What is chronic pain? Causes and treatments

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Nguyen Xuan Tinh - Anesthesiologist - Resuscitation - Department of General Surgery - Vinmec Phu Quoc International General Hospital. The doctor has more than 18 years of experience studying and working in the field of Anesthesia - Resuscitation.

Chronic pain is pain that recurs many times, directly affecting the patient's quality of life. There is no optimal treatment for chronic pain, but there are methods to minimize the impact of the disease on the patient's quality of life.

Pain is an unpleasant sensation that occurs at the same time as tissue damage, the level of pain depends on the subjective perception of each person, is a sign of disease that needs to be found for a cause for treatment.
Chronic pain is pain that recurs many times and lasts for more than 3 months. Chronic pain can start with an acute pain and last longer than expected, often due to many factors.
Patients with chronic pain can lead to psychological disorders such as anxiety, depression, mood changes that affect social functioning.

There are many causes of chronic pain, but they are classified into 3 groups of causes including:
Non-inflammatory pain: Headache; Back pain, neck pain due to muscle contraction. Pain due to inflammation: Pain after surgery; Pain due to trauma; Degenerative pain; Pain in cancer patients; Pain from arthritis; Pain due to gout.... Pain due to nerve factors: Pain after shingles; Sciatica ; Intermittent nerve pain ; Nerve pain V; Pain due to neurological complications in diabetic patients....

Chronic pain affects quite seriously the psychology of patients, in order to treat it, it is necessary to find the cause of the disease. The goal of treatment is to reduce pain recurrence and pain intensity. Drug therapy combined with non-pharmacological methods.
Treatment of chronic non-inflammatory pain:
Mild pain without medication, treated with non-drug methods such as physical therapy, relaxation, yoga... Moderate and severe: Using paracetamol and other preparations in combination with non-drug methods Treating pain caused by inflammation:
Use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pain relievers (mobic, diclofenac, aspirin...), if the severity is severe, use pain relief. by opioid analgesics (morphine and similar drugs) Chronic pain due to neurologic causes:
With neuropathic pain relievers such as antidepressants (paroxetine, amitriptyline..., and group of antiepileptic drugs (eg depakine....) Treatment of pain after surgery:
In order to limit the risk of chronic pain after surgery, it is very important to treat pain after surgery. do not cause chronic pain after surgery Minimizing the use of narcotic drugs Non-drug treatment methods:
Physiotherapy: Using Using heat therapy methods, electrotherapy... Traditional medicine treatment: Acupuncture, acupressure Massage Lifestyle changes: Meditation, yoga, relaxation therapy, psychotherapy. .. Eat healthy, get enough sleep...

At Vinmec International General Hospitals, pain treatment is the first priority for customers during the treatment process. Vinmec has researched and applied painless treatments, while using advanced anesthetic techniques to reduce pain, helping to have good surgical results. In the course of medical examination and treatment and treatment, if there is pain, you are always assessed the pain level and applied safe pain treatment methods. This will help you overcome the gentle treatment, prevent the risk of chronic pain after surgery, and recover health soon.
Pain management methods at Vinmec include:
Spinal plane anesthesia (ESP) provides a painless surgical experience for heart surgery patients and many other surgeries.
Back anesthesia (also known as epidural) to reduce pain during labor during normal delivery. This method allows labor to take place in the most ideal conditions.
Anesthesia method of lumbar squamous muscle for pregnant women giving birth by caesarean section. The mother is given spinal anesthesia during surgery and pain relief in the first day after surgery by means of lumbar squamous sphincter, helps the mother take care of the baby and recover better.
Program to enhance recovery after surgery ERAS : Program to enhance recovery after surgery (ERAS) is a collection of perioperative multimodal care protocols (before, during, after surgery) to help Patients recover quickly and soon after surgery. Thanks to the robotic surgery technique combined with the program to enhance recovery after surgery, it is possible to shorten the postoperative treatment time from 10 days to 3 days.
Chronic pain does not have an optimal treatment, but it can be limited so that the patient feels more comfortable and integrates into life, minimizing the possibility of the disease affecting the patient's quality of life.