ATI Skills Module 2.0 (Pain Management)

Question 1

Acute Pain

Answer 1

transient discomfort or physical distress signaling actual or potential tissue damage and characterized by an identifiable cause, a short duration, resolution with healing, and few long-term emotional consequences

Question 2

Addiction

Answer 2

referring to drug addiction: a dependence phenomenon characterized by impaired control over drug use, compulsive use, continued use despite harm, and craving

Question 3

Adjuvant Analgesia

Answer 3

a drug primarily used to treat something other than pain but also enhances pain relief

Question 4

Alternative Therapies

Answer 4

treatment approaches, used to replace conventional medical treatments, which are not currently considered part of conventional Western medicine

Question 5

Analgesia

Answer 5

absence of sensitivity to pain

Question 6

Analgesic

Answer 6

substance used as a pain reliever; a drug that acts to reduce pain, including over-the-counter drugs such as aspirin as well as those available by prescription only

Question 7

Analgesic Ceiling

Answer 7

the dose of a particular drug beyond which additional amounts of the same drug do not increase the analgesic effect

Question 8

Breakthrough Pain

Answer 8

a flaring of moderate to severe pain despite therapeutic doses of analgesics

Question 9

Chronic Pain

Answer 9

a feeling of physical distress or discomfort that persists over a long period of time and does not always have an identifiable cause

Question 10

Complimentary Therapies

Answer 10

treatment approaches used to complement conventional medical treatments

Question 11

Dermatome

Answer 11

area of skin supplied with afferent nerve fibers from a single posterior spinal root

Question 12

Efficacy

Answer 12

the ability of a drug to achieve its desired effect

Question 13

Epidermal Anesthesia

Answer 13

medication injected via a catheter into the space between the dura mater and the lining of the spinal canal to create a regional nerve block; also called spinal anesthesia

Question 14

Nociceptor

Answer 14

a peripheral sensory receptor for pain, stimulated by various types of tissue injury

Question 15

Narcotic

Answer 15

an outdated umbrella term that has been used to refer to opioids, controlled substances, illicit drugs, central nervous system depressants, strong analgesics, and drugs capable of causing physical dependence; opioid is the preferred term for the family of potent pharmacologic analgesics commonly referred to as narcotics

Question 16

Neuropathic Pain

Answer 16

a type of pain usually felt as burning or tingling and resulting from direct stimulation of nerve tissue of the peripheral or central nervous system

Question 17

Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug (NSAID)

Answer 17

any of a group of drugs that reduce pain, fever, and swelling (inflammation), including aspirin

Question 18

Opioid

Answer 18

one of a group of analgesics that act on higher centers of the brain and spinal cord to modify perceptions of moderate to severe pain

Question 19

Pain Scale

Answer 19

assessment tool used to rate the severity of pain

Question 20

Pain Threshold

Answer 20

the point at which a person feels pain

Question 21

Pain Tolerance

Answer 21

the level of pain a person is willing to endure

Question 22

Paresthesia

Answer 22

an abnormal burning, prickling, tingling, or numbing sensation or hypersensitivity most often felt in the extremities and typically associated with neuropathic pain

Question 23

Patient-Controlled Analgesia (PCA)

Answer 23

a drug delivery system that uses a computerized pump with a button the patient can press to deliver a dose of an analgesic through an intravenous catheter

Question 24

Physical Dependence

Answer 24

an adaptive state characterized by a drug class-specific withdrawal syndrome induced with abrupt cessation, rapid dose reduction, or administration of an antagonist

Question 25

Placebo

Answer 25

a pharmacologically inert substance, such as a sugar pill or an injection of sterile water, given with the implication of effective treatment

Question 26

Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Answer 26

a systematic, stepwise approach to releasing tension in major muscle groups

Question 27

Somatic Pain

Answer 27

generally well-localized pain that results from activation of peripheral pain receptors without injury to the peripheral nerve or central nervous system, such as musculoskeletal pain

Question 28

Spinal Anesthesia

Answer 28

medication injected via a catheter into the space between the dura mater and the lining of the spinal canal to create a regional nerve block; also called epidural anesthesia

Question 29

Titration

Answer 29

the process of gradually adjusting the dose of a medication until the desired effect is achieved

Question 30

Tolerance

Answer 30

an adaptive state characterized by a decreasing response to repeated constant doses of a drug or the need for increasing doses to maintain a constant response

Question 31

Transmission

Answer 31

spreading of the pain “message” across the various nerve fibers linking the pain impulse to the brain

Question 32

Visceral Pain

Answer 32

pain that results from activating the pain receptors of organs in the thoracic, pelvic, or abdominal cavities and is felt as a generalized aching or cramping sensation sometimes referred to the surface of the body

Question 33

Visual Analog Scale

Answer 33

a pain rating scale using a straight line; the left end of the line represents no pain, the right end represents the worst pain, and patients mark the place on the line that best represents the severity of their pain

Question 34

Wong-Baker FACES scale

Answer 34

a pain assessment tool that asks patients (often children) to select one of several faces indicating expressions that convey a range from no pain through the worst pain

Question 35

World Health Organization (WHO)

Answer 35

the specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with health on an international level, functioning as a directing and coordinating authority on international health, and has developed a three-step pain “ladder” for cancer pain relief