title: Case report: Long-standing complex regional pain syndrome relieved by a cephalosporin antibiotic.
abstract: We describe a young woman who had had treatment-refractory complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) for 6 years before receiving antibiotic treatment with cefadroxil (a cephalosporin derivative) for a minor infection. Cefadroxil reduced the patient's pain and motor dysfunction (dystonia and impaired voluntary movement) within days; the pain and motor disorder returned when cefadroxil was discontinued; and both again abated when cefadroxil was re-instituted. The patient has now had symptom relief for more than 3 years on continuing cefadroxil therapy. We discuss this case in the context of previous reports of antibiotic treatment relieving neuropathic pain in experimental animals.
authors.affiliation: The Alan Edwards Pain Management Unit, McGill University Health Centre, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Department of Family Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Department of Anesthesia, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada The Louise and Alan Edwards Centre for Research on Pain, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Ware
authors.forename: Gary J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Bennett
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002434:Cefadroxil / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D020918:Complex Regional Pain Syndromes / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004421:Dystonia / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D060046:Maintenance Chemotherapy; D018461:Soft Tissue Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D002434:Cefadroxil
keywords: CRPS; Cefadroxil; Ceftriaxone; Cephalosporin; Neuropathic pain; RSD