ESTABLISHING A RESEARCH AGENDA FOR INVESTIGATING ALTERNATIVE MEDICAL INTERVENTIONS FOR CHRONIC PAIN
Abstract
This article describes the University of Maryland School of Medicine's Center for Complementary Medicine Research approach to developing an agenda for investigating alternative medical treatments for chronic pain syndromes. This agenda includes conducting extensive literature searches and analyses to form a knowledge base for making clinical decisions on which chronic pain syndromes are in greatest need of better therapies, as well as which alternative medical therapies offer the greatest therapeutic promise for these specific chronic pain syndromes. To date, the Center has identified back pain, arthritis, and fibromyalgia as the chronic pain syndromes that contribute the greatest clinical and economic burden to overall chronic pain statistics. Not coincidentally, patients with these diagnoses are the greatest users of alternative therapies. The Center has identified acupuncture, homeopathy, manual/manipulative therapies, and mind-body therapies as the alternative medical therapies offering the greatest clinical potential for these three general chronic pain diagnoses. Preliminary data from the Center's ongoing clinical trials programs are presented.
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The mechanism by which psychological therapies can reduce the negative effects of chronic pain is through increasing positive and meaningful behavioural change.
“a number of studies indicating that the mechanism by which psychological therapies can reduce the negative effects of chronic pain is through increasing positive and meaningful behavioural change.16,17”
From New approaches towards chronic pain: Patient experiences of a solution-focused pain management programme (2014) · cites this paper as [16]
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- Authors
- Berman, B. M., & Swyers, J. P.
- Affiliations
- University of Maryland, Baltimore (US)
- ORCID
- Berman, Brian M.
- Venue
- Primary Care: Clinics in Office Practice
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 1997-12
- Volume
- 24
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 743-758
- ISSN
- 0095-4543 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2007984767
- Cited by
- 28
- References
- 67
- Citations by year
- 2024: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2017: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 4.57
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Primary Care Clinics in Office Practice (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Complementary and Alternative Medicine Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology › Musculoskeletal pain and rehabilitation
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Acupuncture Treatment Research Studies
- Keywords
- chronic pain, complementary therapy, complementary and alternative medicine, research agenda, back pain, arthritis, fibromyalgia, acupuncture, homeopathy, manual therapy, manipulative therapy, mind-body interventions, clinical trials, economic burden of pain
- MeSH terms
- Complementary Therapies, Chronic Disease, Humans, Pain, Patient Care Team, Primary Health Care, Research
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