ABSTRACT
Central cord syndrome may be associated with severe pain, resistant to conventional pain therapy regimens. Chronic pain may be a persistent problem in rehabilitation of spinal cord injuries. These pain syndromes are long lasting and challenging to treat. Gabapentin has been shown to be useful in treatment of different conditions which may be caused by increased neuronal excitability. This report describes a case where central cord syndrome and its chronic neuropathic pain associated with allodynia was successfully treated with gabapentin.
Subject(s)
Acetates/pharmacology , Amines , Analgesics/pharmacology , Central Cord Syndrome/drug therapy , Cyclohexanecarboxylic Acids , Pain, Intractable/drug therapy , Spinal Cord/drug effects , gamma-Aminobutyric Acid , Amitriptyline/pharmacology , Arm/innervation , Arm/physiopathology , Carbamazepine/pharmacology , Central Cord Syndrome/pathology , Central Cord Syndrome/physiopathology , Cervical Vertebrae , Chronic Disease , Gabapentin , Humans , Hyperalgesia/drug therapy , Hyperalgesia/pathology , Hyperalgesia/physiopathology , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Male , Middle Aged , Muscle Weakness/etiology , Muscle Weakness/pathology , Muscle Weakness/physiopathology , Pain, Intractable/pathology , Pain, Intractable/physiopathology , Spinal Cord/pathology , Spinal Cord/physiopathology , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
On the model of central spinal pain syndrome in rats induced by application of penicillin to the dorsal surface of the lumbar spinal cord, akatinol injected intraperitoneally at the peak of syndrome or applied locally simultaneously with penicillin produced a dose-dependent analgesic effect. Intraperitoneal injection of akatinol at the peak of pain syndrome inhibited neuronal activity in spinal dorsal horn: the amplitude of total evoked neuronal response significantly decreased and the duration of action potentials returned to normal. It is concluded that activation of NDMA receptors plays a significant role in the development of central spinal pain syndrome, in particular spontaneous pain attacks, hyperalgesia, and tactile allodynia. Akatinol can be an essential component of the complex pathogenetic therapy of central pains.
