Pain management articles from across Nature Portfolio

Photothermal therapy using gold nanorods targeted to nerve growth factor shows promise for relieving pain in a mouse model of osteoarthritis.

In 2019, quality improvement has been a central theme throughout leading articles on nephrolithiasis. Real-world outcomes were published on the natural history of stones and residual fragments, patient compliance with medical therapy and treatment-related opioid use. In-depth review of these topics will enhance provider–patient counselling and shape future paradigms in stone disease.

The use of NSAIDs in rheumatology could be improved by an appropriate risk scoring system that accounts for adverse events such as bleeding and thrombosis. Such a risk score has now been developed using data from the PRECISION trial, but is this score ready to be applied in clinical practice?