Pain management nursing : official journal of the American Society of Pain Management Nurses
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Pain in the lumbosacral part of the spine in the course of degenerative disease is the most common cause of physical activity limitation in adults. Treatment includes pharmacotherapy, physiotherapy, psychotherapy, health promotion, and sometimes surgery. Surgical treatment is not always successful, and the various clinical and psychosomatic symptoms that result from surgical treatment failure are known as failed back surgery syndrome. ⋯ The study showed that spinal cord stimulation was effective in treating spinal and lower limb pain in 64% of patients, similar to results obtained in other departments. Although back pain and neuropathic pain radiating to the lower limbs decreased, moderate physical activity impairment was still observed according to the Oswestry Disability Index scale. The decrease in neuropathic pain radiating to the lower limbs had the most significant influence on reducing physical activity impairment.
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Patients who undergo a surgical intervention require information in the preoperative phase. Few qualitative studies are available that illuminate the importance of preoperative information for patients' experiences of postoperative pain management. The aim of this study was to examine patients' perceptions of preoperative information about pain treatment as well as its importance for the way pain was managed in the postoperative phase. ⋯ The theme "Participation" emerged from the latent content. Preoperative information on pain relief facilitated increased patient participation. Health care professionals often aim to ensure that patients participate in the care, but the latter sometimes lack the desire, strength, or ability to become involved.
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Adolescents with chronic pain frequently perceive a lack of support from friends. Support from a peer with a shared experience has been found to provide emotional, informational, and appraisal support. We sought to quantify the frequency with which adolescents with chronic pain want to befriend other adolescents with chronic pain, and to describe the features of these friendships. ⋯ Emotional support, by feeling understood and discussing pain without fear that the other is disinterested, was the main peer support provided. Without common interests, this form of friendship may not last and is at risk for being overly solicitous by focusing on pain. It remains unclear whether the benefits of peer support translate into improved function.
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The purpose of this study was to explore the social organization of nurses' pain management work in Qatar. The research data drew our attention to unacceptable delays in intervening with patients in pain. We describe and analyze delays in opioid administration. ⋯ Nurses are subject to time-consuming processes of securing, handling, and administering opioids. This study's innovative approach introduces a promising "alternate" analysis to prior work investigating hospital nurses' pain management practices. Both the method of inquiry and the findings have international relevance for researchers interested in undertreated pain.
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Patients with substance-use disorder and pain are at risk of having their pain underestimated and undertreated. Unrelieved pain can exacerbate characteristics that are believed to be 'drug-seeking' and in turn, perceived drug-seeking behavior can contribute to a patient being stigmatized and labeled 'difficult'. Previous literature has indicated that negative attitudes towards patients with substance-use disorder may affect their pain management but little is known about the specific barriers. ⋯ Nurses' education and support needs were identified. Stereotyping and stigmatism were found to potentially still exist, yet there was also a general awareness of some specific clinical issues such as opioid tolerance and opioid-induced hyperalgesia. Further emphasis is required on interprofessional education and communication to improve patient management, alongside an appreciation of patient's rights facilitated by a concordance model of care.