Family-Centered Care More Effective For Managing Children's Pain

Newswise — Pediatric pain management strategies that focus on improving and restoring a child and their family’s quality of life are proven to be the most effective and realistic, according to a recent study.

Chronic pain is common in children and adolescents, affecting approximately 45 percent of 10-to-18-year-olds. Often the pain continues into adulthood.

Unfortunately, the complete elimination of chronic pain is not always possible. A more realistic goal is to address the child and family’s medical, psychological and social needs, ultimately allowing them to return to school and regular social activities, according to Thomas R. Vetter, M.D, M.P.H., medical director and clinical associate professor of anesthesiology at The Riley Pain Center, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana.

Dr. Vetter studied 73 children and adolescent patients enrolled in The Riley Pain Center between October 2005 and December 2006. The hospital is among a select group of medical centers across the country treating pediatric chronic pain through a multidisciplinary approach, which may include “judicious and selective prescription medications”: physical, occupational or massage therapy; psychotherapy; family counseling; social work; acupuncture; yoga; and/or nutritional supplements.

The study included mainly girls with chronic pain for more than one year accompanied by moderate to severe anxiety and/or depression. To assess the success of the program, patients and their parents were asked to complete two pediatric chronic pain intensity and health-related quality of life surveys, once during the first clinic visit and again at their follow-up visit.

The surveys revealed a 35-percent reduction in patients’ self-reported chronic pain intensity. In addition, patients reported a 23-percent increase in their health-related quality of life, and parents, a 19-percent increase in their perceptions of their child’s health-related quality of life.

“A child doesn’t live in isolation,” Dr. Vetter said. “He or she is part of a family, and family-centered care is very important. We want to continue to look at, the impact of children’s chronic pain- on them and their parents and families.”

Founded in 1905, the American Society of Anesthesiologists is an educational, research and scientific association with 41,000 members organized to raise and maintain the standards of the medical practice of anesthesiology and improve the care of the patient. Visit our Web site at http://www.asahq.org.