Tag Archives: @CUDenver

New Migraine Headaches Linked to Increased Motor Vehicle Crashes in Older Adults

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PainRelief.com Interview with:
Carolyn DiGuiseppi, MD, MPH, PhD
Professor of Epidemiology
Colorado School of Public Health
University of Colorado Denver
Aurora, CO 80045

PainRelief.com: What is the background for this study?

Response: Migraine headache is a leading cause of disability worldwide and affects many older adults in the US and globally.

Some of the symptoms of an acute migraine, like fatigue, impaired concentration, headache, or dizziness, could affect older adults’ ability to drive safely.  In fact, past research has suggested that people with migraine are at higher risk of having injuries resulting from motor vehicle crashes (compared to people without this diagnosis). We wanted to learn whether the risk of crashes depends on whether people have had a migraine diagnosis for some time or have been recently diagnosed, and whether being treated with migraine medications affects the risk of crashes.

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Study Finds False or Misleading Claims Not Uncommon Among Ketamine Prescribers

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PainRelief.com Interview with:
Michael J. DiStefano, PhD
Department of Clinical Pharmacy
Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora

PainRelief.com: What is the background for this study? What is ketamine primarily used for?

Response: Ketamine has been an FDA-approved anesthetic since 1970. However, it is increasingly used off-label to treat a variety of mental health and pain conditions. Some providers also offer oral formulations of ketamine, which do not have FDA approval for any indication. Esketamine, an enantiomer of ketamine, is a nasal spray that recently received FDA approval and is narrowly indicated for people with treatment-resistant depression. Esketamine has an extensive FDA REMS (Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies) protocol in place to promote safe use. There is no analogous safety protocol in place for the off-label or unapproved use of ketamine.

Given increasing interest in using ketamine to treat a variety of conditions, we were interested to see how the drug is being promoted to potential patients. The FDA typically regulates consumer advertising for prescription drugs, but only for manufacturers, packers, and distributors of these drugs, designations which don’t seem to include these clinics. The FDA requires that consumer drugs ads are accurate and provide balanced information on both benefits and risks.

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Runners: Leaning Forward Increases Force on Hip Extensors

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PainRelief.com Interview with:
Anna Warrener Ph.D.
Department of Anthropology
University of Colorado Denver
Denver, CO

Dr. Warrener

PainRelief.com:  What is the background for this study?

Response: We became interested in looking at trunk position during running because one of us (Daniel Lieberman) had anecdotally observed people running with a variety of trunk positions, and when we went looking for academic literature on the topic, we found it was fairly scarce. We suspected that trunk position could have a major impact on the forces experienced by the lower limbs during running and even affect aspects of gait (stride length and time). So we developed a model predicting how these forces and movements might change as trunk flexion/forward leaning increased.

Our primary predictions were that more forward lean would increase “overstride” which is the distance in side view between the hip and the heel as it contacts the ground (a measure of how far your are extending your leg when you step). This in turn would increase the impact forces experienced by the lower limb at initial contact which have previously been shown to increase the risk of repetitive stress injuries. We also predicted that stride would get longer and take more time because extending the leading leg out farther forward (overstriding) would be necessary to keep the body center of mass within a base of support above the limbs. This more extended limb, we predicted, would change the angles and forces about the ankle, knee and hip joints.

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