WCRx Health

What is Pharmacologic Management?

Pharmacologic management is the treatment of patients with chronic diseases. Also known as Chronic Disease Management, it is an integrated care approach to managing illness which includes screenings, check-ups, monitoring and coordinating treatment and patient education.

 

Pharmacologic management focuses on *neuropathic pain as a broad clinical entity and regardless of cause, similar treatment strategies often are used.

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What is neuropathic pain?

Neuropathic pain can happen if your nervous system is damaged or not working correctly. You can feel pain from any of the various levels of the nervous system—the peripheral nerves, the spinal cord and the brain. Together, the spinal cord and the brain are known as the central nervous system.

 

What causes neuropathic pain?

Common causes of neuropathic pain include nerve pressure or nerve damage after surgery or trauma, viral infections, cancer, vascular malformations, alcoholism, neurological conditions such as multiple sclerosis and metabolic conditions such as diabetes. It may also be a side effect of certain medications.

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What are the symptoms of neuropathic pain?

Each person's symptoms of neuropathic pain may vary slightly, but these symptoms are common:

- shooting, burning, or stabbing pain

-  tingling and numbness, or a “pins and needles” feeling

-  spontaneous pain, or pain that occurs without a trigger

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What are the stages of neuropathy?

 

1. Stage One: Numbness & Pain

2. Stage Two: Constant Pain

3. Stage Three: Intense Pain

4. Stage Four: Complete Numbness/ Loss of Sensation

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Types of Neuropathic pain?

 

• Diabetes

• Cancer and cancer treatments, such as Chemotherapy

• Neurological conditions, such as multiple Sclerosis (MS)

• Neurodegenerative conditions

• Parkinson’s disease

• Stroke

• Shingles

• HIV

• Leprosy

• Guillain-Barre syndrome

• Blood vessel disease

• Vascular malformations

• Autoimmune conditions