Pain ManagementAlternative Healing for Chronic Pain and Fatigue By articleBy Janet Komanchuk The numbers involved in America’s problem with chronic pain are staggering and probably larger than most realize. More than 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain, costing nearly $600 billion annually in medical treatments and lost productivity, according to the Institute of Medicine, which adds that the total surpasses that of all people affected by heart disease, diabetes, and cancer combined.
_ Pain Management"Relaxation" May Not Help Migraines By Jane Farrell articleRelaxation is usually a good thing, but perhaps not when it comes to migraine, according to a new study. Researchers from the Montefiore Headache Center and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine found that migraine sufferers who experienced reduced stress from one day to the next are at significantly greater risk of migraine onset on the subsequent day. Although stress has often been believed to be a common trigger of headaches, the researchers found that relaxation following the heighted stress was an even more significant trigger.
_ Pain ManagementHow To Make Chores Pain-Free By Jane Farrell articleFrom the Cleveland Clinic Brain & Spine Team For some people, daily chores are a pain — literally. Up to 90 percent of people in the United States suffer from back pain at some point in their lives, and routine activities such as chores often cause flare-ups. But the chores themselves aren’t to blame, says occupational therapist Michael Milicia, OT/L. It’s how you do them. Below, he offers tips to help you do your household scrubbing and yard work without triggering pain.
Pain ManagementNatural Migraine Prevention Tips By articleBy Romie Mushtaq M.D. Headaches are fifth-leading cause of emergency room visits among all Americans, according to a 2013 National Institutes of Health report that calls headaches a major public health problem. The key to preventing headaches is, of course, to figure out what’s triggering them. While migraine and stress headaches can both be triggered by stress, migraines have many other possible triggers and they vary from one individual to the next.
Pain ManagementWatch: Why Are Doctors Worried About a New Painkiller? By articleHere's another addition to our ThirdAge Video Collection. Press play to start learning!
_ Pain ManagementWomen Report More Pain After Knee Replacement By articleWomen between the ages of 45 and 65 with rheumatoid arthritis or arthritis resulting from an injury are among the patients most likely to experience serious pain following a knee replacement, according to researchers from Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.
_ Pain ManagementMinimally Invasive Back Surgery By articleResearch done at the Beaumont Health Systems in Royal Oak, Michigan and published in the February 2014 online issue of the journal Spine has shown that patients who have a low back surgery called minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion end up better off in many ways than patients who have more invasive surgery to alleviate debilitating pain.
_ Pain ManagementTalk Therapy Best for Chronic Pain? By Jane Farrell articlePsychological treatment often provides better relief for chronic pain than prescription drugs or surgery, according to a review published by the American Psychological Association. However, it’s used much less frequently. “Chronic pain affects 116 million American adults, making it more prevalent than heart disease, diabetes and cancer combined, and traditional medical approaches are inadequate,” said lead author Mark P. Jensen, PhD, of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington.
Pain ManagementRestless Sleep & Pain as You Age By articleNon-restorative sleep is the strongest independent predictor of widespread pain onset among adults over the age of 50, according to a study done at Keele University in Staffordshire UK and published the journal Arthritis & Rheumatology. The researchers also report that anxiety, memory impairment, and poor physical health among older adults may increase the risk of developing widespread pain.
_ Pain ManagementSedation Not Always Necessary Before Diagnostic Procedure By Jane Farrell articleWhen it comes to treating chronic pain, sedation may not always be the best choice before the actual procedure, according to new research. “Sedation doesn’t help, but it does add expense and risk,” says study leader Steven P. Cohen, M.D., a professor of anesthesiology and critical care medicine at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. “In some places, every patient is being sedated. Our research shows it should be used very sparingly.”
_ Pain ManagementWatch: A Device That Uses the Power of Distraction to Eliminate Pain By articleHere's another addition to our ThirdAge Video Collection. Press play to start learning!
_ Pain ManagementBeating Pain with Mindfulness Training By articleA new intervention called Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement, or MORE, trains people to respond differently to pain, stress and opioid-related cues University of Utah researcher Eric Garland developed the treatment, which has been shown to not only lower pain but also decrease prescription opioid misuse among chronic pain patients. The study was published published online February 3rd 2014 in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.
Injury Prevention & Treatment Pain Pain ManagementRepetitive Stress Injuries: Beyond Carpal Tunnel By Sondra Forsyth articleBy Sondra Forsyth
_ Pain ManagementBP Med Can Prevent Migraines By articleCandesartan, a medication used to treat high blood pressure, is just as effective as more the commonly prescribed propranolol when it comes to preventing migraine attacks. That is the finding of a study from St. Olavs Hospital in Trondheim, Norway and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology Better yet, the team learned that candesartan may work for patients who get no relief from propranolol. A release from the university quotes lead researcher Professor Lars Jacob Stovner as saying, "This gives doctors more possibilities and we can help more people."
_ Pain ManagementMotion Evaluation Tool for Back Surgery Patients By articlePatients who have had extensive back surgery typically need repeated X-rays to monitor their progress but a new technology that skips the X-rays and repeated radiation exposure is on the horizon. The method was developed by , opting instead for an innovative, noninvasive, non-X-ray device that evaluates spinal movement. The technology was created and patented by two engineering undergraduate students, Kerri Killen and Samantha Music, at the University of South Florida.
_ Pain ManagementChinese Medicine for Chronic Pain By articleCorydalis, a plant used for centuries in Chinese medicine, may be just what we in the West need to relieve chronic pain, according toa study done at the University of California-Irvine and published in the journal Current Biology on January 2nd 2014. A key pain-relieving ingredient is a compound known as dehydrocorybulbine (DHCB) found in the roots of the flowering plant, which is a member of the poppy family.