Each month the Physiopedia team focuses on updating pages centred around one topic. This enables us to keep improving all of our existing pages as well as creating new ones. The team focuses on updating references and ensuring there are no formatting errors but most important of all the search for the latest evidence and update the pages accordingly. In February the team put all their energy into review the PPA Pain Content Development Project.
The project, a collaboration between the Physiotherapy Pain Association and Physiopedia started in 2014. Its aim was to create pages that would benefit and educate physiotherapists in the science behind pain but also on the assessment and management of this often difficult aspect of our practice.
As physiotherapists, we are often tasked with treating acute injuries where one of the primary goals is managing pain. In these situations it may be enough to suggest using the RICE principle but what do we when people’s pain does not respond to these basic principles or in cases where people who have chronic pain? We may need to adopt a totally different approach!
It has been suggested that pain is not only a physical presence with a reaction to noxious stimuli but also has a psychological aspect which can often have an impact on recovery and function. Understanding this can assist us in delivering appropriate care and advice that can help improve quality of life and function. We have some excellent pages that explain pain in great detail and also discuss treatment interventions beyond just treating the presenting physical symptoms. Some of the pages that the team edited this month are listed below or you can browse through the PPA Pain category here:
- Peripheral sensitization
- Central Sensitisation / Sensitization
- Nociception
- Sociological Basis of Pain
- Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS)
- Pain Assessment
- Descending Pathways
- Pain Behaviours
- Neuropathic Pain
- Multidimensional Nature of Pain
We aim to review as many pages as possible each month and create pages that are needed but if you see pages that need improving or creating, not just on the topic of the month, please feel free to contact us with your comments. Physiopedia is a resource created by physiotherapists for physiotherapists. Your feedback is necessary and always welcome.