Pain Archive

The foods you eat (and don't) can determine how well your body fights painful inflammation.

 Image: © autumnhoverter/Getty Images

It's been said that you are what you eat, and that's definitely true when it comes to chronic pain.

"A lot of chronic pain is the result of chronic inflammation, and the evidence is quite strong that your diet can contribute to increased systemic inflammation," says Dr. Fred Tabung, a visiting researcher with the Department of Nutrition at Harvard's T.H. Chan School of Public Health. "But your diet is also one of the best ways to reduce it."

An ailing knee or a hip can make life miserable. Even if your doctor recommends it be replaced, you need to carefully weigh the risks and benefits before agreeing to this major surgery and understand that it will require significant rehabilitation to get back on your feet.

The most important factor in choosing to have a knee or hip replaced is how much it hurts and how much it is affecting your life. Here are six signals that it's time to have a knee or hip replaced:

Back pain is one of the top reasons that people begin to lose mobility in middle age. Pain can keep people from engaging in physical activity, making it more difficult for them to maintain a healthy weight and keep up their strength, stamina, and balance as they age. So treating and managing back pain that results from injuries or health problems is crucial for staying on the path of a healthy and active life.

Considering that most people spend roughly a third of their lives lying in bed, choosing the right mattress is essential for managing low back pain. It can make the difference in whether you can sleep at night and function the next day.

The first line of treatment for many knee and hip problems includes taking over-the-counter pain medications. Acetaminophen and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen and naproxen are the most common pain medication options. However, these pain medications have a variety of side effects, so it's important to discuss your personal health risks with your doctor when considering long-term use for chronic conditions such as osteoarthritis.

Acetaminophen (Tylenol and other brands) is usually effective for mild pain and is easy on the stomach. However, it is toxic to the liver at high doses. The recommended maximum per day is generally set at 4 grams (4,000 milligrams), which is the equivalent of eight extra-strength Tylenol tablets. But that dosage can still cause liver problems for some people. To be safe, aim for 3,000 milligrams or less, and be cautious of mixing multiple products containing acetaminophen, such as a pain reliever and a cold medication or a prescribed narcotic.

Ask the doctors

Q. My friend was recently diagnosed with fibromyalgia, but it seems like she might be imagining her symptoms. Is fibromyalgia a real condition?

A. The short answer to your question is yes. Fibromyalgia is a real condition that affects some four million Americans. It's a chronic pain syndrome that experts believe may be caused by a malfunctioning nervous system. Researchers using magnetic resonance imaging to examine the brains of people with fibromyalgia have found abnormalities in the part of the brain that processes pain signals from the body. It appears that this part of the brain is essentially boosting the intensity of normal pain signals, potentially causing the body to feel pain without a physical cause.

Here's what to expect once you're home from the hospital.

Every day, thousands of people in the United States undergo open-heart surgery. This major operation leaves them with a long chest incision — and a lengthy recovery. The time it takes to fully heal will depend on the person's age and overall health and the complexity of the operation.

The most common is coronary artery bypass grafting, which uses a blood vessel taken from another part of the body to bypass a blocked heart artery. Open-heart surgery is also done to repair or replace a faulty heart valve or to repair damaged or abnormal areas of the heart.

Bring this article to your doctor appointment.

You've run out of options for hip pain and you're facing a possible hip replacement (see "Anatomy of a hip replacement"). Once your doctor has determined that you're a good candidate for surgery — based on your medical history, images of your hip, steps you've taken to reduce pain (such as weight loss and low-impact exercise programs), and how pain has affected your daily function — you'll need to ask lots of questions.

"This is not a time to be shy. Be aggressive and get answers. The doctor expects that," says Dr. Scott Martin, an associate professor of orthopedic surgery at Harvard Medical School and medical editor of the Harvard Medical School Guide Total Hip Replacement.

Listening to music may offer a range of benefits for cardiovascular health.

Music's capacity to evoke emotion is one reason people love listening to it so much. Whether you want to feel energized and uplifted or calm and relaxed, you can probably conjure a few examples of melodies that put you in your desired frame of mind. As it turns out, those mood-related benefits may extend to your heart.

"The beating of your heart and your fight-or-flight system are regulated by your brain. Once you understand that, it makes sense that listening to music that evokes a certain mood might affect the heart's function," says Dr. Andrew Budson, a lecturer in neurology at Harvard Medical School and chief of cognitive and behavioral neurology at the VA Boston Healthcare System.

These painful flare-ups can occur suddenly and for no apparent reason. Here's what you can do about them.

Have you ever woken up with a mysterious egg-shaped swelling on your elbow or knee and have no clue what caused it? There is a good chance you have bursitis.

"Bursitis is definitely more common as you get older and just comes with the territory of living a longer and more active life," says Dr. Robert Shmerling, senior faculty editor at Harvard Health Publishing and Corresponding Member of the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

Research we're watching

Google searches for "chest pain" spiked in March and April of 2020 during the initial sharp rise in COVID-19 infections, according to a new study. The findings suggest that people were attempting to self-diagnose heart attacks — and may explain why fewer people sought treatment for heart attacks in hospitals during the pandemic.

The study relied on Google Trends, a tool that monitors search term queries over time. The authors looked at searches for "chest pain" and five control terms — "toothache," "abdominal pain," "knee pain," "heart attack," and "stroke" — from January 2017 through May 2020. Searches for chest pain (a common symptom of heart attack but not COVID-19) spiked in states with high rates of COVID-19 infection (New York, New Jersey, and Illinois), while searches for other terms stayed steady.