Pain management health centre

Medications, mind-body techniques and acupuncture can help relieve chronic pain. Learn about your options.

Pain medicine doctors are experts at diagnosing the cause of pain and treating it. Click here to learn more about pain specialists.

How much does it hurt on a scale of one to ten?  Read more about the pain rating scale and why doctors use it.

Anaesthesia is a method of controlling pain during medical procedures. Learn more.

Older people suffer from more pain, but are often not adequately treated. Find out more.

Palliative care involves improving the quality of life for those who are suffering from severe chronic illnesses such as cancer and heart failure, or who may be dying. Pain relief is one of the main components of palliative care.

Do you need to see your GP or just pop to a pharmacy for painkillers? Here’s a brief guide.

Find out which painkillers are the best options for your pain.

Learn about injections used to treat painful muscle “knots” called trigger points.

Corticosteroid injections may be recommended for a variety of painful conditions, including sports injuries, joint pain and osteoarthritis pain.

When a local anaesthetic is injected, it causes a nerve block – which prevents the pain sensation from getting through. Learn more about nerve blocks and how they’re used.

These systems help people with cancer or chronic pain. Read this brief introduction.

PCA pumps put the patient with severe chronic pain in control of their pain relief.

Learn about risks vs. benefits of narcotics (opioids) used to treat severe pain.

Learn more about addiction to pain medication – and signs of addiction.

Learn more about treatment options for neuropathic pain.

Ibuprofen can cause a number of side effects. Learn more.

Could acupuncture, yoga, hypnosis, massage or other complementary or alternative therapies be the key to pain relief?

If you need short-term pain relief, a TENS machine might help. Learn how TENS can scramble your brain’s perception of pain and give relief.

This is a safe alternative to pain medication. Learn how bioelectric therapy can block pain messages to the brain.

Cupping therapy is an ancient form of alternative medicine in which suction is applied locally to the skin.

Can some foods help with pain? get the facts.

A complication of shingles is the painful after-effect known as postherpetic neuralgia.  This condition occurs only in some people who have had shingles, and may continue long after the rash has disappeared.

If you have painful compression fractures in the spine, both surgical and nonsurgical treatments are explored.

It’s important to start cancer pain treatment as early as possible to get the most benefit.

Get the answers to the most frequently asked questions about treating cervical disc disease

Medicines that can help treat neck pain and cervical disc disease.

Read more about treatment options for fibromyalgia.

Some medicines can't help with fibromyalgia pain. Find out more. 

Read more about prescription medications and treatments for nerve pain.

Pain management is often part of palliative care, also called end of life care.