As every year, October 17 marks the World Day Against Pain, a problem that affects millions of people around the world in its different variants. In the 2018 edition, the day is dedicated to health excellence in the training of professionals for the treatment of pain. Dr. Javier Mata and Dr. Alba Violeta Gándara, pain specialists at the prestigious Aurea Clínic in Seville analyze the World Day Against Pain.
The IASP and the SED -International Association for the Study of Pain and the Spanish Pain Society respectively- qualify and define pain as “an unpleasant emotional or sensory experience that is associated with actual or potential damage to a specific tissue or area”.
And the fact is that the function of pain is to warn that something is not working properly in our organism, pain being the first alarm signal that something may be going wrong. “We should not forget that, in the end, it is a defense mechanism, despite the fact that there are still no obvious clinical signs. Therefore, when faced with this symptom, it is necessary to see a specialist to determine both its cause and possible treatment,” says Dr. Mata.
However, it should be noted that there are two types of pain: acute pain, which indicates a specific area or indicates to the patient that he or she should be seen by a specialist at a specific time. On the other hand, however, there is chronic pain. This pain has an indeterminate duration that can extend from weeks to years.
Chronic pain is caused by diseases or external problems, such as fibromyalgia, diabetic pain…
Fighting pain
The question is often asked as to whether it is really possible to put an end to pain or chronic pain. The answer is yes, although nuances must be added, since an early diagnosis of the problem is fundamental for the patient’s health and future quality of life. Chronic pain can be dealt with, and can even be lived with, but for pain treatment to be successful, it will be necessary to see a specialist as soon as possible. “A significant percentage of patients will have chronic pain, so the sooner it is identified and treated, in any form, acute or chronic, the better the results will be,” say Dr. Mata and Dr. Gándara, pain specialists at Aurea Clinic.
The best way to approach pain is through a qualified, multidisciplinary team of professionals, who will help the patient from different points of view.
2018, dedicated to excellence in education
If in 2017 the day was dedicated to postoperative pain, and in 2016 against joint pain, in the 2018 edition the Spanish Pain Society dedicates the day to excellence in the education of pain healthcare professionals, granting an award to the University of Salamanca, “for its excellence in pain-specific training, through the Extraordinary Chair of Pain.”
And the fact is that part of the healthcare sector is calling for greater importance to be given to pain treatment in today’s medicine. Juan Antonio Micó, President of the SED, commented that some time ago “the possibility of including a core subject on pain in the medical degree course was lost”, although the SED “continues to claim the importance of this subject before the Ministry”. Dr. Víctor Mayoral, pain specialist at the Aliaga Institute and the University Hospital of Bellvitge, is categorical: “it is clear that training in pain is insufficient. In Spain there are more than six million people affected by chronic pain, and nine out of ten of them suffer it for a year, accounting for up to 3% of GDP”. Since the first unit was created in Spain in 1968, 180 have been created in the public system and there are now 300 units in the private sector. The figure could be considered positive and encouraging were it not for the fact that, as SED member Dr. Concepción Pérez points out, “there are more than 800 hospitals in the National Health System, although only a quarter of them have a Pain Unit”.
The SED claims that “pain treatment should be considered a fundamental human right, since it is one of the main medical problems affecting the population”.
“Training in the field of pain, both for professionals and patients, is essential, since most, if not 100% of the population will experience pain at some point in their lives, and it is very important to detect it early,” Dr. Gándara and Dr. Mata conclude.