Sodium channels in non-excitable cells: powerful actions and therapeutic targets beyond Hodgkin and Huxley.

Voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSCs) are best known for their role in the generation and propagation of action potentials in neurons, muscle cells, and cardiac myocytes, which have traditionally been labeled as 'excitable'. However, emerging evidence challenges this traditional perspective. It is now clear that VGSCs are also expressed in a broad spectrum of cells outside the neuromuscular realm, where they regulate diverse cellular functions.

Feasibility of an electric current stimulator device to assess the sensory response after transversus abdominis plane block in Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus).

Objective: To assess the feasibility of using an adjustable intensity nerve stimulator for evaluating the sensory response after a transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block in guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus).

Study Design: Prospective, randomized, blinded, experimental crossover study.

Animals: A total of six adult guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus).

Small fiber neuropathy.

Small fiber neuropathy (SFN) is a condition involving the small nerve fibers of the peripheral nervous system, specifically the thinly myelinated Aδ and unmyelinated C fibers. It is an increasingly acknowledged condition within the spectrum of neuropathic pain disorders, leading to a rise in diagnosed patients. SFN is characterized by neuropathic pain, that is often described as burning, and typically presents in the hands and feet ascending proximally.

TRPM8 Mutations Associated With Persistent Pain After Surgical Injury of Corneal Trigeminal Axons.

Background And Objectives: Despite extensive efforts, the mechanisms underlying pain after axonal injury remain incompletely understood. Pain following corneal refractive surgery offers a valuable human model for investigating trigeminal axonal injury because laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) severs axons of trigeminal ganglion neurons innervating the cornea. While the majority of patients are pain-free shortly after surgery, a minority endure persistent postoperative ocular pain.