Opioids are a mainstay of acute pain management but can have many adverse effects,
contributing to problematic long-term use. Opioid tolerance (increased dose needed for …

Neuropathic pain can develop after nerve injury, when deleterious changes occur in injured
neurons and along nociceptive and descending modulatory pathways in the central nervous …

For more than 50 years, ketamine has proven to be a safe anesthetic drug with potent
analgesic properties. The active enantiomer is S (+)‐ketamine. Ketamine is mostly …

Central sensitization represents an enhancement in the function of neurons and circuits in
nociceptive pathways caused by increases in membrane excitability and synaptic efficacy as …

Synaptic plasticity is fundamental to many neurobiological functions, including memory and
pain. Central sensitization refers to the increased synaptic efficacy established in …

In a large proportion of individuals nervous system damage may lead to a debilitating
chronic neuropathic pain. Such pain may now be considered a neuro-immune disorder …

The cytokine cascade in pain and inflammatory processes is a tremendously complex
system, involving glial, immune, and neuronal cell interactions. IL-1β is a pro-inflammatory …

The neurotrophin family of neurotrophic factors are well-known for their effects on neuronal
survival and growth. Over the past decade, considerable evidence has accumulated from …

There is accumulating evidence to implicate the importance of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA)
receptors to the induction and maintenance of central sensitization during pain states …

In the central nervous system, synaptic strength is regulated partly by changes in the
function and number of postsynaptic glutamate receptors. The NMDA (N-methyl-d-aspartate) …