In many clinical situations, there is no medication that controls pain better than an opioid. Its
effects are immediate, based in key areas of the central nervous system that process pain …

Medical interventions, particularly the use of antidepressants and anticonvulsants remain
the best-documented therapies for treating pain associated with PHN. There is good …

Key Clinical Points Postherpetic Neuralgia The frequencies of both herpes zoster and
postherpetic neuralgia increase with age. Postherpetic neuralgia results in suffering and …

After a primary varicella (chicken pox) in-fection, the varicella-zoster virus (VZV) establishes
latency in sensory ganglia throughout the nervous system. Herpes zoster (“shingles”) is …

There is ongoing controversy about the effectiveness of opioids in relieving neuropathic pain
resulting in 'a call for more science and less rhetoric'. 4 It is important to note that …

This article reviews the definition, epidemiology, pathology, clinical features, and treatment
of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). Much of this information is well established. However, there …

Herpes zoster infection is caused by a reactivation of the latent varicella zoster virus that
causes chicken pox. It appears predominantly in older adults whose immunity for the virus …

A: Postherpetic neuralgia is a disabling neuropathic pain syndrome that occurs after an
acute herpes zoster eruption, more often in the elderly than in the young. It is defined as pain …

Herpes zoster, a biphasic disease with different kinds of pain is a challenge for pain therapy.
The acute illness with mixed pain (nociceptive-neuropathic) requires antivirals for risk …

Opioids are effective long-term therapy for cancer pain, but have not been accepted for the
management of intractable pain due to postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) because of doubts …