Ten years studying pain

rose marquez

Pain is defined as an "unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential injury." However, while acute pain is something physiological that everyone experiences at some point, chronic pain is a disease that affects the quality of life of the patients who suffer from it and the people around them. It is estimated that in Spain, 19% of the population suffers from this pathology. Despite its high impact, access to specialized resources is still limited and the training of health professionals in this area is insufficient. To try to alleviate these deficiencies, the Rey Juan Carlos University has spent a decade dedicating one of its summer courses to this disease. In this year's edition, the problem is addressed in an interdisciplinary way, from areas as diverse as psychology, physiotherapy, pharmacology or sport.

Sergio Maldonado, director of the Pain Unit of the Marqués de Valdecilla Hospital, has been in charge of the inaugural conference. As an anesthesiologist, he accumulates extensive experience in this field, but he also has a personal history that has made him experience pain from both sides: as a physician and as a patient. In 2020, after a 20-hour shift in the midst of a pandemic, a car hit him when he was returning to his home from the hospital on a motorcycle. That accident left him in a wheelchair and caused several heart problems for which he was on the brink of death. "I went through the operating room 17 times, I had to be naked because I couldn't even bear the rubbing of the sheets, even so, physical pain can be controlled with painkillers, but no one can take away suffering." Far from giving up, Maldonado decided to use his own experience to help other patients: “Sometimes we doctors are good technicians, but we forget about the emotional part. Medicine must be humanized”.

As Maldonado recalled during his presentation, pain is the main reason for going to a primary care clinic in Spain, although it does not always have a physical component: "The first cause is headache, the second is low back pain, and the third is anxiety". COVID has only aggravated the situation. “Having remained locked up at home has increased the demand for assistance in pain units by 33%. The most affected have been the elderly, because they could not move, but also children and adolescents from 10 to 16 years old. Being locked up at home for so long caused them to break their connection with their friends, at an age when contact is basic.

Along with presentations by experts and researchers, the course will feature the participation of the photographer Eugenio Recuenca, author of the exhibition 'El dolor que no ves' and patient, at various times in his life, of herpes zoster infection. The latest advances in technology, such as artificial intelligence, electronic skin or the metaverse, and their medical applications, will also be analyzed during the course, which will be completed with a listening and vocal technique workshop. “The sessions are designed to be as participatory as possible. Summer courses are for learning, but also for enjoying”, recalls Carlos Goicoechea, professor of Pharmacology at the URJC and co-director of the course, along with Professor Francisco Gómez Esquer.

'Pain in 5 steps' is taught from July 3 to 7 on the Alcorcón campus and is intended for both health sciences students and professionals from all health areas, although anyone with concerns about the subject you are invited to participate. The course is free and is recognized with 1,75 ECTS credits.