Addiction and chronic pain: diagnostic and treatment dilemmas.

Chronic pain and addictive disorders present significant medical and public health problems; both are underdiagnosed and inadequately treated. The cooccurrence of pain and addiction adds complexity to the assessment and treatment of both disorders. Research on the link between pain and substance use disorders (SUDs) has focused on the bidirectional relationship between chronic pain and opioid dependence.

The Medical Examining Board speaks on pain management: everyone should listen.

Purpose: To alert physicians to the Statement of the Connecticut Medical Examining Board on the Use of Controlled Substances for the Treatment of Pain and provide a historical account of events leading to the promulgation of the Statement.

Findings: Studies conducted over the past five years have identified issues on pain control requiring attention. Established medical organizations and regulatory boards in Connecticut are attempting to address patient needs for treatment of pain while clarifying expectations of physicians, thereby reducing the likelihood of inappropriate pain treatment and licensing sanctions.