What is the modern approach to pain medicine at Mercy Health?

Pain medicine now focuses on understanding the human experience of pain, using multi-pronged strategies for management and alleviation, rather than just prescribing pills.

How is chronic pain managed differently from acute pain?

Chronic pain, lasting over three months, requires a biopsychosocial assessment to address biological, psychological, and social factors, unlike acute pain managed with standard tools.

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Pain Medicine: Beyond Pills to Holistic Healing

Q: What are neuromodulation therapies in pain management?

Neuromodulation therapies, like spinal cord stimulation, use electrical currents to interrupt pain signals and restore function, representing recent advances in pain treatment.

21 Dec

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Summary

Pain medicine now focuses on understanding and managing the human experience of pain.
Chronic pain involves biological, psychological, and social factors beyond physical symptoms.
Neuromodulation therapies use electrical currents to interrupt pain signals effectively.

Pain Medicine: Beyond Pills to Holistic Healing

Pain medicine has advanced significantly from merely prescribing pills to a comprehensive approach addressing the multifaceted human experience of pain. Specialists now employ multi-pronged strategies to manage and alleviate pain, recognizing its complex nature influenced by various factors beyond a simple pain score. This evolution is exemplified by the founding of multidisciplinary pain clinics in the mid-20th century, which integrated various medical specialists to offer holistic patient care.

Chronic pain, defined as lasting beyond three months, is particularly complex, encompassing biological, psychological, and social dimensions. A biopsychosocial assessment is crucial for understanding its full impact, looking beyond physical symptoms to emotional well-being and functional capacity. Recent advancements include neuromodulation therapies, such as spinal cord stimulation, which use electrical currents to interrupt pain signals and restore function, with data from implantable devices offering remote patient monitoring.