Development of a rapid screener to elicit patient preferences for antiseizure medication discontinuation.

Objective: While guidelines encourage individualized discussions of the risks and benefits of antiseizure medication (ASM) withdrawal after a period of seizure-freedom, no formal methods exist for assessing patient preferences. We report the initial development of a rapid patient preferences screener.

Methods: We conducted a mixed-methods study of adults who were ≥1 year seizure-free and seen for epilepsy across three institutions.

Schwann cell-secreted PGE promotes sensory neuron excitability during development.

Electrical excitability-the ability to fire and propagate action potentials-is a signature feature of neurons. How neurons become excitable during development and whether excitability is an intrinsic property of neurons remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that Schwann cells, the most abundant glia in the peripheral nervous system, promote somatosensory neuron excitability during development.

Pediatric chronic post-surgical pain prevalence, pain scores, and quality-of-life: results of an exploratory patient survey at a single-center tertiary care children's hospital.

Purpose: Twenty percent of children may develop chronic post-surgical pain (CPSP), but studies investigating pediatric CPSP are limited in scope. In an exploratory patient survey, we sought to assess CPSP prevalence among children of all ages, across a wide range of surgeries, and over an extended period of time after surgery.

Methods: We conducted a survey study, including patients < 19 years of age at the time of their surgery at a single-center, quaternary care academic pediatric hospital.