Chronic Pain Patients Seek Help from ‘Boot Camp’
Posted on: Monday, 17 March 2008, 11:30 CDT
New research indicates that chronic pain can cause reduce the brain’s ability to rest.Dr. Dante Chialvo, a researcher at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, said that he sees an “objective biological difference” between the brains of those who suffer from chronic pain and those who don’t.
Although he was not involved with boot camp in Chicago, Chialvo said he uses tests to measure the brain’s responses in his patients.
"I ask a patient who has had chronic pain for 10 years to put the mind blank, don't think about anything," he said.
Results of MRI scanning show that the brain of a patient with chronic pain appears to differ in the way it reacts, which could account for sleeping disorders, poor decision-making, and mood changes, he said.
Many patients who suffer from chronic pain are seeking help from a four-week “boot camp” program provided by the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.
The program seeks to address biological, psychological and social pain by giving patients a method they can use to reduce the impact of chronic pain in various areas of their lives.
During a normal week at boot camp, patients meet with physicians, occupational therapists, physical therapists, a biofeedback therapist, a clinical psychologist and a movement specialist.
They meet others who suffer from chronic pain and learn from their history as well.
Dr . Steven Stanos, the program’s medical doctor, said the program is so successful because it combines a comprehensive list of treatments and specialists under one roof.
The American Pain Society estimates that millions of Americans suffer from various forms of chronic pain. Spine treatments appear to add up to billions of dollars every year.
Americans spent $20 billion on prescription drugs in hopes of ridding themselves of neck and back pain, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Chronic pain patients' medical and pharmacy bills "show up on our radar," Dr. James Cross, Aetna's national medical policy chief told Associated Press. The patients are "frustrated and clearly suffering" and "looking for an answer," he said.
With price tag amounts nearing $20,000, Cross said that programs like RIC’s bootcamp are more cost-effective than trying to find the right combination of prescription medicine. Aetna noted that patients who have been involved in a boot camp program have experienced sustained pain reduction and lower stress.
Dennis Turk, a pain researcher at the University of Washington in Seattle and a believer in the approach said that while many insurance firms currently cover the cost of a boot camp approach, the jury is still out for some.
"Anybody out there can put up a sign and say, 'I'm a comprehensive pain rehabilitation program,'" Turk said. He recommended programs affiliated with university medical centers and the nearly 100 interdisciplinary programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities.
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On the Net:
Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago
American Pain Society
American Medical Association
Aetna
University of Washington
Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities
Source: redOrbit Staff and Wire Reports
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