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Chronic Pain

There are approximately 100 million Americans—more than those affected by heart disease, cancer, and diabetes combined—who suffer from chronic, undertreated pain according to the Institute of Medicine. It is critical that we help these patients whose chronic pain often interrupts their daily lives gain and maintain access to adequate pain relief. Chronic pain is typically defined as pain that lasts beyond the healing of an injury or that persists beyond three months. Common types of chronic pain include lower back pain, arthritis, headache and face and jaw pain. Severe pain typically stops an individual from participating in activities and causes patients to change their behavior to avoid such activities. According to an article in the New England Journal of Medicine, chronic pain is associated with functional loss and disability, reduced quality of life, high health care costs, and premature death. Chronic pain causes isolation, depression and so much more for individuals. Opioids continue to be one of the most effective treatment strategies for patients with chronic pain. Therefore, it’s critical that patients maintain access to these products. However, with the prevalence of opioid abuse, it is critical that these medications are abuse-deterrent.