Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: Diagnosis

(asked on 6th February 2018) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support his Department provides to healthcare professionals to diagnose of complex regional pain syndrome.


Answered by
Steve Brine Portrait
Steve Brine
This question was answered on 8th February 2018

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) has been a recognised medical condition for over 150 years. It is a debilitating, painful condition in a limb, associated with sensory, motor, skin and bone abnormalities, and there is no cure. Although in some cases sufferers make gradual recovery, for others the condition is ongoing. A long-term condition (LTC) can be defined as a condition that cannot be cured but can be managed through the use of medication and/or therapy, and by that definition CRPS is an LTC.

In terms of awareness, NHS Choices provides useful information and advice for the public on CRPS; its symptoms and causes and treatment. To support clinicians in diagnosing and managing the condition, guidance on CRPS is available from authoritative professional sources, including the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, one of the leading centres in the United Kingdom for CRPS. More information on these CRPS resources can be found at the following links:

www.nhs.uk/conditions/complex-regional-pain-syndrome/

www.rcplondon.ac.uk/guidelines-policy/pain-complex-regional-pain-syndrome

www.rnhrd.nhs.uk/page/79

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