Pain can come in many forms; it can be the result of an injury, surgery or an illness; it can be intense pain or a subtle ache; it may be acute or longstanding, localized or widespread. However it manifests the bottom line for anyone in pain is: the sooner the recovery, the better the quality [...]
A class action suit filed against opioid manufacturers and drug distributors in the United States is expected to have an enormous impact on the pain management industry as we know it. To what degree are drug companies responsible when opioids are being used for reasons other than their intended use? Healio Family Medicine spoke with [...]
Dr. Kaplan and other physicians share their thoughts on what they see as the major obstacles that are preventing real progress when it comes to the opioid crisis in America.
With emphasis on decreasing the use of opioids in the United States, the American College of Physicians (ACP) updated their guidelines for treating back pain. The new guidelines, keeping in-line with the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) position on opioid medications, strongly encourage clinicians to consider prescribing narcotics for their patients only as a last [...]
While the standards outlined in the CDC Opioid Prescribing Guideline will improve patient care, they don’t go far enough. A recent letter from the US Surgeon General made a direct plea to physicians to help solve an urgent health crisis - now commonly referred to as "the opioid epidemic" - in America. A copy of [...]
Nor shall any man's entreaty prevail upon me to administer poison to anyone; neither will I counsel any man to do so. – Hippocratic Oath When it comes to the treatment of chronic pain, the medical profession may be in violation of what can be regarded as the first medical ethic: First do no harm. [...]
Q: My mother suffers from chronic pain after having back surgery in 2004. Two discs were fused and she has two screws in her lumbar area. She currently alternates between Topiramate (Topamax) 25 mg for low grade pain and Hydrocodone Acetaminophen (Vicodin) 5-300 mg for high grade pain. I have taken her to several spine [...]
By Elizabeth Shimer Bowers As first seen on EverydayHealth.com. For managing chronic pain, opioid drugs may not be the answer. Here are ways to find relief without relying on a prescription. Doctors prescribe more painkillers today than they ever have — writing three times as many prescriptions for opioids as they did 20 years ago, [...]
Why No Pain Pill Is Totally Safe By Julia Westbrook As first seen on RodaleNews.com. We break down the hidden side effects of three common pain meds. It's time to reevaluate how we deal with pain. Pain meds, even the ones that are easily available or ones we think of as safe, can have unintended [...]
