Often times misdiagnosed, patients with CRPS have typically seen
three to four specialists before they end up at the Chronic Pain
Management Clinic at Children's, a multidisciplinary program which
provides treatment and support for acute and chronic pain problems in
children and young adults.
"Many children and adolescents afflicted with CRPS improve with
standard outpatient care, but a slight percentage may require intensive
daily treatment to get well," said Charles Berde, MD, PhD, Chief of
Pain Medicine at Children's Hospital, and Executive Director of the
PPRC. "This new center will provide an intensive daily program that has
proven successful in relief of debilitating extreme pain. With the
treatment received at PPRC, patients can expect to resume normal
function and will regain the physical strength and endurance necessary
to enjoy life again."
Berde, together with Navil Sethna, MB, ChB, and Bruce Masek, PhD,
started the Chronic Pain Management Clinic at Children's in 1986 and
have treated more than 750 children suffering from CRPSâ€"both
inpatient and outpatient. Today, with the increased number of patients
experiencing chronic pain, specifically CRPS, the need for a
specialized clinic became highly evident and Dr. Berde, along with his
colleagues, has worked tirelessly to provide patients with the expert
care required to ease their pain.
The treatment for CRPS is intensive and requires six weeks of day hospitalization; however, the innovative program at Waltham
is designed to save thousands of dollars in overnight stays and
unneeded tests. Upon evaluation via telephone and onsite at the
outpatient clinic, and after exhausting all other treatment options,
eligible CRPS patients from around the country are expected to benefit
from the comprehensive day program.
The 2,500-square-foot PPRC is located on the ground floor of the
Waltham campus and includes two bio-behavioral therapy rooms, two
private physical therapy rooms, a physician consult room, a functional
training area and a therapeutic pool with shower and changing area. In
addition to those treatment-focused areas, the PPRC is also equipped
with a conference room, an activity room for participants, two handicap
accessible bathrooms and an administrative front office.
The PPRC team is made up of a number of talented anesthesiologists,
neurologists, psychologists, physical therapists, occupational
therapists and child life specialists â€" all critical to the care of
PPRC patients.
CRPS usually develops in an injured limb, such as a broken leg.
However, many cases of CRPS involve only a minor injury, such as a
sprain, and in some cases, no precipitating event can be identified.
Tell-tale symptoms of CRPS include continuing pain, extreme sensitivity
to touch, evidence of swelling, changes in skin blood flow (skin color
changes, skin temperature changes) or abnormal sweating in the region
of the pain.
Many modalities may be used for treatment, including medication,
physical movement therapies, cognitive behavioral therapies, and
sometimes sympathectomy or
spinal cord stimulators or pumps. Additionally, physical movement and
weight-bearing are critical factors in CRPS rehab, not only to keep
limbs from atrophy, but also because it is thought that exercise helps
to quiet the small nerve fibers on a molecular level.
Beginning May 19th, the Mayo Family Pediatric Pain Rehabilitation Center will be open Monday through Friday, 8am to 4:30pm. For additional information and details on how to enroll in the program, please visit http://www.childrenshospital.org/pprc.
Children's Hospital Boston is home to the world's
largest research enterprise based at a pediatric medical center, where
its discoveries have benefited both children and adults since 1869.
More than 500 scientists, including eight members of the National Academy of Sciences,
11 members of the Institute of Medicine and 12 members of the Howard
Hughes Medical Institute comprise Children's research community.
Founded as a 20-bed hospital for children, Children's Hospital Boston
today is a 397-bed comprehensive center for pediatric and adolescent
health care grounded in the values of excellence in patient care and
sensitivity to the complex needs and diversity of children and
families. Children's also is the primary pediatric teaching affiliate
of Harvard Medical School. For more information about the hospital and
its research visit: www.childrenshospital.org/newsroom.
