Patients with neurogenic claudication—a pain syndrome that manifests symptoms only when standing or walking, but not while lying down—overwhelmingly prefer pain relief when walking rather than the ability to walk farther (Neurology 2015;85:1250-1256).
The new results arrive amidst questions over whether reduced pain in the absence of increased physical function should be sufficient to justify the use of a new analgesic therapy. “The requirement of functional improvement