[Health Lecture] If it hurts, just speak out loud!

In order to ensure the popularization effect of learning health knowledge in the 3rd China Elderly Health Knowledge Competition, the organizers have collected various health science articles suitable for elderly people to learn from various hospitals. We will share them through the "Health Lecture Hall" column. Today, Wang Jie and Chen Xiaobing from the Second Affiliated Hospital of Qiqihar Medical College brought relevant popular science articles about pain, and elderly friends are welcome to learn.

Medically, the pain that humans can feel is divided into 12 levels. The higher the level, the more severe the pain. Level 1 is unnoticeable pain, such as mosquito bites, level 2 is just a feeling of pain, such as surgery after anesthesia... and level 12 is the most severe pain, such as the pain of a mother giving birth. Due to the many damages caused by pain to people, the World Health Organization lists pain as the fifth vital sign after blood pressure, respiration, pulse, and body temperature.

Since 2004, October 11th of each year has been designated as "World Pain Relief Day". Population aging is an irreversible basic national condition in China in the 21st century, and the elderly are more likely to suffer from pain. Elderly patients have many misunderstandings about pain. Let's see what the "mine removal expert" - the Elderly Health Promotion Officer has to say~

The first minefield: Pain is not a disease, just endure it if you can

Pain is not something you can endure just because you want to.

Do you remember how old you were when you felt pain? What was that experience like? I believe everyone still remembers it clearly. Pain is a subjective feeling. It is a protective signal when human tissues and organs are damaged. It can help us avoid danger. Some elderly patients with chronic pain do not take it seriously. They endure it if they can. "A little intolerance will ruin a big plan." This concept is totally wrong. Tolerance is a very unwise choice. Little do people know that pain has a dual damage to the body and mind, inducing organ dysfunction, and various complications will ensue. If you endure a minor illness until it becomes a major illness, not only will the quality of life be reduced, but the life span will also be greatly reduced.

The second minefield: No matter what, stop the pain first

Without pain assessment, there is no treatment plan

Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes "treating both the symptoms and the root cause". No matter what, relieving pain first is only treating the symptoms and not the root cause. As the old saying goes, "treat the head when you have a headache and the foot when you have a foot pain", it is just simply controlling the pain symptoms. The cause is not the location of the pain, so blindly controlling the symptoms may cover up the condition, thus delaying the diagnosis and missing the best treatment time and method, especially abdominal pain, such as appendicitis, which will lead to appendix necrosis and perforation. Therefore, antipyretic, analgesic and anti-inflammatory drugs are usually used for pain relief. The course of treatment should not exceed 5 days.

The above two minefields are: one is insufficient treatment and refusal to use painkillers; the other is overtreatment and abuse of painkillers. Common painkillers include non-steroidal antipyretic analgesic and anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) + narcotic analgesics (morphine) + auxiliary analgesics. Due to different types of pain, the choice of painkillers should also be "different for each person and for each disease".

How to relieve pain scientifically? Follow the senior health promotion officer and you will find health everywhere.

Analgin was once a nationally popular "magic antipyretic drug" that I grew up with. Of course, it also has analgesic effects. In addition, painkillers can also effectively treat pain. It is a common medicine in the first aid cabinet of elderly people at home. It is cheap and easy to use. When you encounter headaches, toothaches, joint pains, and muscle pains, no matter what, just take a painkiller first. As the old saying goes, "Toothache is not a disease, but it can be fatal." This pain experience is unique. The adverse reactions of Analgin are terrible, among which the incidence of granulocytopenia is not low - "one in a hundred" (1%). Severe adverse reactions can be fatal. It has been banned or restricted in more than 30 countries. my country has not explicitly banned it. A warm reminder not to use it if you can. When you must use it, avoid excessive single doses, excessive use of the drug for too long, and other unreasonable uses.

★ Unauthorized increase of dosage

After taking painkillers, they feel that the effect is not good. Many elderly people do not take the medicine according to the doctor's instructions and the drug instructions, but increase the dosage without authorization. As the saying goes, "water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it", it is bound to cause serious consequences. You should know that ineffectiveness may be due to the fact that the medicine is not suitable for the disease at all. Even if you increase the dosage, it will not help. It will only increase the risk of medication. It may also be that the dosage is not enough. However, you should also increase the dosage under the guidance of professional doctors and pharmacists.

★ Use with medicinal wine

Some elderly people have the habit of drinking. They drink alcohol after taking painkillers. Others take painkillers to relieve headaches after drinking. But you should know that painkillers and alcohol can damage the gastric mucosa. Taking them together may cause gastric ulcers, bleeding, or even perforation. This is especially true for elderly people with weak gastrointestinal function. It will undoubtedly make things worse. Don't make a mistake and regret it for the rest of your life!

★ Repeated medication

When a non-steroidal antipyretic, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory drug (NSAIDS) is added with another NSAID, it is believed that 1+1>2 and the effects are additive. This is tantamount to increasing the dosage of the drug. Not only will the efficacy not increase, but the adverse reactions will accumulate. The elderly often have multiple diseases and multiple medication is common. For the elderly with combined organ dysfunction and multiple comorbidities and complications, repeated medication should be avoided because it is harmful.

WHO has clearly stated that "acute pain is a symptom, chronic pain is a disease". Cancer patients or patients with moderate to severe chronic pain often see patients in the ward in excruciating pain, excruciating pain, and heartbroken. At this time, painkillers are not "poison" and should not be "scared of". They are good medicine to improve the quality of life and maintain the dignity of life. Although painkillers are not omnipotent, we cannot live without them. Learn health knowledge and be a healthy elderly. If you feel pain, speak out loudly. I hope everyone will have a good care and support in old age, and there will be no disease in the world and no pain in the world!

About the first author:

Wang Jie, clinical pharmacist of endocrinology at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Qiqihar Medical College; Chen Xiaobing, clinical pharmacist of oncology at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Qiqihar Medical College.

Wang Jie's main work content includes prescription comments, clinical rounds, pharmacy rounds, medication education, drug reorganization, drug consultation and other work. She loves her job and assists clinicians in developing safe, effective, economical and appropriate drug treatment plans for patients. She popularizes knowledge about new drugs, communicates with patients to understand their medication needs, promptly identifies clinical patients' medication risks, discovers problems related to drug treatment, guides patients to take the required medications correctly, helps organize precautions for the use of the medications they are taking, educates patients on the combination of lifestyle guidance and drug treatment, and enthusiastically answers patients' drug consultation questions to ensure patients' rational and safe use of medications!