Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
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Table of Contents (click to jump to sections)
What is Complex Regional Pain Syndrome?
Is there any treatment?
What is the prognosis?
What research is being done?
Organizations
Related NINDS Publications and Information
Publicaciones en Español
Additional resources from MEDLINEplus
What is Complex Regional Pain Syndrome?
Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a chronic pain condition. The key symptom of CRPS is continuous, intense pain out of proportion to the severity of the injury, which gets worse rather than better over time. CRPS most often affects one of the arms, legs, hands, or feet. Often the pain spreads to include the entire arm or leg. Typical features include dramatic changes in the color and temperature of the skin over the affected limb or body part, accompanied by intense burning pain, skin sensitivity, sweating, and swelling. Doctors aren’t sure what causes CRPS. In some cases the sympathetic nervous system plays an important role in sustaining the pain. Another theory is that CRPS is caused by a triggering of the immune response, which leads to the characteristic inflammatory symptoms of redness, warmth, and swelling in the affected area.
Is there any treatment? Because there is no cure for CRPS, treatment is aimed at relieving painful symptoms. Doctors may prescribe topical analgesics, antidepressants, corticosteroids, and opioids to relieve pain. However, no single drug or combination of drugs has produced consistent long-lasting improvement in symptoms. Other treatments may include physical therapy, sympathetic nerve block, spinal cord stimulation, and intrathecal drug pumps
to deliver opioids and local anesthetic agents via the spinal cord.
What is the prognosis? The prognosis for CRPS varies from person to person. Spontaneous remission from symptoms occurs in certain individuals. Others can have unremitting pain and crippling, irreversible changes in spite of treatment.
What research is being done? The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and other institutes of the National Institutes of Health
(NIH) conduct research relating to CRPS in laboratories at the NIH and also support additional research through grants to
major medical institutions across the country. NINDS-supported scientists are studying new approaches to treat CRPS and intervene more aggressively after traumatic injury
to lower the chances of developing the disorder.
Select this link to view a list of studies currently seeking patients.
American Chronic Pain Association (ACPA) P.O. Box 850 Rocklin, CA 95677-0850 ACPA@pacbell.net http://www.theacpa.org Tel: 916-632-0922 800-533-3231 Fax: 916-632-3208 |
Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome Association
(RSDSA) P.O. Box 502 99 Cherry Street Milford, CT 06460 info@rsds.org http://www.rsds.org Tel: 203-877-3790 877-662-7737 Fax: 203-882-8362 |
American RSDHope Organization P.O. Box 875 Harrison, ME 04040-0875 rsdhope@roadrunner.com http://www.rsdhope.org Tel: 207-583-4589 |
National Foundation for the Treatment of Pain P.O. Box 70045 Houston, TX 77270 NFTPain@cwo.com http://www.paincare.org Tel: 713-862-9332 Fax: 713-862-9346 |
American Pain Foundation 201 North Charles Street Suite 710 Baltimore, MD 21201-4111 info@painfoundation.org http://www.painfoundation.org Tel: 888-615-PAIN (7246) Fax: 410-385-1832 |
National Headache Foundation 820 N. Orleans Suite 217 Chicago, IL 60610-3132 info@headaches.org http://www.headaches.org Tel: 312-274-2650 888-NHF-5552 (643-5552) Fax: 312-640-9049 |
Mayday Fund [For Pain Research] c/o SPG 136 West 21st Street, 6th Floor New York, NY 10011 mayday@maydayfund.org http://www.painandhealth.org Tel: 212-366-6970 Fax: 212-366-6979 |
International Research Foundation for RSD/CRPS USF Medical Clinics c/o Dr. A. Kirkpatrick 12901 Bruce Downs Blvd., MDC59 Tampa, FL 33612 info@rsdfoundation.org http://www.rsdfoundation.org Tel: 813-907-2312 Fax: 813-830-7446 |
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Last updated July 31, 2008