Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy eMedicine Orthopedics

Description: Author: Satishchandra Kale, MD, FRCS 2005
Reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD) is a condition that is often described under various synonyms that point to its incompletely understood etiology. In 1864, Weir Mitchell coined the term causalgia to designate severe pain following nerve injury. In 1900, Sudeck described regional demineralization accompanying posttraumatic pain. In 1923, Leriche described vasomotor disequilibrium. In 1947, Evans introduced the term reflex sympathetic dystrophy. In 1993, the International Association for the Study of Pain renamed algodystrophy complex regional pain syndrome (also known as chronic regional pain syndrome or CRPS).
Synonyms and related keywords: RSD, algodystrophy, Sudeck atrophy, painful dysfunction syndrome, reflex neurovascular dystrophy, shoulder-hand syndrome, chronic regional pain syndrome, CRPS, causalgia, complex regional pain syndrome, sympathetically mediated pain syndrome, SMP, algodystrophy complex regional pain syndrome