Pain Management
Veterans Study Shows Pre-surgical Acupuncture Results in Less Pain, Fewer Opioids
Veterans who have acupuncture before surgery report less pain and need far fewer opioids to manage their discomfort, according to a randomized, controlled study being presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2020 annual meeting. Veterans who received acupuncture also reported they were more satisfied with their pain control than those who didRead
U Vermont’s Multi-Stakeholder Integrative Pain Pilot: Initial Reflections on Outcomes & Transferability
In recent weeks, two influential integrative health organizations each chose to feature presentations on the expansive, multidisciplinary, and remarkably patient-choice integrative pain pilot associated with the University of Vermont Medical Center (UVMC). The presentations for the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine and Health and the Alliance to Advance Comprehensive IntegrativeRead
Biological Clock Plays Crucial Role in Healing from Surgery
If you prescribe an anti-inflammatory for your patients after knee, hip or shoulder surgery, you may want to suggest they take them in the morning or at noon, but not at night. A McGill-led study shows, for the first time, that circadian clock genes are involved in healing from surgery.Read
Veterans Administration Making Significant Progress in Non-Drug Treatments for Chronic Pain
A new study based on Veterans Affairs health records finds that non-drug treatments for chronic pain given to military service members may reduce the risk of long-term adverse outcomes, such as alcohol and drug disorder and self-induced injuries, including suicide attempts. The findings were published in the Journal of GeneralRead
New Pain Organ Discovered in the Skin
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have discovered a new sensory organ that is able to detect painful mechanical damage, such as pricks and impacts. The discovery is published in the journal Science. An essential prerequisite for the survival of an organism is the ability to detect and respond toRead
Is Prolotherapy Effective in the Treatment of Avascular Necrosis of the Femoral Head?
How the Backlash to Oregon’s Plan to Taper Opioids with Integrative Approaches Missed the Mark
When Oregon announced in 2016 that it would shift its back and neck care for Medicaid clients from opioids toward acupuncture, spinal manipulation, massage, yoga therapy and mind-body methods, it was heralded as a breakthrough for pain treatment nationally. Inside that policy was a mandate many now consider even biggerRead
Is Race a Factor in Patient-Practitioner Interactions and when Prescribing Pain Medications?
A 62-year-old with stage IV lung cancer that has spread to his bones, causing unspeakable pain, is trying to convince his physician to prescribe pain medicine. What happens next? It actually could depend on if the patient is black or white. Or if the physician is a primary care providerRead
Interview with Author Laurada Byers on The Value of Integrative Medicine for PTSD, Pain, Cancer and Parkinson’s
When I first read Wild Wisdom, A Warthog’s Tale, I mistakenly took it for a children’s book. Look beyond the enchanting art work and you will find it is nothing of the sort. It’s a very adult book that uncovers the private thoughts and public decisions that Laurada Byers madeRead
Inappropriate Pain Management after Surgery is a Major Cause of the Opioid Crisis
Over the past decade an increasing reliance on opioids to treat pain has been associated with a rising epidemic of opioid misuse in the USA, that is now expanding globally. Lancet recently published three papers designed to address the role of inappropriate opioid prescribing after surgery as a major causeRead
