pain relief

16 Stories

Migraine Sufferers May Soon Have Their Very Own 'EpiPen'

FDA approves zavegepant, or Zavzpret, a fast-acting nasal spray designed to provide pain relief

(Newser) - A new nasal spray from Pfizer has just been OKed by the Food and Drug Administration, and the company hopes it will be a game changer for the nearly 40 million migraine sufferers in the US. Reuters reports on the FDA's Friday approval of zavegepant, sold under the brand...

Drug Chains Restrict Purchase of Children's Meds

Demand as respiratory illnesses thrive forces CVS, Walgreens to limit amount customers can buy

(Newser) - Parents on the hunt for medication for their sick kids may not be able to immediately find what they need on drugstore shelves, thanks to a spike in various respiratory illnesses and, therefore, higher demand for those meds. CNN reports that the CVS and Walgreens chains have placed limits on...

Think You Know What Will Help Your Achy Knees? Think Again

NSAIDs like ibuprofen, naproxen may actually exacerbate osteoarthritis inflammation: scientists

(Newser) - When those achy joints start acting up, it seems to be popular wisdom to pop an Advil, Motrin, or Aleve. Now, however, scientists say ibuprofen and naproxen, sold under these brand names and others, may actually exacerbate things for patients suffering from osteoarthritis, worsening their inflammation instead of tamping it...

Woman Feels No Pain, Didn't Realize It Until Age 65

Jo Cameron has been through several operations and childbirth without painkillers

(Newser) - It sounds like something out of a superhero movie: There's a woman living in Scotland who feels no pain. In a case report on Jo Cameron in the British Journal of Anaesthesia , scientists say they discovered two genetic mutations at play (one on a previously unidentified gene) and that...

A Painkiller Made From the 'Killer of Killers'?
Beautiful 'Freak'
Snake May Ease
Your Pain One Day
NEW STUDY

Beautiful 'Freak' Snake May Ease Your Pain One Day

If scientists can harness the power of the long-glanded blue coral snake's venom

(Newser) - Ibuprofen for your splitting headache, or venom from the "killer of killers"? Scientists say that poison from one of the rarest, most "beautiful" snakes in the world—a creature that devours king cobras for breakfast and boasts "freaky" long venom glands that run a quarter of...

New Reason to Fear Acetaminophen: ADHD

 New Reason to Fear 
 Acetaminophen: ADHD 
new study

New Reason to Fear Acetaminophen: ADHD

New study finds use during pregnancy is linked to 'ADHD-like behaviors'

(Newser) - The bad news about acetaminophen just keeps on coming: A new study finds that use of the drug during pregnancy is linked to "ADHD-like behavioral problems" in children, CNN reports. The Danish study looked at data from more than 64,000 children and found that those who had prenatal...

Study: Simon & Garfunkel Tune Eases Chronic Pain
Study: Simon & Garfunkel Tune Eases Chronic Pain
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Study: Simon & Garfunkel Tune Eases Chronic Pain

'Bridge Over Troubled Water' is the new Tylenol

(Newser) - Walk into select Lloyds Pharmacy locations in the UK complaining of a headache, and you may be more likely to walk out with a Simon & Garfunkel CD than a bottle of painkillers. The pharmacy chain commissioned a study that found 41% of all people suffering persistent pain (and 66%...

Tylenol Caps Get New Warning
 Tylenol Caps Get New Warning 

Tylenol Caps Get New Warning

Acetaminophen overdose is top cause of liver failure in US

(Newser) - Acetaminophen overdose is the top cause of liver failure in the US—and concerns about the widespread pain-relief ingredient have been growing. Starting in October, Johnson & Johnson subsidiary McNeil will stick a new warning on the caps of Extra Strength Tylenol, reading: "Contains acetaminophen. Always read the label,...

Ukraine Cancer Patients Deprived of Painkillers

WHO calls for end to country's strict limits

(Newser) - Rules tied to the Soviet era have left Ukraine with some of the world’s toughest painkiller laws—restrictions so broad that some cancer patients have attempted suicide to escape the pain, the AP reports. Morphine, for example, isn’t available in tablet form, and patients are limited to 50...

Meditation: Better Than Morphine
 Meditation: Better 
 Than Morphine 
study says

Meditation: Better Than Morphine

Little more than one hour reduces pain dramatically

(Newser) - In pain? Before you reach for the hard drugs, reach for ... your meditation cushion. Researchers found that a little more than one hour of meditation training was enough to "dramatically reduce" pain, the Telegraph reports. Fifteen newbie meditators attended four 20-minute training classes on mindfulness meditation as researchers induced...

Pot Stops Pain, Spasms: Study
 Pot Stops Pain, Spasms: Study 

Pot Stops Pain, Spasms: Study

Medical marijuana shown effective in clinical trials

(Newser) - Who knew? Marijuana actually does stop pain—and muscle spasms. A $8.7 million California study, including the first US clinical trials of marijuana use in decades, has found pot significantly relieves neuropathic pain and reduces muscle spasms in multiple sclerosis patients. A leading neuropsychiatrist found the studies so convincing...

Removing a Bandage Quickly Does Hurt Less
 Removing a Bandage 
 Quickly Does Hurt Less 
SCIENCE SETTLES IT

Removing a Bandage Quickly Does Hurt Less

Adhesive causes more pain for men than for women

(Newser) - Australian scientists have settled a long-running debate by confirming a popular assumption: It does, in fact, hurt less to remove an adhesive bandage quickly than to do so gradually. The researchers tested the pain levels of medical students who ripped off Band-Aids at different speeds and had them rate the...

Swearing Reduces Pain
 Swearing Reduces Pain 
THAT %#*&! SMARTS

Swearing Reduces Pain

Coarse words help us deal with painful stimuli

(Newser) - If your reaction to slamming your finger in a door is to curse the air blue, you might be onto something: A new study shows that swearing relieves pain. Intrigued by the fact that people seem to swear in painful situations, UK researchers put the idea to the test: they...

Medical Weed's Been Great for My 9-Year-Old
Medical Weed's Been Great for My 9-Year-Old
Perspective

Medical Weed's Been Great for My 9-Year-Old

Marijuana helps autistic, allergic child with debilitating pain

(Newser) - Almost as soon as Marie Myung-Ok Lee began giving daily doses of marijuana to her 9-year-old son J, she noticed a big change: He returned from school with his whole shirt on. J is autistic, has an inflammatory bowel condition, and has had two serious spinal cord surgeries. Before pot,...

Study: Even 'Fake' Acupuncture Eases Back Pain

Back pain sufferers reported less pain with or without needles being used

(Newser) - Acupuncture without the puncture helped relieve back pain in a new study, Reuters reports. Researchers divided patients with chronic back pain into several groups and discovered that the groups who received conventional acupuncture with needles and those who received simulated acupuncture with toothpicks reported greater—and almost identical—pain relief...

Back Pain's Insidious Cost Rises
Back Pain's Insidious Cost Rises

Back Pain's Insidious Cost Rises

US spends ever more on treatment—without much to show for it

(Newser) - Back pain is one of the US' most persistent health problems, but despite new treatment possibilities, Newsweek reports, cures remain elusive. Americans spent $85.9 billion in 2005 on medical costs relating to back pain, up from $52.1 billion in 1997. "We seem to be doing more and...

16 Stories