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This page contains information about several common, painful, diseases and conditions. It also contains links to other websites that will provide valuable information for patients and their families. Bone Disorders
Arthritis
Osteoporosis
TMJ
Lung Disorders
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
Cystic Fibrosis
Emphysema
Other Diseases and Conditions
Variety of Conditions
Back Pain
Cancer
Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
Fibromyalgia
Interstitial Cystitis or Painful Bladder Syndrome
Lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus)
Lyme Disease
Polio
Porphyria
Shingles
Sickle Cell Anemia
Arthritis
Arthritis is a group of conditions involving damage to the joints of the body. Arthritis is the leading cause of disability in people older than fifty-five years. There a re different forms of arthritis and each has a different cause. The most common form of arthritis is osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease which is usually a result of trauma or infection of the joint, and/or age. Other arthritis forms of arthritis include rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis which are autoimmune diseases. "Autoimmune diseases" mean that the body literally attacks itself. Another form of arthritis is septic arthritis which is caused by joint infection. "Gout" arthritis is another form and it is caused by deposition of uric acid crystals in the joint, causing inflammation. There is also an uncommon form of gout caused by the formation of rhomboid crystals of calcium pyrophosphate. This gout is known as pseudogout. Children can get arthritis too, this is called juvenile arthritis.
Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis, which means "porous bones," causes bones to become weak and brittle. They can become so brittle that even mild stresses like bending over, lifting a vacuum cleaner or coughing can cause a fracture. In most cases, bones weaken when you have low levels of calcium, phosphorus and other minerals in your bones. A common result of osteoporosis is fractures. Most factures occur in the spine, hip or wrist. Although it's often thought of as a women's disease, osteoporosis also affects many men. And aside from people who have osteoporosis, many more have low bone density.
TMJ
Temporomandibular joint disorder, also known as TMJD, TMJ,TMD or TMJ syndrome, is an umbrella term covering acute or chronic inflammation of the temporomandibular joint. The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) connects the lower jaw to the skull. The disorder and resultant dysfunction can result in significant pain and impairment. There are a variety of quite different treatment approaches because this disorder overlaps between several health-care disciplines, in particular, dentistry, neurology, physical therapy, and psychology. The temporomandibular joint is susceptible to many of the conditions that affect other joints in the body, including ankylosis, arthritis, trauma, dislocations, developmental anomalies, and neoplasia.
Lung Disorders
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
Cystic Fibrosis
Emphysema
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease is pulmonary disease that is characterized by chronic typically irreversible airway obstruction resulting in a slowed rate of exhalation.
Cystic Fibrosis
Cystic Fibrosis is a hereditary disease prevalent especially in Caucasian populations that appears usually in early childhood, is inherited as an autosomal recessive monogenic trait, involves functional disorder of the exocrine glands, and is marked especially by faulty digestion due to a deficiency of pancreatic enzymes, by difficulty in breathing due to mucus accumulation in airways, and by excessive loss of salt in the sweat.
Variety of Conditions
This section contains links to websites that have information about a variety of painful conditions and diseases.
Back Pain
Back Pain is pain associated with a musculoskeletal disorder or defect in the back or spine.
Cancer
Cancer is a malignant tumor of potentially unlimited growth that expands locally by invasion and systemically by metastasis.
- Cancer.net - Managing Side Effects - Not all people with cancer benefit from pain relief strategies because they don't share the symptoms with their health care team or have worries about the medications used to relieve pain. It is important to communicate with your doctor and nurses about your pain so they can develop a plan to relieve it.
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LiveStrong.org - Survivors sometimes experience ongoing pain after cancer treatment. Knowing what the causes are and being able to describe your symptoms to your health care team can help you manage chronic pain.
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TheCancerJournal.org - Pain is the most frequent symptom that patients with cancer experience, but it shouldn't be. Pain can be prevented or treated. No one should be in pain.
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TreatThePain.com -The disparities in access to pain treatment worldwide are staggering. Cancer deaths are expected to double by 2030 and many of those deaths will be in developing countries with little to no access to adequate pain treatment. Through the Treat the Pain campaign, we are advocating for effective pain control measures to be available to all cancer patients in pain. We invite you to join us in helping stop unnecessary suffering worldwide.
