Pain and Disability

Pain—it is the most common complaint presented to physicians. Yet pain is subjective—it cannot be measured directly and is difficult to validate. Evaluating claims based on pain poses major problems for the Social Security Administration (SSA) and other disability insurers. This volume covers the epidemiology and physiology of pain; psychosocial contributions to pain and illness behavior; promising ways of assessing and measuring chronic pain and dysfunction; clinical aspects of prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation; and how the SSA's benefit structure and administrative procedures may affect pain complaints.

Table of Contents


Front Matter
Summary
1. Introduction
2. The Sociopolitical Background of the Pain Issue
3. Disability Determination and the Role of Pain
4. Conflicts and Contradictions in the Disability Program
5. Economic Issues and the Cost of Disability
6. The Epidemiology of Chronic Pain and Work Disability
7. The Anatomy and Physiology of Pain
8. Illness Behavior and the Experience of Pain
9. Psychiatric Aspects of Chronic Pain
10. Chronic Pain in Medical Practice
11. Measuring Pain and Dysfunction
12. Rehabilitation Approaches and Issues in Chronic Pain
13. Conclusions and Recommendations
Appendix: Myofascial Pain Syndromes Due to Trigger Points
Index