Division of
Rheumatology, Hospital General Yagüe, Instituto Nacional de la Salud,
Burgos, Spain
Correspondence to: Dr B Alvarez Lario, División de Reumatología, Hospital General Yagüe, Avda del Cid, 96, 09005 Burgos, Spain balario@teleline.es
Accepted for publication 6 July 2000
OBJECTIVE
To elucidate
the real impact in the medical literature of the different
denominations for reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD).
METHODSA search was
performed through the Medline database (WinSPIRS, SilverPlatter
International, NS), from 1995 to 1999, including the following
descriptors: RSD, complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), CRPS type I,
algodystrophy, Sudeck, shoulder-hand syndrome, transient osteoporosis,
causalgia, and CRPS type II.
RESULTSThe descriptor
RSD was detected in 576 references, algodystrophy in 54, transient
osteoporosis in 42, CRPS type I in 24, Sudeck in 16, and shoulder-hand
syndrome in 11. One hundred records were obtained for the descriptor
causalgia and five for CRPS type II. The descriptor RSD was detected in
the title of 262 references, algodystrophy in 29, transient
osteoporosis in 29, CRPS type I in 15, Sudeck in 3, shoulder-hand
syndrome in 5, causalgia in 17, and CRPS type II in 3 references.
CONCLUSIONSThe new
CRPS terminology has not effectively replaced the old one. RSD and
causalgia are the most used denominations.