Taken from Pain News Network
By Alessio Ventura, Guest Columnist
“I am a chronic pain sufferer who recently had multiple emergency surgeries due to sepsis infection after a shoulder replacement.
I have had 17 surgeries since 2008, including major back surgery, rotator cuff repair, biceps tendonitis, knee surgery and hernia surgery. Bottom line: my body is now wracked with arthritis and post-surgical pain.
I have tried several pain treatment modalities over the years, including Lyrica, Cymbalta, chiropractic, injections, NSAIDs, and acupuncture. The only effective treatment in my case has been the legitimate, professional application of opioid medicine by pain management physicians.
I have severe allergic reactions to NSAIDs, which kill 15,000 per year and send 100,000 to the hospital. A friend of mine died from a stroke because of NSAIDs.
After my recent surgeries related to the shoulder replacement and subsequent infection, my wife had to travel to 25 different pharmacies before she finally found someone willing to fill my scripts for Oxycontin and Percocet.
This is not unusual though. Each month is a long trek to find pain medicine. What has happened due to government restrictions on opioids is a reduction in the supply of opioid medicine. The drug companies see the writing on the wall and are slowly trying to get out of the business.”
Remainder of article may be seen here: https://www.painnewsnetwork.org/stories/2017/3/13/it-is-time-for-chronic-pain-patients-to-act
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