Newswise — CHICAGO, March 17, 2014 -- The American Pain Society (APS), www.americanpainsociety.org, will host its 34th annual scientific meeting May 13-16 at the Palm Springs Convention Center. APS is the leading multidisciplinary professional organization in the United States dedicated to advancing pain-related research, education, treatment and team-oriented professional practice.
More than 1,000 scientists and clinicians specializing in pain and pain management will attend. Pain research is a major focus of the meeting, and the nation’s leading pain scientists will present their latest discoveries during the conference. Noteworthy topics to be covered by leading pain experts include:
Cannabis and Pain: The primary reason for patients’ self-reported medical use of cannabis is for pain management. But is there a role for cannabis and its derivatives in pain management? In a plenary address, noted medical cannabis expert Mark Ware, M.D., assistant professor of anesthesia and family medicine at McGill University, will challenge clinicians and researchers to find ways to safely and efficaciously deal with the exploding reality of medical cannabis.
Is Fibromyalgia a Disease? Fibromyalgia has struggled for medical credibility, even though the condition is fairly well understood and treatments have been successful in subsets of patients. In his plenary session talk, Daniel Clauw, M.D, will propose fibromyalgia is not a discrete disease but instead should be considered a final common pathway that occurs in subsets of most chronic pain states characterized by multiple pain sites.
Does Chronic Pain Have Long-term Consequences? Chronic pain sufferers show associated anxiety and depression as well as deficits in cognitive functioning. Catherine Bushnell, PhD, scientific director, Division of Intramural Research, National Institutes of Health, will report in her plenary session talk that new evidence shows these effects can be prevented or reversed by environmental factors that could affect pain modulatory factors.
Poster Presentations: Author attended poster sessions are May 13, 14 and 15. This year, there will be more than 450 posters reporting on new research in the study and treatment of pain. Accepted abstracts can be viewed at http://americanpainsociety.org/annual-meeting/upcoming-annual-meeting/poster-abstracts
Media Registration: Journalists interested in covering the APS meeting should contact Chuck Weber at (262) 473-3018 or [email protected] to obtain media credentials and complimentary advance registration. The pressroom will open at 7:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 14.
The meeting program describing all sessions is available on the APS website, www.americanpainsociety.org.
About the American Pain Society Based in Chicago, the American Pain Society (APS) is a multidisciplinary community that brings together a diverse group of scientists, clinicians and other professionals to increase the knowledge of pain and transform public policy and clinical practice to reduce pain-related suffering. APS is the professional home for investigators involved in all aspects of pain research including basic, translational, clinical and health services research to obtain the support and inspiration they need to flourish professionally. APS strongly advocates expansion of high quality pain research to help advance science to achieve effective and responsible pain relief. For more information on APS, visit www.americanpainsociety.org.
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