Back Pain Definitions
| Acute pain: | severe pain that has a sudden onset, but lasts a short time |
| Addiction: | a psychological or physical dependence on a medicine |
| Analgesic: | medicine used to relieve pain |
| Adjuvant medicine: | medicine that has another primary purpose but may in some cases relieve pain |
| Breakthrough pain: | pain that occurs although the patient is being medicated |
| Chronic pain: | pain that is constant and lasts a long time |
| Deep brain stimulation: | a pain control method using electrodes implanted in the brain and controlled by the patient |
| Epidural medication: | medicine that is injected into the spinal column |
| Immediate-release medication: | medication that takes effect in a short period of time |
| Infusion: | a method of administering medication into a vein |
| Intramuscular (IM) injection: | injection of medication into a muscle |
| Intrathecal (IT) injection: | injection of medication into the sheath around the spinal cord |
| Intravenous (IV) injection: | injection of medication into a vein |
| Long-acting or sustained released medicines: | medicines that act for long periods of time and are taken on a regular basis |
| Narcotic: | medicine that produces pain relief by depressing the central nervous system (see opioid) |
| Neuropathic pain: | pain, usually arising from nerve damage, that is burning, shooting or numbing |
| Patient-controlled analgesis (PCA): | a method of pain control in which the patient controls the amount and timing of the release of the medication by pressing a button on a computerized pump that releases a preset amount of the medication into the patient’s body |
| Phantom pain: |
pain felt in a part of the body that is no longer there |
| Nerve block: | injection of medicine directly into the nerve or spine for pain control |
| Non-opioids: |
medicine that does not contain an opioid. Examples include acetaminophen and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin and ibuprofen. Many of these medicines are available over-the-counter and do not require a prescription. |
| Opioids: |
medicine that requires a prescription and provides strong pain relief. Examples include morphine, hydromorphone, oxycodone and codeine. |
| Radiofrequency lesioning: | a catheter is inserted through an incision and uses radiowaves to destroy affected nerves |
| Rescue medicines: |
medicine used to control breakthrough pain |
| Somatic pain: | pain, usually arising from the body wall or voluntary muscles in the legs or arms, that feels achy, throbbing and well localized in one spot |
| Subcutaneous injection (SQ): | injection of medicine just under the skin |
| Titrate: | to adjust the dose of medicine needed to control pain |
| Tolerance: | adjustment of the body to medication so that more medication or another type of medication is needed to control pain |
| Vertebroplasty: | cement is injected into the vertebrae to ease pain |
| Visceral pain: |
pain, usually arising from the internal organs, that feels like squeezing, cramping or pressure |
