Living with chronic pain? A cure could be on its way

The definition of chronic pain is that which persists for more than three to six months and that occurs at least three times weekly.  Chronic pain has many forms with some of the most commonly known being osteoarthritis, back pain and diabetic nerve pain.  While pharmaceutical giants continue in the search for a definitive solution, specialists at pain management Longview Texas have developed solutions to a number of diverse discomforts.

Chronic pain is widespread, with estimates that the United Kingdom could have in the region of ten million individuals (roughly one sixth of the population!) who are affected with either regular or frequent bouts of intense pain and distress, according to Professor Stephen McMahon in a report by the Guardian, a British daily.  He goes on to mention that “it represents a colossal level of suffering that receives very little publicity”.

The need to find an effective solution is pressing as the Professor estimates that two million individuals have been suffering for 20 years or more with chronic pain which also holds an apparent link to depression.  He notes two significant challenges:

i.            Difficulty in identifying pain, and,

ii.            Difficulty in dealing with pain due to high medical standards – no side effects permitted

While pharmaceutical companies remain eager to pursue a means of detecting and nullifying what has been identified as the nerve growth factor (NGF) the receptors to indicate pain, to date the studies have produced positive results, although demonstrating quite negative side effects for patients.

With Pfizer leading the charge – with its drug Tanezumab – other companies such as Johnson and Johnson and Regeneron are in pursuit.  However a moratorium was placed on further trials of drugs in 2010 due to, what doctors claim to be, the effectiveness of the medication.  Such was its potency that patients became more active after their pain subsided which lead to problematic joints.  The moratorium was lifted in March, with an FDA representative stating that “anything that has the hope of helping pain patients is worth pursuing”.

Professor Nancy Lane claimed that following trials of Tanezumab osteoarthritis patients went from “having very limited activity to practically being on the dance floor”.  With potential solutions still in the trial stages, the continued importance of practices such as pain management Tyler Texas will remain, and even more so should the drug be approved.