Clinical Program Description
The Pediatric Pain Program at UCLA Medical Center is a specialized
program for the treatment of acute, chronic, and debilitating pain in
children. Often, the children treated by the Pediatric Pain Program are
considered medically complicated or difficult to treat, mainly because
pediatricians or subspecialists have been unsuccessful in their treatment
effort.
Patients successfully treated in the program initially present a variety of symptoms, including:
- headaches
- recurrent abdominal pain
- chest pain
- back pain
- fibromyalgia
- chronic fatigue syndrome
- nausea
- limb pain
- regional sympathetic dystrophy
- other physical symptoms
Treatment
Model (theoretical model)
Pain is understood by the Pediatric
Pain team to always be biological/physical in nature. Pain is also understood
to always be influenced by the thoughts, emotions, behaviors, skills,
and cognitive processing of the patient.
Each patient is treated using an integrated mind/body approach. The Pain Program staff approaches each case as a team, bringing different disciplines and techniques to bear on improving the health and functioning of the patient.
The Pediatric Pain Program is led by a medical doctor and a medical psychologist, reflecting the importance of the integration of mind and body. In addition to the disciplines of medicine and psychology, the team also integrates a variety of other healing disciplines, including:
- acupuncture
- biofeedback
- hypnotherapy
- yoga
- art therapy
- massage therapy
- movement therapy
- physical therapy