Studies about greater occipital nerve injection in primary headaches had begun with Michael Anthony and almost all the studies today accept Anthony’s studies as reference work. Although more than twenty years passed, there is not enough study about the subject. According to the present data, steroids are apparently effective in both preventive and acute attack therapy in cluster headache. Efficacy in migraine is not dramatic as in cluster headache. Despite the fact that local anesthetics has a role in releiving acute headache, single injection is not suitable in prophylactic treatment. In clinical practice, there is promising data about the usage of the procedure, until the beginning of the effect of principal preventive therapy in cluster headache and during the detoxification process in analgesic induced chronic migraine. Although there are case reports about the relieving acute pain in cluster headache and migraine, there is need for systematized clinical studies.

Subjects with myofascial pain of muscles of the neck region may present with various clinical symptoms. The aim of this study was to explore the demographics features, clinical findings and functional status in a group of patients presenting with myofascial pain of the cervical muscles. 94 cervical myofascial pain syndrome patients were recruited from the out-patient clinic. Evaluated of patient short form health survey (SF-36), pain, depression, patient demographics and physical examinations. Outcome measures; SF-36 Health Survey, visual analog scale, Beck Depression Inventory, history, physical examination. A total of 82 patients with a diagnosis of cervical myofascial syndrome were included in the study. All patients were in the young age group 37.4±9, and 87.8% were females. 53.1% had trigger points in the trapezius muscle with high percentage of autonomic phenomena like skin reddening, lacrimation, tinnitus and vertigo. 58.5% of the series had suffered from former cervical trauma and 40.2% also had Fibromyalgia syndrome and 18.5% had Benign Joint Hypermobility syndrome. Younger female patients presenting with autonomic phenomena and early onset cervical injury should be examined for cervical myofascial pain syndrome and also for Fibromyalgia syndrome since this study demonstrated a high percentage of Fibromyalgia syndrome in these patients.

Comparison of TD-fentanyl with Sustained-Release Morphine in the Pain Treatment of Patients with Lung Cancer
AIM: The aim of this randomized and controlled trial was to evaluate the analgesic efficacy of trans-dermal fentanyl (TDF) and sustained-release oral morphine (SRM) primarily and their side effects secondarily, in patients with chronic lung cancer-related pain.

MATERIAL-METHODS: According to three step analgesic guidelines recommended by the World Health Organization, 50 chronic lung cancer patients requiring third line therapy were enrolled and received either TDF patch (Grup F, n=25) or SRM per orally (Grup M, n=25) for 15 days. Patients were assessed in view to numeric rating scale of their pain, as well as the drugs’ side effects like constipation, nausea-vomiting, urinary retention and urticaria, hypoventilation.

RESULTS: Pain scores were similar for both groups at the beginning (p>0.05). While significantly lower pain scores were achieved on the 7th and 15th days compared to those of initial values in Group F and Group M patients (p<0.001); these decreases did not reach statistical significance between the groups (p>0.05). Compared to Group M, constipation was significantly lower in Group F (14 patients and 64% vs. 6 patients and 27%, respectively) (p=0.03). However, the frequencies of nausea-vomiting, urinary retention and urticaria were different between the groups (p>0.5). None of the patients developed hypoventilation.

CONCLUSION: Both TDF and SRM are safe and effective analgesics for the management of chronic cancer pain. However, TDF is associated with significantly less constipation rate than that of with SRM.

The study was conducted at Sahinbey Research and Intervention Hospital in order to define the interventions of health staff who were in charge of patient pain care. Those who had been an employee already between February- April 2007 were enrolled in the study. As data collecting tools, a questionnaire prepared by the authors and a scale on pain management methods were used.
As far as the total scores obtained from the scale are concerned, 34.7% knows the methods to deal with acute pain very well, 57.8% is good, and 7.5% is fair. In addition, the bullet-in questions of the scale revealed that the participants scored highest for knowledge management, followed by pain evaluation, and the least for the maintenance of physical comfort. The results of the study imply that standardization of education is mandatory to decrease individual differences due to educational status, and that more consideration should be given to pain and pain relief topics in schools providing health education.

Patients with hyperhidrosis suffer from physical, social and mental discomfort which often cannot be treated sufficiently using conservative measures. A new percutaneous approach to sympathectomy using radiofrequency denervation has seemed to offer longer duration of action and less incidence of post sympathetic neuralgia. This article reports the authors' experience with sympathetic RF neurolysis in a 35 year old male with right unilateral lumbar hyperhidrosis.

Under scopy guided localization of the lumbar spine sympathetic blockade with local anesthetics to L2-5 vertebral levels were performed as a diagnostic block. Lesion effectiveness is monitored by bilateral feet skin temperature measurement. Clinical effects produced by the first sympathetic ganglion block were sustained for 1 week and then RF neurolysis of lumbar sympathetic ganglion was performed to the same levels for a longer effect. The procedure was accomplished within 30 minutes and the patient was discharged within 2 hours after the procedure. Hyperhidrosis was relieved after the procedure and there were no postsympathectomy neuralgia and sexual dysfunction. The patient obtained improvement of lumbar hyperhidrosis at his first month of follow-up and was satisfied with the outcome.
In conclusion, RF neurolysis of lumbar sympathetic ganglions is a safe and effective palliative procedure with minimal invasiveness for relieving excessive sweat secretion in patients with localized hyperhidrosis.

We have recently evaluated a 54-year-old woman who had migraine without aura in her history but presenting with a typical hypnic headache (HH) which is presumably not a primary headache but associated with an ergotamine overuse headache. Her HH was relieved with a washout protocol which includes 75 mg amitriptyline daily with the addition of metoclopramide and encouraging her not to use any analgesics. Our aim was to report this unique patient to emphasize this rare association and to discuss the possible pathophysiological implications for both of these entities.