Diagnosis

Pain is a personal and subjective experience. There is currently no specific test that can precisely measure and locate pain and so healthcare professionals rely on the patient’s to describe the type of pain and its location.

Being very specific when describing your pain to your doctor can give the best indications as to what may be the cause of the pain, e.g. is it a sharp or dull pain? Does it burn or ache? These descriptions combine to create a pain history and are the first step in evaluating your pain.

Since chronic pain may occur in a variety of locations in the body and for many different reasons, patients and their health professionals need to work together to identify the causes and symptoms of that pain and the appropriate treatment pathway to take¹