Drugs, driving and traffic safety in acute and chronic pain

Abstract

Pain is a common reason for seeking health care and the economical burden of pain to society is high. Careful estimates state that 20% of the population has chronic pain, defined as pain which persists for a longer period, usually taken to be 3 or more months. Chronic pain severely disrupts various aspects of daily life. Unemployment, disability, and relational problems are frequently encountered among individuals with chronic pain. Chronic pain may have negative effects on driving ability. Effective treatment of pain is thus important, both in terms of improved quality of life of the patient and traffic safety. Several classes of pharmacological agents are being used to treat pain. Unfortunately with the currently available treatment options, pain is often not completely relieved. Furthermore, many of the pharmacological agents have side effects that may affect driving in its turn. This chapter provides an overview of the recent insights on the effects of pain and its treatment with pharmacological agents on driving ability and traffic safety. © 2009 Birkhéuser Verlag/Switzerland.