Journal Club meeting January 28, 2014

Time: 11:30 a.m. -1:00 p.m.
Location: Dental Sciences Building, Room D7-11

One of the staples in the battle to treat acute and chronic pain is the use of opiates. These drugs have a long history of success in the treatment of a variety of pain conditions. This is not to say that opiates are the proverbial “magic bullet” that are effective for all types of pain or can be used long term with a similar outcome. In this week’s journal club we will consider the characteristics of pain patients who take opiates and continue to report high pain intensity (see attached). We will also consider the challenge of using chronic opiates and having pain escalate into a worse condition than was originally being treated (opioid-induced hyperalgesia). The use of opiates in the management of acute and chronic pain is both a challenging and interesting topic that should result in a lively discussion that will be led by Dr. Charles Gay.