Throughout the ages, pain is closely intertwined with magic, superstition and religion. Even early physicians believed that to be in pain is to be human, and pain was part of the natural experience that one must endure. As centuries passed, there was a gradual evolution regarding our understanding and approach to pain and its management. Today, modern intervention is capable of relieving more than 90 percent of human pain. Unfortunately, antiquated thoughts and ideas still linger such that only 50 percent of pain receives adequate treatment.
Doctors often find chronic pain a disappointing and frustrating problem to deal with.
Indifference, paranoia regarding drug misuse and malingering, patient avoidance, and direct refusal to treat this malady are not uncommon. We are successful in the first but still a dismal failure in the second. The recognition that we are not successful in relieving pain leads to the evolution of the algologist, a specialist primarily dealing with the management of pain. Presently, fellowship programs are available for pain management that involve primary specialties such as Anesthesiology, Neurology, Psychiatry, Rehabilitation Medicine, and others. There are now efforts by medical educators and the specialty board to create a separate residency program that deals primarily with pain medicine.