As Singapore's population continues to age, chronic pain could place a strain on the country's healthcare system. Pain specialist Dr Bernard Lee looks at how Singapore can bridge gaps in this area.
, limiting their mobility, impeding their daily activities, and eroding their quality of life. It can also have economic implications.showed that 81 per cent had between one and three headache days a month, while the remaining 19 per cent had four to 14 such days a month.
Treatments using radiofrequency, radiofrequency ablation or platelet rich plasma therapy, for example, breaks down scar tissue, inhibits the nerves from transmitting pain signals, and encourages healing at the site of the pain respectively. Emerging therapies such as nucleoplasty, neuroplasty or epidurolysis are used to treat pain in the legs and back.
Instead of relying on painkillers, a multidisciplinary approach is fast becoming the standard of care in chronic pain management in countries such as Australia. This is unlike in Singapore, where GPs tend to refer patients to a specialist if they unable to treat the condition, depending on where the pain is situated. For example, the patient is likely to be referred to an orthopaedic surgeon if the pain is located in the knee, or a neurologist if he is experiencing frequent and intense headaches.
The more GPs who are trained in pain management, the more options patients would have to manage their condition, and the higher likelihood they would be treated with minimally-invasive therapies and recover more quickly with less downtime.
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