Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is a very common condition and one of the most common reasons why someone seeks medical care.
Chronic pain is long standing pain that persists beyond the usual recovery period carries on for longer than 12 weeks despite medication or treatment, occurs along with a chronic health condition.
Characteristics
- Chronic pain may be “on” and “off” or continuous. It may affect people to the point that they can’t work, eat properly, take part in physical activity, or enjoy life.
- Most people get back to normal after pain following an injury or operation. But sometimes the pain carries on for longer or comes on without any history of an injury or operation.
- This condition can affect people living with diabetes.
Common types of chronic pain
Chronic pain can come in many different forms and appear across your body.
- Arthritis, or joint pain.
- Back pain.
- Neck pain.
- Cancer pain near a tumor.
- Headaches, including migraines.
- Testicular pain(orchialgia).
- Lasting pain in scar tissue.
- Psychogenic pain (pain that isn’t caused by disease, injury, or nerve damage)
- Muscle pain all over (such as with fibromyalgia).
- Neurogenic pain, from damage to the nerves or other parts of the nervous system.
People with chronic pain describe their pain in many ways, such as:
- Aching.
- Burning.
- Shooting.
- Squeezing.
- Stiffness.
- Stinging.
Risk factors
Some risk factors include:
- Genetics: Some chronic pain causes, like migraines, run in the family (are genetic).
- Obesity: Obesity can worsen certain health conditions that cause pain, such as arthritis since there’s extra pressure on your joints.
- Age: Older people are more likely to experience chronic pain from arthritis and neuropathy.
- Previous injury
- Physically strenuous job
- Experiencing stress
- Smoking:
Causes chronic pain.
In some cases, however, people experience chronic pain without any prior injury. The exact causes of chronic pain without injury aren’t well understood. The pain may sometimes result from an underlying health condition, such as:
- Chronic fatigue syndrome: characterized by extreme, prolonged weakness that’s often accompanied by pain.
- Endometriosis: a painful disorder that occurs when the uterine lining grows outside of the uterus.
- Fibromyalgia: widespread pain in the bones and muscles
- Inflammatory bowel disease: a group of conditions that causes painful, chronic inflammation in the digestive tract.
- Interstitial cystitis: a chronic disorder marked by bladder pressure and pain.
- Temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ):a condition that causes painful clicking, popping, or locking of the jaw.
- Vulvodynia: chronic vulva pain that occurs with no obvious cause.
MANAGEMENT
Your healthcare provider after taking proper history and complete physical examination and may order tests to look for the cause of the pain. Investigation includes:
- Blood tests.
- Urine test
- Imaging tests, such as X-rays and MRI.
- Nerve conduction studies to see if your nerves are reacting properly.
- Reflex and balance tests.
- Spinal fluid tests.
- Electromyography to test muscle activity.
TREATMENT
The treatment depends on many factors, including:
- The type of pain you have.
- The cause of your pain, if known.
- Your age and overall health.
The treatment includes, Lifestyle changes Medications, and Therapies.
Lifestyle changes
Four major lifestyle factors can affect your chronic pain and help minimize it. They include:
- Stress: Stress can play a major role in chronic pain, so it’s important to try to reduce your stressas much as possible. Everyone has different techniques for managing their stress, but some techniques include meditation, mindfulness, and deep breathing. Try different options until you find what works best for you.
- Exercise: Participating in low-intensity exercises, such as walking or light swimming, for 30 minutes every day may help reduce your pain. Exercise can also be a stress reliever for some people, which is important to manage when you have chronic pain.
- Diet: It’s important to eat a healthy diet to boost your overall health. An anti-inflammatory diet by eliminating foods that cause inflammation, such as red meat and refined carbohydrates.
- Sleep: Getting enough quality sleep is important for your overall health. A lack of sleep can cause you to gain weight, which could make your chronic pain worse.Getting quality sleep is also important for stress management.
Medication
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or acetaminophen
- Anticonvulsants (medications that prevent seizures) for nerve pain.
- Antidepressants such as tricyclic antidepressants.
- Corticosteroid.
- Muscle relaxers.
- Topical products (applied to the skin) that contain pain relievers or ingredients that create soothing heat or cold.
- Opioids (narcotics). Opioids can be addictive, and you can build up a tolerance to them over time. Because of this, healthcare providers usually try other pain treatment options before prescribing opioids.
- Sedatives to help with anxiety or insomnia.
Other medical treatments your healthcare provider may have you try include:
- Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS):.
- Nerve blocks:
- Epidural steroid injections:
Therapies
Certain therapies may help you manage chronic pain, including:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT): This counseling method helps you think differently about pain and teaches you ways to cope.
- Counseling: Talk therapy can help you manage chronic pain, especially psychogenic pain.
- Occupational therapy: Occupational therapy teaches you how to do everyday tasks differently to lessen pain or avoid injury.
- Physical therapy: Physical therapy involves exercises that stretch and strengthen your body, which can help reduce your pain.
OUTLOOK
Prevention is an important piece of the pain management process. Avoiding triggers, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and using posture-friendly equipment.
Chronic pain usually doesn’t go away, but you can manage it with a combination of strategies that work for you. If you have chronic pain, please talk to a healthcare provider or pain specialist.