Sympathomimetic amine therapy found effective for treatment of refractory chronic complex regional pain syndrome (reflex sympathetic dystrophy)

Purpose: To determine if treatment with sympathomimetic amines could improve the pain from complex regional pain disorder (CRPD) which was keeping a woman from trying to conceive her second child. Materials and Methods: Dextroamphetamine sulfate was prescribed. Results: Within a short length of time the woman’s wrist pain considerably improved to the point that she is ready to try in vitro fertilization once again to have a second baby. Conclusions: Though sympathomimetic amines are used by some reproductive endocrinologists for unexplained infertility and unexplained recurrent miscarriages, the most common use by the gynecologist is for pelvic pain. Despite the thought by some clinicians and researchers that the etiology for CRPD may be related to sympathetic nervous system hyperactivity (and thus sympathomimetic amines could theoretically exacerbate the symptoms), in fact, the treatment with dextroamphetamine sulfate may turn out to be a new and possibly the most effective, least risky, and least expensive treatment to date for CRPD.