Pain is commonly categorized into two diverse groups: acute pain, characterized by early onset and last for a very short time; while chronic pain, characterized by a prolonged pain for least 3 months' duration. Timely and immediate management of critical pain is critical in reducing its aggravation to chronic pain. There has been successful application of nano-technology, nano-medicine to the treatment and management of pain both in clinical and experimental studies like the fabrication of nano-formulated liposomes to deliver drugs for pain therapy, formulation of non- steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). However safety issues related with NSAIDs have impelled the fabrication and the design of new drug formulations that reduces side effects and sustain efficacy. This review will give a concise summary on the available studies on the application of nano-formulated drugs designed for pain treatment and management.

Surgery is one of the major causes of chronic pain in patients that have undergone any kind of surgeries. These complain are not only associated with major surgeries; even common minor surgeries like hernia repair have a significant risk of chronic pain. The development of chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) depends on the type of surgical technique used. Furthermore, changes in the central nervous system have been associated with the development of persistent and chronic pain after surgical trauma and nerve injury. Anesthesia agents that block the mechanisms stimulating the process of central sensitization may be efficient in reducing the incidence of CPSP and finally psychosocial factors have been reported to be an important factor in the progression of chronic pain and as such should be addressed as part of perioperative care. The purpose of this mini-review is to give a comprehensive summary of the application of anesthesia drugs to reduce or control chronic pain during or after surgery.

Lumbar and cervical fusions are one of the most common types of spine surgeries performed globally with approximated 450,000 spinal fusion surgeries performed annually. (give reference) Bone Morphogenetic Proteins (BMPs) are secreted cytokines with several functions, within the TGF-b superfamily. BMP act as a disulfide-linked homo- or heterodimers and have been recognized as strong and effective regulators of important biological processes like formation and repair of osteocytes and chondrocytes, cell proliferation during embryonic development. Recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 (rhBMP-2) is a very effective osteogenic growth factor that has been demonstrated to be effective in different types of spinal fusions and reduces the reliance on the use autologous iliac crest bone graft. In recent years there have been limitations regarding the use of rhBMP-2 because of issues like high costs, benefits, and safety issues about rhBMP-2. In this review, a comprehensive overview about the application of rhBMP-2 in spinal fusion surgery is given.