TREATMENT AND REHABILITATION FOR CHRONIC PAIN PATIENTS

There is still a significant lack of treatment and rehabilitation faci lities for chronic pain patients in Germany today. Most of all the tre atment of low back pain and widespread pain syndromes or panalgesia is time consuming and complicated. The main problem of anaesthesiologica l pain clinics is the increase of these complex pain syndromes in the last years. The definition of chronic pain is a contiuous noxious inpu t modulated and compounded by the prolonged or recurrent nature of chr onic state and further complicated by a multitude of economic and psyc hosocial factors. It is now clear that no one discipline or mode will suffice. Only a multidisciplinary and intensive approache will prevail , as discussed in this article. Unfortunately these multidisciplinary pain units are nearly not existing in Gemany just as little as control of the effectiveness of pain treatment.