RT Book, Section A1 Ciccone, Charles D. A1 Bednarek, Melissa L. A1 Miller, Kenneth L. SR Print(0) ID 1188528791 T1 Opioid Analgesics T2 Pharmacology in Rehabilitation, 5e YR 2022 FD 2022 PB F. A. Davis Company PP New York, NY SN 9781719645348 LK fadavisat.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1188528791 RD 2024/12/14 AB Pain is a complex construct that is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) as “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, actual or potential tissue damage.” The current IASP definition of pain was recommended by the Subcommittee on Taxonomy and adopted by the IASP Council in 1979. This definition has become widely accepted by health care professionals and researchers in the pain field and adopted by several professional, governmental, and nongovernmental organizations, including the World Health Organization. In recent years, some in the field have reasoned that advances in our understanding of pain warrant a reevaluation of the definition and have proposed modifications. Therefore, in 2018, the IASP formed a 14-member, multinational Presidential Task Force comprising individuals with broad expertise in clinical and basic science related to pain to evaluate the current definition and accompanying note, and recommend whether they should be retained or changed. This review provides a synopsis of the critical concepts, the analysis of comments from the IASP membership and public, and the committee’s final recommendations for revisions to the definition and notes, which were discussed over a 2-year period. The task force ultimately recommended that the definition of pain be revised to “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, actual or potential tissue damage,” and that the accompanying notes be updated to a bulleted list that included the etymology. The revised definition and notes were unanimously accepted by the IASP Council early this year.1,2 Just as the definition of pain is multifaceted, so too are there multiple options for the treatment of pain. There are multiple drug classes used to treat pain including the opioid analgesics and non-opioid analgesics. Non-opioid analgesics are further divided into drug classes including salicylates (aspirin), non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (such as ibuprofen) and acetaminophen (Tylenol). Other classes are used for pain management as well, including anesthetic agents, skeletal muscle relaxants, and adjuvants (such as some antidepressants).