The pharmaceutical team at Mech-Sense has extensive experience in the design, practical performance and evaluation of analgesics in experimental pain studies in healthy volunteers and patients. The studies involve experimental pain in skin, bone, muscles and viscera. The testing can consist of multi-modal and multi-tissue approaches. The analgesic effect is therefore studied by a mechanistic approach, aiming to predict or explain clinical effects.
The pain response (pharmacodynamics) is assessed in a standardized matter by subjective and objective measures. The overall vision is to optimize individual pain treatment.
Translational research:
New experimental pain models are developed to mimic the clinical situation to a higher degree (including models of hyperalgesia) (Basic Science).
Previous research:
Tissue differentiated effects of morphine and oxycodone
Pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic modeling of morphine and oxycodone
Ongoing research:
Different effects of opioids in hyperalgesia
Different effects of buprenorphine and fentanyl
Pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic modeling of different analgesics
Pregabalin effect in patients with chronic pancreatitis (Clinical Team)
Biomarkers of analgesic effect by EEG and SVM (EEG analysis)
Genetic influence on pain treatment
As a result of excellence in the field, two recent reviews from the group discussed the assessment of analgesic actions of opioids and non-opioids by experimental pain models in healthy volunteers.
Collaborators:
Royal Marsden Hospital Royal Marsden & Royal Brompton Palliative Care Service, London
Royal Adelaide Hospital/University of Adelaide, Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care Royal.
School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide
References:
Staahl C, Olesen AE, Andresen T, Arendt-Nielsen L, Drewes AM. Assessing efficacy of non-opioid analgesics in experimental pain models in healthy volunteers: an updated review. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2009 Sep;68(3):322-41.
Staahl C, Olesen AE, Andresen T, Arendt-Nielsen L, Drewes AM. Assessing analgesic actions of opioids by experimental pain models in healthy volunteers - an updated review. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2009 Aug;68(2):149-68.
Olesen AE, Andresen T, Christrup LL, Upton RN. Translational pain research: evaluating analgesic effect in experimental visceral pain models. World J Gastroenterol. 2009 Jan 14;15(2):177-81.
Staahl C, Reddy H, Andersen SD, Arendt-Nielsen L, Drewes AM. Multi-modal and tissue-differentiated experimental pain assessment: reproducibility of a new concept for assessment of analgesics. Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol. 2006 Feb;98(2):201-11.
Staahl C, Drewes AM. Experimental human pain models: a review of standardised methods for preclinical testing of analgesics. Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol. 2004 Sep;95(3):97-111.
