Unusual patterns of spread of the mechanical symptoms of chronic back pain and their medicolegal implications
Back pain is one of the commonest reasons for a patient to visit their doctor, and it is estimated that around 80% of adults will suffer from it at least once during their lifetime. Back…
Read more The Medicolegal Implications of Placebo Use in Pain Medicine
A placebo is any medication or procedure with no known therapeutic effect. Placebos are often given for the psychological, rather than physiological, benefit of the patient and are also used as a control measure in…
Read more The Medicolegal Challenges of Brachial Plexus Injuries at Birth
The brachial plexus is formed from the connections of the spinal nerves arising from the vertebrae C5 to T1. Once they leave the arise from the spinal roots, these major nerves branch into a complex…
Categories : Articles, Plastic Surgery
Read more The Use of Neuroimaging in Pain Medicine
The phenomenon of acute pain serves two main purposes. First, it acts as a warning system to the body that the risk from harm is imminent. Second, it indicates that an injury has already occurred,…
Read more A Medicolegal Perspective on Salivary Gland Diseases
The salivary glands, which are divided into the major and minor glands, are extremely important structures. The major glands comprise the parotid, submandibular and sublingual glands. These contain acinar cells, which are chiefly responsible for…
Categories : Articles, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Read more Complex Regional Pain Syndrome in Litigation
1 Introduction 1.1 Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) remains a poorly understood phenomenon. In the realm of medical litigation, the syndrome can prove particularly challenging to substantiate. This is often due to the lack of…
Read more Prevalence of Degenerative Changes in Back and Spinal Pain and the Medicolegal Implications
Back pain is the commonest reason patients consult their GP, and it has been estimated that 60–80% of the population will experience the condition at some point during their lifetime. There is a significant socioeconomic…
Read more The Impact of COVID-19 on the Delivery of ICU Care
The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-COV-2 virus, has had an enormous impact on healthcare systems around the world. Understandably, intensive care unit (ICU) provision has seen the most significant effects and has had to…
Categories : Articles, Intensive care
Read more Reliability and Veracity in Medicolegal Pain Cases
An accurate and reliable assessment of the patient’s condition is crucial in achieving a fair outcome in medicolegal cases involving chronic pain. While assessment of acute pain is relatively straightforward, measurement of chronic pain, and…
Read more The Medicolegal Challenges of Nerve Injuries in the Upper Limb
The nervous system comprises a network of nerves and nerve cells that carry messages between the brain and spinal cord and other parts of the body through a series of chemical and electrical changes. Nerves,…
Categories : Articles, Plastic Surgery
Read more Our Expert
Dr Ivan Ramos-Galvez is a Consultant in Pain Medicine at the Royal Berkshire Hospital where he has a special interest in neuropathic pain and CRPS.
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