View full sizeChris Morris, The Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND, Ohio — High costs and the alarmingly high number of accidental deaths linked to prescription pain pills have made pain treatment a central issue in health care across Ohio and the nation.
A recent report by the Institute of Medicine underlined the urgency of developing better pain-management strategies in the United States,where chronic pain affects more than 116 million people and costs as much as $650 billion yearly in direct medical treatment and lost productivity.
“Pain is a major driver for visits to physicians, a major reason for taking medications, a major cause of disability, and a key factor in quality of life and productivity,” the report stated.