Smoking, sex of patient affects pain

ORLANDO, Fla., Oct. 20 (UPI) -- Smoking and the sex of the patient can impact the effectiveness of various pain treatments, U.S. researchers said.

Researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., said that the study was designed to build on previous research involving more than 1,200 men and women admitted to a three-week outpatient pain treatment program conducted by the Mayo Pain Rehabilitation Center.

The principle goals of the pain treatment program were to restore physical functionality and reduce or eliminate opioid analgesic medications as well as other medications such as benzodiazepines, anti-inflammatories and muscle relaxants.

The main findings of the study were that patient gender could be a predictor of differences in functional status of those undergoing treatment for chronic pain. The study also showed that smoking had a more pronounced impact on men than women.

Study leader Dr. W. Michael Hooten indicated that continuing functional impairment in men could also be due to work activities and/or other poorly understood societal factors.

Hooten suggests that "further research should focus on developing treatment strategies that could reduce the lower response rates observed in male smokers."

The findings are being presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists in Orlando, Fla.