FWD:RSD World News- Congress wants focus on pain research

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From: byrd45 (Original Message) Sent: 10/25/2006 8:57 AM
Congress wants focus on pain research
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
By Sarah Kellogg
Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- Congress is looking to beef up federal research into the "invisible disease" affecting more and more Americans: pain.

The U.S. House is expected to approve legislation as early as today that will direct the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study acute and chronic pain management the way it studies major diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease.

"This is an important step in pain care management," said U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, the Brighton Republican who sponsored the legislation. "The (NIH) will have to look at pain care and palliative care as a stand-alone. It's going to raise it to a higher level of attention."

Rogers said the change is needed because chronic and acute pain are important factors in patient well-being and recovery from debilitating illnesses such as heart attacks, major surgeries and strokes. The NIH is the federal government's medical research arm.

In the past, pain was often considered a byproduct of diseases and not a field deserving study on its own. Yet recent advances in medicine have allowed more patients to live with debilitating diseases that often are accompanied by chronic pain.

Under the bill, which still must be approved by the Senate, the director of the NIH would outline the agency's research plans for pain care along with earmarked federal funding for studying it. The pain provisions are included in the proposed NIH Reform Act of 2006, which authorizes the work of the NIH and sets research priorities.

"This legislation is very important because there is very little investment in either time or dollars by the federal government in basic science research regarding pain," said Dr. Joel Saper, founder and director of the Michigan Head Pain and Neurological Institute in Ann Arbor and a national expert on pain care. "An NIH commitment and a commitment by Congress represents an important milestone in moving forward toward better pain management."

About 1 percent of the NIH's $28.5 billion budget is earmarked for pain or palliative care research; the bill would not change that allocation. The NIH does have a number of research programs on pain management, but it hasn't been a priority.

The National Pain Foundation, a Colorado-based information clearinghouse, estimates that chronic pain affects about 75 million people nationally and costs the U.S. economy about $100 billion in lost productivity.

Arthritis is the No. 1 cause of pain in the United States, according to the foundation. About 40 million people have arthritis pain. Americans spend about $50 billion annually on lower-back pain, the most common cause of work-related disability.

"Pain is the top reason people seek health care," said Mary Part Aardup, the foundation's executive director. "It accounts for over 80 percent of all physicians visits yet very few health care professional have had any training in pain."

Aardup said that one of the important benefits of a federal focus on pain management is that it will elevate the issue not just for the medical community but also for society as a whole.

"Pain is an invisible disease," said Aardup. "You don't have a crutch. You don't have a bandage. Employers don't believe you. Family members and friends don't believe you or are tired of hearing about it. And physicians often just think you're making it up. That's no way to live."