The role of rehabilitation medicine in the management of chronic pain: description of a pain control program and longitudinal outcomes

Longitudinal outcomes of 35 patients with chronic benign pain were studied following their participation in a 3-week multidisciplinary pain management program. Pretreatment status with respect to activity levels, health care utilization, medication use, and subjective pain intensity was compared statistically with post-treatment status at three follow-up assessments (discharge, 1.6 months, and 22.7 months post-discharge). Results suggest a positive impact of treatment on activity levels, health care utilization, and medication use post-discharge, with diminution of that impact over time. Pain management programs increasingly will need to demonstrate cost effectiveness, including finding ways to maximize program gains over time.