patients' pain without turning them into addicts. "It's a scary thing
when we talk about post-op pain in the context of the epidemic," says
Dr. Mariano. "It's alarming to think about how many patients who
have persistent pain use opioids long term."
Some of that long-term use can be attributed to patients who return
to their primary doctors after a few uncomfortable weeks following sur-
gery. "If they haven't had pain resolution and aren't off of opioids at that
point, there's a good chance they'll remain on them," says Dr. Mariano.
That's where transitional pain clinics come into play. "They call it
transitional pain because it's not chronic yet and because patients
might be on their way to recovery," says Dr. Mariano. "It's also not
acute pain because the immediate post-op period has ended."
By going to transitional clinics, patients get help in tapering off of
opioids in the critical first weeks after surgery. The clinics might pro-
vide techniques like peripheral neuromodulation, but they might also
offer other services like psychological assessments. "We might find
that intervening at the right time has better and stronger effects on
long-term outcomes," says Dr. Mariano, who's currently developing a
transitional clinic at his hospital.
Closer than you think
When it comes to longer-term pain management, anesthesia providers
struggle to provide consistent relief. "We fall short," says Dr. Mariano.
"It highlights the importance of matching analgesic techniques to how
patients experience pain. There's a gap there, and it's made us look at
other options."
By focusing on more individualized patient pain treatment and
incorporating new pain management techniques, the road to reducing
and possibly eliminating post-op pain might be smoother and shorter
than we think.
OSM
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