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Cancer.net - Oncologist approved cancer information from the American Society of Clinical Oncology
- Cancer Care Free, professional support for anyone affected by cancer.
- Managing Cancer Pain - Frequently Asked Questions, published by the Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine - July 2011
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Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is an uncommon, chronic condition that usually affects your arm or leg. Rarely, the disease can affect other parts of your body. You may experience intense burning or aching pain along with swelling, skin discoloration, altered temperature, abnormal sweating and hypersensitivity in the affected area.
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Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a disorder classified by the presence of chronic widespread pain. While the criteria for such an entity have not yet been thoroughly developed, the recognition that fibromyalgia involves more than just pain has led to the frequent use of the term "fibromyalgia syndrome". It is not contagious, and recent studies suggest that people with fibromyalgia may be genetically predisposed. The disorder is not directly life-threatening. The degree of symptoms may vary greatly from day to day with periods of flares (severe worsening of symptoms) or remission; however, the disorder is generally perceived as non-progressive.
- Fibromyalgia: Five Things You Need to Know- Information from the American Pain Foundation
- Guidelines for the management of fibromyalgia syndrome pain in adults and children - Information from the National Guideline Clearinghouse
- Information from the National Pain Foundation
- FDA Approves Fibromyalgia Drug Savella, January 8, 2009
- Insurance Barriers to Fibromyalgia National Survey
- Research sheds light on pain and activity levels of fibromyalgia patients. Daniel Clauw, M.D., senior author of the study, was a member of the ACPSM (2007-2011)
- Helping Our Pain and Exhaustion, Inc. - H.O.P.E.
- Fibromyalgia - A Brief Overview, presented by Dennis W. Dobritt, DO, DABPM, FIPP
- Fibromyalgia: Fitting the Pieces Together, a presentation by Sharon Ostalecki, Ph.D.
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Interstitial Cystitis
Interstitial Cystitis Interstitial cystitis, or IC, is a condition that consists of recurring pelvic pain, pressure, or discomfort in the bladder and pelvic region, often associated with urinary frequency (needing to go often) and urgency (feeling a strong need to go). IC may also be referred to as painful bladder syndrome (PBS).
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Lupus
Lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus) is an inflammatory connective tissue disease of unknown cause that occurs chiefly in women and that is characterized especially by fever, skin rash, and arthritis, often by acute hemolytic anemia, by small hemorrhages in the skin and mucous membranes, by inflammation of the pericardium, and in serious cases by involvement of the kidneys and central nervous system-called also systemic lupus.
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Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease is the most common tick-borne disease in the Northern Hemisphere. Borrelia is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected ticks belonging to a few species of the genus Ixodes ("hard ticks"). Early symptoms may include fever, headache, fatigue, depression, and a characteristic circular skin rash called erythema migraines. Left untreated, later symptoms may involve the joints, heart, and central nervous system. In most cases, the infection and its symptoms are eliminated by antibiotics, especially if the illness is treated early. Delayed or inadequate treatment can lead to the more serious symptoms, which can be disabling and difficult to treat
Polio
Polio is a contagious viral illness that in its most severe form causes paralysis, difficulty breathing and sometimes death. In the U.S., the last case of wild polio, polio caused naturally, not by a vaccine containing live virus, occurred in 1979. Today, despite a concerted global eradication campaign, wild poliovirus continues to affect children and adults in Afghanistan, India, Nigeria and Pakistan.
Porphyria
Porphyria symptoms arise mostly from effects on either the nervous system or the skin. Effects on the nervous system occur in the acute porphyrias (AIP, ADP, HCPand VP). Proper diagnosis is often delayed because the symptoms are nonspecific. Skin manifestations can include burning, blistering and scarring of sun-exposed areas.
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Shingles
Shingles is a disease caused by the same virus that caused chickenpox. Once a person has had chickenpox, the virus can live, but remain inactive in certain nerve roots within your body for many years; if the virus becomes active again, usually later in life, it can cause shingles.
Sickle Cell Anemia
Sickle Cell Anemia is chronic anemia that occurs in individuals (as those of African or Mediterranean descent) that is characterized by destruction of red blood cells and by episodic blocking of blood vessels by the adherence of sickle cells to the vascular endothelium which causes the serious complications of the disease (such as organ failure.
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