|Publication Type||Book Chapter|
|Year of Publication||2012|
|Book Title||Multiple Sclerosis Rehabilitation: From Impairment to Participation|
|City||Boca Raton, FL|
Compared to the more visible symptoms related to the physically disabling nature of multiple sclerosis (MS), pain is one of the more hidden effects of the disease. This relative invisibility may have contributed to the lack of scientific attention to MS-related pain until the late 1990s, when researchers began to take a more serious look at the prevalence and impact of pain. Pain is now known to be a common problem for individuals with MS and has a widespread impact on the lives of many of those with MS. With the increased attention to the seriousness of pain in MS, there has been a corresponding increase on our understanding of the assessment and treatment of pain for individuals with MS. This chapter provides a general overview of the current state of knowledge about the prevalence, characteristics, impact, etiology, assessment, and treatment of chronic pain in MS. This chapter focuses on chronic pain, that is, pain that persists or is recurrent for 6 months or more. Although individuals with MS can also experience acute pain, chronic pain is more commonly the focus of rehabilitation interventions and, thus, the focus of this chapter.