title: Comparative efficacy of pregabalin and therapeutic ultrasound versus therapeutic ultrasound alone on patients with post stroke shoulder pain.
abstract: The study was designed to compare the efficacy of pregabalin, an anticonvulsant on pain behavior of stroke patients with shoulder pain in a comparative study with ultrasound therapy and ultimately to recommend a better treatment option to improve pain and function in post stroke shoulder pain. This study was carried out in a private neurology Hospital in Dhaka during January to December 2010. Data were collected from 70 post stroke patients with shoulder pain and were divided into two groups. The patients in Group A were treated with pregabalin 100mg twice daily along with therapeutic ultrasound 10 minutes daily and group B were treated with therapeutic ultrasound alone for the same dose and duration. Pain free range of motion exercise was given to both groups as the therapeutic exercise. Pain parameters in the form of VAS were measured at one and two weeks and were compared. Seventy one percent of the patients were male with 80% were above 60 years old. Pain scoring in VAS of 100 was 21.32±6.01 in group A and 41±4.58 in groups B at the end of two weeks assuming the pretreatment VAS of all patients as 100. Marked improvement in shoulder pain were observed in both groups and Group A had better improvement in pain than group B. Therapeutic ultrasound when given with pregabalin found to have added benefit over therapeutic ultrasound alone in post stroke shoulder pain. Differences were statistically significant.
authors.affiliation: Dr Md Shahidur Rahman, Associate Professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Rahman
authors.forename: M T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Uddin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000700:Analgesics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000069583:Pregabalin; D020069:Shoulder Pain / Q000628:therapy*; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications*; D014464:Ultrasonic Therapy; D064232:Visual Analog Scale; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D000700:Analgesics; D000069583:Pregabalin; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid