Last month, The New England Journal of Medicine published a call to action for a "cultural transformation in the way clinicians and the public view pain and its treatment." The authors, Dr. Philip Pizzo, dean for the Stanford School of Medicine, and Dr. Noreen Clark from the Center for Managing Chronic Disease at the University of Michigan, concluded that the scope of the problems associated with pain is "daunting" and that the limitations found within the health care community are "glaring." They were speaking on behalf of their committee's report for the Institute of Medicine, Relieving Pain in America, which -- among other things -- estimated that more than 116 million
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If you are reading this post, you are probably already well-versed in how chronic pain can interrupt your own — or a loved one’s — ability to perform simple activities and function on a day-to-day basis. You may even start off your day dreading the thought of just trying to get through it. When we hurt, we tend to shut down physically and even emotionally. It is our natural tendency to protect a part of our body that has been injured or is uncomfortable. If our right leg hurts, then we naturally shift our weight to our left leg. This basic, inherent guarded behavior pattern can be considered protective at times of acute injury. When we first sprain our ankle,
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If you or a loved one is one of the estimated 116 million Americans with chronic pain, then you appreciate what a game-changer pain can be when it comes to things like performing daily activities, functioning at work or trying to exercise. Your pain may leave you feeling boxed in, helpless and really frustrated over no longer being able to do many of the things that you have always enjoyed. When the movement of the body becomes disrupted, then the thoughts and emotions going on in the brain seem to go downhill at the same time. This can quickly lead to things like depression, anxiety and a loss of self-esteem. As you will see, for many the evil
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Pay a visit to a genetic expert and ask what the single most important piece of information is in assessing your risk for specific diseases, and what do you think they will tell you? Well surprisingly, the answer won't be one of the expensive new-age genetic tests that have come on the scene in the last few years. Rather, they will advise you to put together the most detailed family history you can muster. As an example, research published over the years at the Cleveland Clinic's Genomic Medicine Institute, headed by Dr. Charis Eng, has consistently found family history to be more valuable in predicting the risks of breast cancer, prostate cancer, and colorectal
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Preventing pain in the workplace should be an essential part of fighting the rising prevalence of chronic pain in our society. The work environment can often become a source or contributing factor for many chronic pain conditions. As many of us spend more of our wakeful hours at work than anywhere else, it behooves us to optimize this environment to better support our health and well-being as much as possible. According to recent data from the Institute of Medicine, pain cost us between $297 billion and $335 billion in lost productivity in 2010. The leading causes of time missed from work due to pain are headaches, back pain, arthritis and musculoskeletal pain, respectively. A 2006 study by the American Pain Foundation
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