Expert Consensus
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2021. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Mar 26, 2021; 9(9): 2068-2076
Published online Mar 26, 2021. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v9.i9.2068
Expert consensus of Chinese Association for the Study of Pain on the non-opioid analgesics for chronic musculoskeletal pain
Dong Huang, Yan-Qing Liu, Ling-Jie Xia, Xian-Guo Liu, Ke Ma, Guang-Zhao Liu, Li-Zu Xiao, Tao Song, Xiao-Qiu Yang, Zhi-Jian Fu, Min Yan
Dong Huang, Department of Algology, Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, China
Yan-Qing Liu, Department of Algology, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medicine University, Beijing 100070, China
Ling-Jie Xia, Department of Algology, Henan Provincial People's Hospital, Zhengzhou 450008, Henan Province, China
Xian-Guo Liu, Department of Physiology and Pain Research Center, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510089, Guangdong Province, China
Ke Ma, Department of Algology, Xin Hua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China
Guang-Zhao Liu, Department of Algology, The Second Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang 050000, Hebei Province, China
Li-Zu Xiao, Department of Algology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology Union Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen 518052, Guangdong Province, China
Tao Song, Department of Algology, First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang 110001, Liaoning Province, China
Xiao-Qiu Yang, Department of Algology, First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China
Zhi-Jian Fu, Department of Algology, Shandong Provincial Hospital, Jinan 250021, Shandong Province, China
Min Yan, Department of Algology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310009, Zhejiang Province, China
Author contributions: Huang D, Liu YQ and Xia LJ reviewed the literature and contributed to manuscript drafting; Liu XG, Ma K, Liu GZ and Xiao LZ reviewed the literature and drafted the manuscript; Song T, Yang XQ, Fu ZJ and Yan M were responsible for the revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content; all authors issued final approval for the version to be submitted.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Authors declare no conflict of interests for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yan-Qing Liu, MD, Professor, Department of Algology, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medicine University, No. 119 South Fourth Ring West Road, Beijing 100070, China. lyqttyy@126.com
Received: November 30, 2020
Peer-review started: November 30, 2020
First decision: January 27, 2021
Revised: February 2, 2021
Accepted: March 9, 2021
Article in press: March 9, 2021
Published online: March 26, 2021
Abstract

Chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) is a common occurrence in clinical practice and there are a variety of options for the treatment of it. However, the pharmacological therapy is still considered to be a primary treatment. The recent years have witnessed the emergence of opioid crisis, yet there are no relevant guidelines on how to treat CMP with non-opioid analgesics properly. The Chinese Medical Association for the Study of Pain convened a panel meeting to develop clinical practice consensus for the treatment of CMP with non-opioid analgesics. The purpose of this consensus is to present the application of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, muscle relaxants, ion channel drugs and topical drugs in CMP.

Keywords: Chronic musculoskeletal pain, Non-opioid analgesics, Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, Noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor, Nociceptor, Cyclooxygenase

Core Tip: Chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) is a common disease seen in pain clinics. There are a variety of treatment options available for CMP, among which pharmacological treatment is considered to be a simple and effective basic treatment. The opioid crisis caused by excessive dependence on opioids for CMP treatment has drawn much attention and causes high vigilance to opioid safety in China and other countries. Therefore, the Chinese Association for the Study of Pain, a branch of Chinese Medical Association, convenes a panel meeting to provide guidance to the treatment of CMP with non-opioid analgesics.