Nonopioid analgesics in pain management

Abstract

Since patients rarely present with pure nociceptive pain (i.e., pain caused by activity in the neural pathways in response to damaging or potentially damaging stimuli) or neuropathic pain (i.e., pain initiated by a primary lesion or dysfunction in the nervous system), but rather suffer a mixed pain syndrome (i.e., pain caused by a combination of both the primary injury and secondary effects), a rational polypharmacy approach that targets key peripheral and central pain mechanisms and modulating pathways may yield the best outcomes (Management of Chronic Pain Syndromes 2005). © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.