Chronic pain common in people living with HIV
"Because HIV clinicians typically are not experts in pain management, they should work closely with others, such as pain specialists, psychiatrists and physical therapists to help alleviate their patients' pain," said Douglas Bruce, MD, MA, MS, lead author of the guidelines, chief of medicine at Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center, and associate clinical professor of medicine at Yale University, New Haven, Conn. "These comprehensive guidelines provide the tools and resources HIV specialists need to treat these often-complex patients, many of whom struggle with depression, substance use disorders, and have other health conditions such as diabetes." The guidelines recommend all people with HIV be screened for chronic pain using a few simple questions: How much bodily pain have you had during the week? Do you have bodily pain that has lasted more than three months? Those that screen positive should undergo comprehensive evaluation, including a physical exa...