Internet review

Citation

(2012), "Internet review", Health Education, Vol. 112 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/he.2012.142112caa.002

Internet review

Article Type: Internet review From: Health Education, Volume 112, Issue 3

Pain

If you Google “pain” you will get over 1 billion hits and it has been estimated that there are over 12,000 web sites dealing specifically with pain. Pain is one of the most common reasons that people seek help from their doctor. Many medical conditions are first noticed because of the pain that results from that condition. Symptoms of pain are not just unpleasant they can have a seriously debilitating impact on quality of life. Pain usually results from an injury that results in tissue damage and the cause and treatment are obvious and straightforward. But pain can also be felt when there is no obvious cause, for example in the case of phantom limb pain. Pain can be alleviated using pharmaceutical means, but in some circumstances it can also be controlled through psychological means including hypnosis, distraction, and even simple social support. The Internet may never be an analgesic but as an information provider it may have a role to play in helping people understand and manage their pain and this is the subject of this review.

Pain-Speak: www.pain-speak.com/

Pain-speak describes itself as “an awareness campaign”, developed and funded by four companies from the pharmaceutical industry. The focus of the web site is what is known as breakthrough cancer pain though it does provide information more generally on the pain associated with cancer. Starting with an overview of cancer related pain the information is quite limited, simply explaining that not all people do experience pain through cancer but for those that do it can have a manifestly debilitating effect on their lives. The next section deals with background pain which is described as persistent pain that is commonly associated with cancer and may be the result of either the disease itself or the treatment being provided. Background pain is experienced by approximately 5 million people in the UK. Associated with this part of the web site is a section explaining pain symptoms. This is a very useful section for users who want to understand more fully the nature of their pain, or perhaps just need help in explaining the experience of their pain to friends, relatives or healthcare professionals.

Breakthrough cancer pain is the main focus of this web site and this is described as an intense flare up of cancer pain, over and above the controlled background pain. Although, as the web site explains, the reasons for breakthrough pain are not fully understood, several triggers have been identified and these are detailed in the web site. One of the difficulties experienced by sufferers with cancer pain is in explaining to their health professionals their experience of breakthrough cancer pain. To this end the web site provides a useful checklist that can be used to help patients describe their pain to health professionals or indeed to any other people they feel they need understand the nature of the pain they are experiencing.

The section on Cancer Pain Treatment will probably be the most useful for many users of this web site. Even though the web site is sponsored by sections of the pharmaceutical industry, the information provided is holistic and gives users a good overview of the range of treatment possibilities, including, relaxation, exercise and massage. Coupled with this there is a Top Tips section that advises on how sufferers might best communicate their feelings and experiences of pain to others. Among others, the tips include keeping a pain diary to aid recall when explaining to health professionals what might have triggered a pain episode. Another tip is to make a list of questions to ask healthcare professionals before the next appointment. Unfortunately users will not find any tips for controlling their pain but perhaps that is expecting too much from a web site. This is not a web site for academics, nor even health professionals, so the number of references listed is limited. However for lay users there is a glossary of terms and a links page that can provide additional information if required. Pain-speak could not be described as a sophisticated web site but it does provide a lot of useful information for people who are experiencing the pain associated with cancer.

www.britishpainsociety.org/

The British Pain Society is the largest multidisciplinary professional organisation in the field of pain in the UK, and its role is to provide extensive information about pain for both patients and healthcare professionals. Whereas Pain-Speak is very much aimed at the lay user, the content of the web site of the British Pain Society has been designed primarily for the health professionals, though there is a small section specifically for patients.

For pain professionals the content of this web site is extensive and includes a wide range of publications, journal articles, pain scales and consultation documents, all freely available for download. Similarly patients have access to a range of leaflets and booklets, some of which are free, others have to be paid for. There is also an excellent reading list though the books will have to be ordered elsewhere, for example Amazon, as this web site does not include an online store. Patients can also find details of pain management programmes and pain clinics as well as a Frequently Asked Questions section, which while not extensive, does cover most of the questions users might be expected to ask.

As might be expected of a large organisation like the British Pain Society, this web is well designed, and has extensive content that is well presented. However it should be added that this content is aimed more at professionals than lay users and although patents will find useful information here there are perhaps other web sites that might be considered more patient friendly.

Pain: www.pain.com

URL’s, i.e. web site addresses can be worth a lot of money, for example sex.com is said to be worth millions of dollars. It is therefore rather surprising to find that pain.com, has not been snapped up by one of the multinational pharmaceutical companies, but rather it is owned by a small alternative medicine company based in San Antonio in North America. The alternative treatments included in this web site include acupuncture, chiropractic and massage therapy, as might be expected, but also art therapy and structural wellness. There is also information on health and nutrition as it applies to pain and its management.

The information that is provided through this web site is organised in terms of articles housed in an archive that can be found under the Library link. This is fine up to a point but what is missing from this web site is the basic information that users might expect, e.g. descriptions of different types of pain, appropriate alternative treatments for pain and so on. This information may well be in the Library, but the search engine provided is not very good at finding it.

The articles in the Library are interesting and relevant, particularly if you believe in the benefits of alternative medicine in the treatment of pain. For example a recent article looked at whether texting could lead to shoulder pain. Unfortunately it is not clear who has written this article, presumably it is the web site editor, though, to be fair, it does include a number of links to references on which the article was based. Most of the other articles also appear to be anonymous but overall the content is sound.

The only concession to conventional treatments for pain found in this web site is via the link to Pain Clinics. This link provides access to a search engine that theoretically can find the user a pain clinic that is convenient to their location. This works fine if that location happens to be a major city in the USA. Although it is possible to enter details for any city worldwide, the search engine probably will not return any results!

This web site is an interesting alternative to conventional sites dealing with pain but it needs more and better content if it is to be useful, the articles in the Library are simply not enough.

Chronic Pain Australia: www.chronicpainaustralia.org.au/

This organisation has been created and maintained entirely by volunteers. It has as its mission statement “To reduce the unnecessary suffering and isolation caused by chronic pain in the Australian community”. As well as maintaining the web site the organisation produces an e-newsletter, develops educational resources, holds awareness raising events, and provides advocacy through national campaigns. It is recognised as a Health Promotion Charity by the authorities in New South Wales, Australia, though it is keen to point out that it receives no government funding.

Internet resources available through this web site include fact sheets dealing with different types of pain, how to manage pain, the immune system and the impact of pain on relationships. Recognising that chronic pain can have an impact on a person’s financial wellbeing, as well as their physical wellbeing, there is even a fact sheet on taxation and how to claim for medical expenses that might be incurred as a result of the pain experienced and treatment required. The fact sheet on Distraction and Attention looked interesting but it must be said the small font size leaves a lot to be desired and may be off-putting for some people.

In the Resources section a number of case studies can be found in which people share their experiences of pain. These case studies deal with pain in a variety of contexts for example following a traffic accident, migraine, and there is a very moving account of the chronic pain suffered by a young person. A particularly valuable aspect of the Resources section is the Self Managing Pain section. Here users can download a series of booklets in pdf format dealing with a variety of pain management topics including Relationships, Fatigue, and Sexuality. These are all freely available and represent a really good resource for users of this site.

For an organisation that has no obvious sources of funding, apart from voluntary donations, this web site is remarkably free from advertisements. There is only one and that is for Chronica, an App that can be purchased from iTunes and provides users with an online pain diary that can be used to help manage their pain.

Chronic Pain Australia is an excellent web site with a range of useful resources. It is based in Australia so not all the information provided will be relevant to users in other parts of the world, but much of what is available will be of interest to pain sufferers worldwide.