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Managing painful hard-to-heal leg ulcers is challenging with current therapeutic options. Wounds are prone to being hypoxic, and the subsequent pain is often related to hypoxia. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is used to treat hard-to-heal leg wounds by delivering 100% oxygen at a pressure 2-3 times higher than atmospheric pressure. Unfortunately, most patients cannot be offered HBOT because it is costly and needs to be applied at specialised centres. Therefore, topical continuous oxygen therapy (TCOT) is a novel alternative for continuous local oxygen delivery to wounds and is associated with improved wound healing; however, its effect on painful wounds is unknown. This retrospective study was conducted on 20 patients, of whom 17 had painful hard-to-heal leg ulcers. In 13 patients (76%) with painful ulcers, TCOT was associated with rapid and substantial pain alleviation. Also, eight (40%) of the patients' wounds healed entirely with TCOT. This study suggests that TCOT may represent a novel pain management device for hard-toheal wounds. Declaration of interest: The authors have no conficts of interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systemic sclerosis is a complex disease characterized by extensive fibrosis, microvascular alterations, and additional sequelae. Microvascular alterations can cause painful ulcers and necrosis ; however, conservative or surgical treatment is often challenging in terms of healing. The study aimed to describe a toe ulcer with systemic sclerosis and its' successful treatment with spinal cord stimulation. An 83-year-old woman, who was diagnosed with systemic sclerosis over the past decade, was distressed by a non-healing toe ulcer for an extended period of time. The patient underwent spinal cord stimulation treatment with the expectation of pain relief and an improvement in microcirculatory insufficiency. Her pain scales and microcirculation improved, and the toe ulcer healed. Furthermore, the frequency of Raynaud's symptoms was reduced, and the patient's pain decreased. There was no recurrence of the ulcer and she no longer needed a cane for walking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Aim of the present work was to investigate the anti-inflammatory, analgesic and antiulcer effects of red seaweed Porphyra vietnamensis (P. vietnamenis). Materials and Methods: Aqueous (POR) and alcoholic (PE) fractions were successfully isolated from P. vietnamenis. Further biological investigations were performed using a classic test of paw edema induced by carrageenan, writhing induced by acetic acid, hot plate method and naproxen induced gastro-duodenal ulcer. Results: Among the fractions POR showed better activity. POR and PE significantly (p < 0.05) reduced carrageenan induced paw edema in a dose dependent manner. In the writhing test POR significantly (p < 0.05) reduced abdominal writhes than PE. In hot plate method POR showed better analgesic activity than PE. POR showed comparable ulcers reducing potential (p

Recurrent Aphthous Ulcer (RAU) is a common oral pathology that produces pain which affects the lifestyle of the patient. Its aetiology and pathogenesis still remain unclear. A considerable number of treatments are available with the main goal directed towards pain relief. Previous studies on RAU treatment using low level laser therapy (LLLT) show immediate pain relief after application. Aim: This study aims to evaluate and compare treatment effectiveness in relieving pain provided by Waterlase (BIOLASE) LLLT and conventional topical corticosteroid using Triamcinolone Acetonide 0.1% dental paste. Methods: Thirty (30) volunteered patients of age between 18-27 years old were divided into two groups. Each group consists of 15 patients with 7 males and 8 females. Group 1 patients were treated by using LLLT while group 2 patients were treated by using triamcinolone acetonide 0.1%. The patient's details, pain intensity and clinical photographs were recorded in a specially prepared case sheet. Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare significance in pain reduction provided by both methods of treatment. Results: Both groups showed significant pain reduction immediately, day 3 and day 7. Higher reduction in pain intensity was observed immediately (p=0.001) and 3 days (p=0.002) after treatment in group 1 patients (LLLT) compared to group 2 patients (triamcinolone acetonide 0.1%). Conclusion: Waterlase (BIOLASE) LLLT is clinically more effective in relieving pain compared to Triamcinolone Acetonide 0.1%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cornea is one of the most highly innervated tissues in the organism. Opioid receptors have already been detected in cornea; so the topical use of opioids is presented as an analgesic alternative in treatment of ulcerated corneas, with no damage in cicatrization. This research aimed to evaluate the corneal sensitivity of the 1% morphine sulfate solution in the intact cornea of dogs. Ten dogs with no ocular lesions were treated with one drop of saline solution on right eye (GC), and one drop of 1% morphine sulfate solution with the pH corrected for 7.2 on left eye (GM). The parameters evaluated were: tonometry, esthesiometry, Schirmer lacrimation test, pupil diameter and the presence of conjunctival hyperemia and blepharospasm with and without light source. The evaluations happened before collyrium instillation and 10, 20, 30, 60 and 240 minutes after it. It was performed variance analysis (ANOVA) for the parametric tests, comparing the means by the Tukey-Kramer test. Hyperemia and blepharospasm were evaluated by the chi-square test. The conjunctival hyperemia observed in the GM group was significantly higher (7/10) than in the CG group, which did not present hyperemia (P<0.05). Two eyes from GM showed blepharospasm with light source at 10 minutes. There were no differences in corneal sensibility, pupil diameter and Schirmer lacrimation test. The intraocular pressure was lower in the GM group compared to the GC group at 240 minutes. Topical administration of 1% morphine sulfate solution does not cause analgesia in intact cornea and promote irritation in eye and annex after instillation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To assess the beneficial effects of silver foam dressing on the healing of wounds with ulcers and infection control of burn patients. Methods: Eighty-four second-degree burn patients were selected and divided into a study group and a control group (n=42). After disinfection and cleaning, wound beds of the study group were covered with silver-containing soft-silicone foam dressing, and wound surfaces of the control group were wiped with 1% silver sulfadiazine cream (60 g/100 cm2). The two groups were checked weekly to observe wound healing progress and adverse reactions of the skin around wounds. Wound secretions were collected and subjected to bacterial culture. Related indices were recorded and quantified. Results: Thirty seven cases of the study group (88.1%) and 36 cases of the control group (85.7%) recovered to normal, and 3 (7.1%) and 2 cases (4.8%) in the two groups failed to recover. The recovery rates of the two groups were similar (P>0.05), but unrecovered patients in the study group had significantly higher proportions of repaired wounds (P<0.05). Wounds of the study group were healed significantly more rapidly than those of the control group (22.3±3.1 vs. 25.1±4.4, P<0.05). The study group had significantly higher proportions of repaired wounds from Day 7 to Day 21 (P<0.05), but the difference became less obvious with extended time to Day 28. The bacterial culture-positive (exceeding 105 organisms per gram of tissue) rates of both groups significantly reduced after treatment (Day 7 for the study group and Day 14 for the control group), and the rate of the study group was significantly lower at last (P<0.05). The study and control groups were observed 134 and 149 person-times respectively, with the normal wound-surrounding skin rates of 96.3% (129/134) and 88.6% (132/149) (P>0.05 except for on Day 14). Except for on Day 28, the study group had significantly lower pain scores than those of the control group (P<0.05), especially on Day 7 and Day 14 (P<0.01). From Day 7 to Day 28, the study group was significantly less prone to burning sensation than the control group (P<0.05), but both groups felt anxious during dressing change (P>0.05). Dressing of the study group was changed significantly more easily (P<0.05), but the fixing outcomes were similar (P>0.05). Conclusion: Silver foam dressing rapidly, easily and safely resisted wound bacteria, promoted wound healing and shortened recovery time, effectively relieving the pain of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Aim of the present work was to investigate the antiinflammatory, analgesic and antiulcer effects of red seaweed Porphyra vietnamensis (P. vietnamenis). Materials and Methods: Aqueous (POR) and alcoholic (PE) fractions were successfully isolated from P. vietnamenis. Further biological investigations were performed using a classic test of paw edema induced by carrageenan, writhing induced by acetic acid, hot plate method and naproxen induced gastro-duodenal ulcer. Results: Among the fractions POR showed better activity. POR and PE significantly (p < 0.05) reduced carrageenan induced paw edema in a dose dependent manner. In the writhing test POR significantly (p < 0.05) reduced abdominal writhes than PE. In hot plate method POR showed better analgesic activity than PE. POR showed comparable ulcers reducing potential (p<0.01) to that of omeprazole, and has more ulcer reducing potential then PE. Conclusions: The results of this study demonstrated that P. vietnamenis aqueous fraction possesses biological activity that is close to the standards taken for the treatment of peripheral painful or/and inflammatory and ulcer conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]