Pain control often neglected in war areas

Pain control regimens are often neglected in emergency situations yet are often essential to patients' recovery, pain management specialist Dr Phil Lacoux of Médicins Sans Frontières (MSF) said last week.

He claimed that a lack of awareness of the importance of pain control coupled with an exaggerated fear of clinical opiate use often led to unnecessary suffering and prolonged recovery time among populations emotionally traumatised by conflict.

Dr Lacoux believes it is possible to introduce pain management regimens run by local staff in emergencies in developing countries, but there …