Chronic Pain and Medical Cannabis View Digital Media

Focused Discussion
Bindu Pillai  

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, pain is defined as “a localized or generalized unpleasant bodily sensation or complex of sensations that causes mild to severe physical discomfort and emotional distress and typically occurs from bodily disorder.” Chronic pain is pain that lasts for more than 3 to 6 months. According to the CDC, in America 1 in 5 people suffer from chronic pain. This number is the same globally. Each year, 1in 10 people are newly diagnosed with chronic pain. The most common cause of morbidity globally is chronic pain and it affects about 30% of the population. Pain is a subjective symptom and treating pain or chronic pain is very difficult as there is no one medicine that can treat the different types of pain. Pain management is important in improving a patient’s quality of life even if it has some reduction of the pain intensity. The cost of medical care and disability from chronic pain is estimated to be $560 billion.