Management of sympathetic pain

Successful treatment of sympathetic pain is directed at the restoration of normal function. This can be achieved in the majority of cases with a combination of appropriate sympathetic or somatic nerve block, usually coupled with aggressive physiotherapy. It is a matter of regret that there are few controlled trials to demonstrate the efficacy of any of these forms of management. Other non-invasive techniques such as stimulation-produced analgesia and pharmacology, particularly the use of adrenergic blocking agents, hold some promise of future benefit. Here too, more effort should be made to carry out properly designed studies, as there is scepticism about the place of permanent or potentially destructive therapy in any painful condition.