Quit Smoking To Treat Your Pain
A new study presented at the 2013 meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons demonstrates that smoking cessation results in improvements in pain in patients with spinal disorders.
The study was done following patients undergoing treatment for spinal disorders and reporting severe pain. Mean treatment duration was eight months. The researchers found that patients who smoked and quit demonstrated greater improvement in pain than those who continued to smoke. Current smokers had more severe pain than patients who never smoked and had significantly less pain improvement over the course of treatment . Researchers found that trend to be independent of age.
These results corroborate previously published studies showing smoking as a predictor for pain conditions (Am J Med 2010;123:87.e7-35; and Eur J Epidemiol 2001;17:643-651) and linked to poor outcome after spinal surgical procedures (Spine 2000; 25:2608-2615). Not surprisingly, smoking has also been found to be detrimental to stem cells (Biomed Mater Eng 2012; 229(1-3):81-87).
So…If you suffer from chronic pain, and you are a smoker, the first thing you can do to start treating your pain is to quit!
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