper care.
What causes Carpal Tunnel syndrome?
CTS can develop for many reasons. However, it is more likely if a person frequently uses extremes of wrist motion, if they are exposed to vibration, and if they repeatedly use their fingers — for example, while typing on a computer.
Some of the common cause of CTS include: