edited by Chas Bountra,
Rajesh Munglani
and William Schmidt

This reference volume presents a detailed overview of the current approaches and techniques in the management of pain caused by tissue, nerve, and central nervous system injuries. It features the latest advances in pulsed radiofrequency treatment of chronic neck, back, sympathetic, and peripheral neuroma-derived pain.

Contents

1. Basic Aspects
   • Mechanism-Based Classifications of Pain and Analgesic Drug Discovery
   • Sites of Analgesic Action
   • From Acute to Chronic Pain: Peripheral and Central Mechanisms
   • Central and Peripheral Components of Neuropathic Pain
   • A New Perspective on Signal Transduction in Neuropathic Pain: The Emerging Role of the G Protein Dimer in Transducing and Modulating Opioid Signaling
   • Pain and the Somatosensory Cortex
   • Descending Pathways in Spinal Cord Stimulation and Pain Control
   • Local Neuroimmune Interactions in Visceral Hyperalgesia: Bradykinin, Neurotrophins, and Cannabinoids
   • Pain Processing in the Periphery: Development of Analgesics

2. Clinical Aspects
   • Neuroimaging of Pain: Possibilities of Objective Measurements of Analgesic Actions in Human Subjects
   • Surrogate Models of Pain
   • Acute Trauma and Postoperative Pain
   • Effectiveness of Needling Techniques with Special Reference to Myofascial Pain Syndromes
   • Advances in the Management of Spinal Pain and Radiofrequency Techniques
   • Pulsed Radiofrequency Treatment of Chronic Neck, Back, Sympathetic, and Peripheral Neuroma–Derived Pain
   • Spinal Cord Stimulation
   • Spinal Endoscopy: Its Current Status and Role in Lumbosacral Radiculopathy
   • Cancer Pain Treatment
   • Inflammatory Joint Disease and Pain
   • Chronic Nonmalignant Visceral Pain Syndromes of the Abdomen, Pelvis, and Bladder and Chronic Urogenital and Rectal Pain
   • Nerve Injury Pain
   • Sympathetically Maintained Pain
   • Headache: Basic Anatomy and Physiology of the Trigeminovascular System
   • Psychological Factors in Measurement of Pain
   • Challenges and Pitfalls of Clinical Trials: Evaluating Novel Analgesics for Neuropathic Pain

3. Novel Approaches to Drug Discovery
   • Molecular Approaches to the Study of Pain
   • Molecular Validation of Pain Targets
   • Genetics of Pain
   • Animal Models of Pain

4. New and Emerging Therapies
   • An Overview of Current and Investigational Drugs for the Treatment of Acute and Chronic Pain
   • Novel Mu, Delta, and Kappa Agonists: Potential for Development of Novel Analgesic Agents
   • Delta-Receptor, Nonpeptide Agonists: The Development of Safe, Strong Analgesics with a Novel Mechanism of Action
   • Peripheral Opioid Analgesia: Neuroimmune Interactions and Therapeutic Implications
   • Profile of ADL 2-1294, an Opioid Antihyperalgesic Agent with Selectivity for Peripheral Mu-Opiate Receptors
   • Controlled-Release Opioids
   • NMDA-Receptor Antagonists as Enhancers of Analgesic Activity: The MorphiDexTM Morphine—Dextromethorphan Combination
   • CCK Antagonist Potentiation of Opioid Analgesia
   • Profile of NSAID + Opioid Combination Analgesics
   • NSAIDs and COX-2 Inhibitors
   • COX-2-Specific Inhibitors: Celecoxib and Second-Generation Agents
   • NK1 Receptor Antagonists: Potential Analgesics?
   • Vanilloids
   • The Development of Bradykinin Antagonists as Therapeutic Agents
   • The Treatment of Neuropathic Pain: Anticonvulsants, Antidepressants, Na Channel Blockers, NMDA Receptor Blockers, and Capsaicin
   • N-Methyl-D-Aspartate (NMDA) Receptors as a Target for Pain Therapy
   • Profile of Ketamine, CPP, Dextromethorphan, and Memantine
   • GV196771A, a New Glycine Site Antagonist of the NMDA Receptor with Potent Antihyperalgesic Activity
   • Voltage-Gated Sodium Channels and Pain: Recent Advances
   • Calcium Channel Antagonists and the Control of Pain
   • Profile of Ziconotide (SNX-111): A Neuronal N-Type Voltage-Sensitive Calcium Channel Blocker
   • Nitric Oxide Synthase Inhibitors and the Role of Nitric Oxide in Nociception
   • Adenosine and Pain
   • Adenosine Kinase Inhibition as a Therapeutic Approach to Analgesia
   • P2X Purinergic Receptors for ATP in Nociception
   • Somatostatin Receptors in Analgesia
   • Cannabinoids
   • Antinociceptive Effects of Centrally Administered Neurotrophic Factors
   • Peripheral Neurotrophic Factors and Pain
   • Profile of Tramadol and Tramadol Analogues
   • Sumatriptan and Related 5-HT1B/1D Receptor Agonists: Novel Treatments for Migraine
   • Cholinergic Approaches to Pain Therapy
   • Analgesic Effects of Vedaclidine, a Mixed Agonist–Antagonist at Muscarinic Receptor Subtypes
   • Gabapentin and Related Compounds
   • The Role of Gabapentin in the Management of Neuropathic Pain
   • New Local Anesthetic Analgesics
   • Spinal 2-Adrenergic Agonists for Intractable Cancer Pain
   • Cellular Implantation for the Treatment of Chronic Pain
   • Bone-Seeking Radiopharmaceuticals to Palliate Painful Bone Metastases

Appendix I: Currently Marketed Analgesics
Appendix II: 21-Year Survey of Analgesics in Development for Treatment of Acute or Chronic Pain

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