Objective. To examine the use of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) in chronic pain.Design. A prospective multiple-dose, open-label cohort study in 130 consecutive patients who suffered from 12 chronic pain syndromes. The largest symptom groups were (number of patients): Fibromyalgia (48); Spinal pain (20); Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS, 11); Peripheral neuropathic pain (12); and Atypical odontalgia or atypical facial pain (11). All patients had insufficient pain relief with established treatments. Pain relief was recorded using average pain intensity values as documented in standardized diaries. A specific treatment protocol was developed, and patients were enrolled over a 36-month period.Results. Overall, 20% of patients had Ͼ 70% pain relief and 27.7% of patients reported relief between 25% and 70%. Six patients (4.6%) had moderately increased pain levels for a duration of up to 9 weeks. Good relief, of more than 70%, was found in all major symptom groups. Patients with pain of short duration ( Ͻ 2 years) reported high relief rates (33.8% of patients in this group reported relief of Ͼ 70%). No serious adverse events were reported.Conclusions. IVIG may be effective in patients suffering from chronic pain. Controlled studies are needed to evaluate the efficacy of IVIG in these patients. Patients with a good response to IVIG may be models for the study of neuroimmune interactions in chronic pain.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.