Date Available

6-18-2014

Year of Publication

2014

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Committee Chair

Dr. Patricia B. Howard

Clinical Mentor

Dr. Jay S. Grider

Committee Member

Dr. Debra Hampton

Abstract

In the United States, 74.6% of patients who have lumbar laminectomy surgery have residual low back pain (Hussain & Erdek, 2014) and overall costs of low back pain may reach up to $200 billion per year (Carey & Frebuger 2013). To further address this problem, a study was conducted to determine if treatment in a chronic pain clinic could result in a reduction in the development of a chronic pain state for adult patients who have had lumbar laminectomy surgeries. A convenience sample of 50 patients was selected from the Interventional Pain Associates clinic at the University of Kentucky. Records were collected from electronic patient charts. A self-administered questionnaire was used to determine several variables including amount of time it took for patients to be seen in a pain clinic after a lumbar laminectomy surgery, type of treatment received for pain and whether they had been offered pain treatment at discharge from surgery. Demographic data were collected to determine age, sex, smoking status and history of anxiety and/or depression. Findings indicated that most of the subjects were treated for pain post-operatively either by the surgeon who had performed the laminectomy or by a primary care provider. Results also indicated that only 38% of the participants were offered any form of pain treatment after surgery while 90% said they would have accepted a referral to a pain clinic. There was a correlation between the amount of time it took to be seen in a pain clinic and the level of improvement in pain. Changes in pain measurement scores indicated that the earlier the subjects were seen in the pain clinic the lower their pain scores were. To better understand these relationships, additional research with larger sample sizes at various treatment locations is warranted.

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