Are You Seeing the Whole Picture?: Assessing Pain and the Multitude of Factors that Influence Pain Perception

In July 2012, the FDA approved the Extended-Release and Long-Acting (ER/LA) Opioid Analgesic Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) to ensure that the benefits of ER and LA opioid analgesics used in the outpatient setting outweigh the risks. The REMS initiative was eventually modified to include immediate-release (IR) opioids in order to support the national efforts to address the misuse and abuse of prescription opioid analgesics.

Knowledge of acute and chronic pain pathways and their underlying mechanisms are imperative to the fundamentals of pain management and provide a comprehensive framework for appropriate clinical assessment and management of pain. The first episode of this CMEOCast podcast series on the treatment and monitoring of pain features faculty focusing on the whole picture of pain assessment and the factors that influence pain perception with the goal of educating clinicians on how to apply their knowledge of pain pathways to better counsel and treat their patients with acute and chronic pain.

At the end of this CE activity, participants should be able to:
-Apply knowledge of acute and chronic pain pathways and underlying mechanisms to clinical assessment and appropriate management of pain.

The following learning objectives pertain only to those requesting CNE or CPE credit:
-Summarize knowledge of acute and chronic pain pathways and underlying mechanisms to clinical assessment and appropriate management of pain.