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Review
. 2021 Feb 6;11(1):e112348.
doi: 10.5812/aapm.112348. eCollection 2021 Feb.

Utilization of Magnesium for the Treatment of Chronic Pain

Ivan Urits  1   2 , Jai Won Jung  3 , Ariunzaya Amgalan  3 , Luc Fortier  3 , Anthony Anya  3 , Brendan Wesp  3 , Vwaire Orhurhu  4 , Elyse M Cornett  1 , Alan D Kaye  1 , Farnad Imani  5 , Giustino Varrassi  6 , Henry Liu  7 , Omar Viswanath  1   8   9   10
Affiliations
Review

Utilization of Magnesium for the Treatment of Chronic Pain

Ivan Urits et al. Anesth Pain Med. .

Abstract

Context: The International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) defines chronic pain as pain that persists or recurs for longer than 3 months. Chronic pain has a significant global disease burden with profound effects on health, quality of life, and socioeconomic costs.

Evidence acquisition: Narrative review.

Results: There are several treatment options, including pharmacological therapy, physical rehabilitation, psychological therapies, and surgical interventions, for chronic pain management. Magnesium has been FDA-approved for several indications including hypomagnesemia, arrhythmia, prevention of seizures in eclampsia/preeclampsia, and constipation. Magnesium has been used for numerous off-label uses, notably for acute and chronic pain management. The mechanism of magnesium in pain management is primarily through its action as a voltage-gated antagonist of NMDA receptors, which are involved in pain transduction.

Conclusions: This narrative review will focus on the current evidence and data surrounding the utilization of magnesium as a treatment option for chronic pain.

Keywords: Abdominal Pain; Chronic Pain; Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome; Infusion; Intravenous; Magnesium Sulfate; Peripheral Neuropathy.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interests: None.

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