Physiology and Treatment of Pain

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-2008

Department

Nursing

Abstract

Do women and men experience pain differently? How do children experience pain and do elderly patients experience pain differently compared with younger persons or do they just respond more slowly to pain?

Pain often occurs in critical care patients and is one of the most clinically challenging problems for critical care nurses. Pain and discomfort in these patients can be due to surgical and posttraumatic wounds, invasive monitoring devices, prolonged immobilization, mechanical ventilation, and routine nursing procedures such as suctioning and dressing changes.1,–5 In addition, patients may have a preexisting chronic pain condition, complicating the assessment and treatment of acute pain. Pain is a problem in critical care that has not been adequately addressed.6 Strategies for changing pain management practices include providing documentation, implementing pain guidelines, using algorithms, and increasing education in pain management for acute and critical care nurses.6 A review of pain...

DOI

10.4037/ccn2008.28.6.38

First Page

38

Last Page

49

Publication Title

Critical Care Nurse

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