Medicus, Vol. 23 No. 2. Liječenje boli, 2014.
Review article
Pain treatment in children
Diana Butković
Abstract
Differences in anatomy, physiology and psychology between children and adults make paediatric pain treatment specific. Acute and chronic pain, malignant and non-malignant chronic pain, nociceptive and neuropathic pain also occur in childhood. The intensity of pain is measured by using scales appropriate for a child’s age and cognitive development. Acute pain in children has a protective function and its assessment is easy in emergency departments, and in postoperative, invasive diagnostic and therapeutic settings. The origin of chronic paediatric pain is both malignant and non-malignant; the latter has somatic, visceral and neuropathic components, originating from tumour progression and chemo- and irradiation therapy. Malignant pain is treated in line with the WHO’s three-step model, with titration, rotation and conversion of opioids. Chronic non-malignant pain includes musculoskeletal pain, tension and migrainous headaches, and neuropathic pain of different origins. Pharmacological and non-pharmacological pain treatment in children is based on pre-emptive and multimodal principles of therapy.
Keywords
children; pain; assessment; treatment; acute; chronic; neuropathic; pre-emptive; multimodal
Hrčak ID:
127307
URI
Publication date:
24.9.2014.
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