These results suggest that paclitaxel activation of TLR-4 to cause release of TNF-α from satellite glial cells increases the expression of TRPA1 and TRPV4 in DRG neurons to cause neuropathic pain.

We longitudinally investigated parental language context and infants' language experiences in relation to Dominican American and Mexican American infants' vocabularies. Mothers provided information on parental language context, comprising measures of parents' language background (i.e., childhood language) and current language use during interviews at infants' birth. Infants' language experiences were measured at ages 14 months and 2 years through mothers' reports of mothers' and fathers' engagement in English and Spanish literacy activities with infants and mothers' English and Spanish utterances during videotaped mother-infant interactions. Infants' vocabulary development at 14 months and 2 years was examined using standardized vocabulary checklists in English and Spanish. Both parental language context and infants' language experiences predicted infants' vocabularies in each language at both ages. Furthermore, language experiences mediated associations between parental language context and infants' vocabularies. However, the specific mediation mechanisms varied by language.

Background Myofascial pain syndrome is a regional condition of muscle pain and stiffness and is classically characterized by the presence of trigger points in affected musculature. Botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) has been shown to have antinociceptive properties and elicit sustained muscle relaxation, thereby possibly affording even greater relief than traditional strategies. Our goal in this study was to determine whether direct injection of BoNT-A into painful muscle groups is effective for cervical and shoulder girdle myofascial pain. Methods An enriched protocol design was used wherein 114 patients with cervical and shoulder girdle myofascial pain underwent injection of BoNT-A to determine their response to the drug. Fifty-four responders were then enrolled in a twelve-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Pain scales and quality of life measures were assessed at baseline and at routine follow-up visits until completion of the study after 26 weeks. Results Injection of BoNT-A into painful muscle groups improved average visual numerical pain scores in subjects who received a second dose of BoNT-A compared to placebo (p = 0.019 (0.26, 2.78)). Subjects who received a second dose of BoNT-A had a reduced number of headaches per week (p = 0.04 (0.07, 4.55)). Brief Pain Inventory interference scores for general activity and sleep were improved (p = 0.046 (0.038, 3.7) and 0.02 (0.37, 4.33), respectively) in those who received a second dose of BoNT-A. Conclusion Botulinum toxin type A injected directly into painful muscle groups improves average pain scores and certain aspects of quality of life in patients suffering from severe cervical and shoulder girdle myofascial pain.