What Is Pain?
One common definition of pain is any problem that is “whatever the experiencing person says it is, existing whenever the experiencing person says it does”.
Pain management includes patient communication about the pain problem. To define the pain problem, a health care provider will likely ask questions such as:
- How intense is the pain?
- How does the pain feel?
- Where is the pain?
- What, if anything, makes the pain lessen?
- What, if anything, makes the pain increase?
- When did the pain start?
After asking such questions, the health care provider will have a description of the pain. Pain management will then be used to address that pain.
The Team Approach To Pain Management
Pain management is a branch of medicine that uses an interdisciplinary approach for easing the suffering and improving the quality of life of those living with pain, whether acute or chronic.
The typical pain management team includes medical practitioners, chiropractic, pharmacists, clinical psychologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, physician assistants, nurses, and dentists. The team may also include other mental health specialists and massage therapists.
Pain sometimes resolves quickly once the underlying trauma or pathology has healed, and is treated by one practitioner, with medication(s) such as analgesics. Effective management of chronic (long-term) pain, however, frequently requires the coordinated efforts of the pain management team. Effective pain management does not mean total eradication of all pain.
Medicine treats injuries and diseases to support and speed healing. It treats distressing symptoms such as pain to relieve suffering during treatment, healing, and dying. The task of medicine is to relieve suffering under three circumstances.
- When a painful injury or pathology is resistant to treatment and persists
- When pain persists after the injury or pathology has healed
- When medical science cannot identify the cause of pain
Treatment approaches to chronic pain include pharmacological measures, such as analgesics, antidepressants and anticonvulsants, interventional procedures, physical therapy, physical exercise, application of ice or heat, and psychological measures, such as biofeedback and cognitive behavioral therapy.
Convenient Office Locations
In addition to our primary office in Camden, NJ, Comprehensive Pain Care is planning two additional South Jersey locations for your convenience.