Treating Chronic Pain

Brain Beat

Joining the podcast this week for a discussion of pain management and coping strategies is Dr. Michael Jaffe. Among the many other achievements of his storied career, Dr. Jaffe was once the department head for pain management at San Diego Kaiser Permanente and is currently a private practitioner at Hawaii Brain and Spine in Kailua. As a result, he possesses a great deal of experience and expertise in this highly important field, and is here to share his wisdom and insights with listeners here today.

Beginning with a brief review of his background in pain management and his current practice, our guest moves on to explore the use of opiates in pain management, the dangers of relying solely upon them for treatment, the importance of finding alternative methods, and the complexities of chronic pain itself. He then draws upon his years of experience in pain management to share his insights on the best approach for treating chronic pain, reviews the multifaceted reasons for the overuse of opiates in the United States, and highlights the need for caution when prescribing these powerful medications. A crucial topic with far reaching impact throughout our world today, pain management and its inherent complexity is put under the microscope here today in this thought provoking and informative conversation.

The Finer Details of This Episode:

• Peter's background in pain management and his current private practice
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• The importance of finding alternative methods for pain management beyond relying on opiates
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• The importance of empowering patients to take an active role in their own self care and recovery through education, motion, and non-opiate therapies
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• The role of the Hawaii Medical Board and its focus on reducing opioid prescriptions
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• The importance of addressing the root cause of pain, rather than just masking the symptoms
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• Strategies for coping with chronic pain, including the use of mindfulness and physical therapy
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• The benefits of involving family and loved ones in the pain management process
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• The value of seeking out a multidisciplinary approach to pain management
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• Overuse of opioids in the United States

Quotes:

"We need to be looking at the root cause of the pain, not just masking the symptoms."

"It's important to involve family and loved ones in the process, because they can often provide a lot of support and encouragement."

"Mindfulness can be a very powerful tool in managing chronic pain."

"A multidisciplinary approach is really important in managing pain effectively."

"We need to be more proactive in finding alternative methods for managing pain."

"Opiates work really well for acute pain, but the studies for the use of opiates for chronic pain are very lacking and really just modest benefit at best."

"Maybe 20% helps with chronic pain using these high dose opiates. And whereas we used to think that opiate substance use disorder was a small percentage of people we started on opioid therapy, we now know that opiate use disorder affects about 25% of people."

"It's really up to the doctors to kind of rein in the liberal riding of opiates."

"The studies show that if you get people moving and not in bed rest and actually doing active recovery, they'll recover faster."

"There are many non-pharmacological treatments that can be very effective in managing chronic pain."

Links:

National Academy of Neuropsychology Foundation website

Dr. Jaffe