COVID-19 Vaccine Science Could Help Tackle Chronic Pain

December 16, 2022 / Thomas Cohn, MD

The COVID-19 pandemic forced medical experts to explore different ways to help slow the spread and create vaccines, and one of those techniques involved the infusion on monoclonal antibodies to help patients fight infections. Monoclonal antibodies are lab-made antibodies that help the patient overcome infections and illnesses, but the hope is that the same technology may eventually be able to replace opioids and help calm chronic pain conditions.

Research is currently being led by Vladimir Yarov-Yarovoy and James Trimmer, two professors in the Department of Physiology and Membrane Biology at the University of California Davis School of Medicine. They’ve also employed several experts to work on their team, including members who have worked to turn tarantula venom into pain medication. The team was awarded a $1.5 million grant earlier this year by the National Institutes of Health’s HEAL Initiative, which hopes to develop solutions for the nation’s opioid crisis.

Hoping To Curb Opioid Use

Addictive opioids are a problem here in the US and worldwide. According to the CDC National Center for Health Statistics, there were 107,622 drug overdose deaths in 2021, up from 93,655 in 2020. Researchers hope that alternative therapies can help to quell chronic pain without turning to potentially dangerous medications.

“Recent breakthroughs in structural and computational biology — using computers to understand and model biological systems — have set the stage for applying new approaches to create antibodies as superior therapeutic candidates to treat chronic pain,” said Yarov-Yarovoy. “Monoclonal antibodies are the fastest growing sector of the pharmaceutical industry and have many advantages over classical small molecule drugs,” added Trimmer.

Trimmer and his lab team have created thousands of different mononclonal antibodies for various purposes over the years, but this will be the first time he turns his attention towards creating antibodies designed for pain relief. And while the prospect of treating chronic pain with the help of monoclonal antibodies may be new, the technology is already being used to treat other ailments. The Food and Drug Administration has already approved monoclonal antibodies to help prevent and treat certain types of migraines.

“Nerve cells are responsible for transmitting pain signals in the body. Voltage-gated sodium ion channels in nerve cells are the key transmitters of pain,” explained Yarov-Yarovoy. “We aim to create antibodies that will bind to these specific transmission sites at the molecular level, inhibiting their activity and stopping the transmission of pain signals.”

If successful, researchers say the antibodies will fit into these sodium ion channels like a lock into a key. These antibodies will then stop the channels from sending pain signals but not interfere with other signals sent through the nerve cells.

So while there is optimism that these antibodies could be harnessed to help treat chronic pain, researchers say that viable human antibodies are still years away. First they’ll need to create antibodies to be tested on lab-created neutral tissue, so hope for a “pain vaccine” is still years away.

One of the most exciting aspects of monoclanal antibodies is that they can circulate in the bloodstream for an extended period before they are broken down by the body. While non-steroidial anti-inflammatory medications are broken down quickly by the body, researchers believe monoclanal antibodies will remain in a person’s system for a month or longer before they are broken down by the body. The team hopes that this means that patients would only need to self-inject with the monoclanal antibodies once a month.

“For patients with chronic pain, that’s exactly what you need,” Yarov-Yarovoy said. “They experience pain, not for days, but weeks and months. The expectation is that the circulating antibodies will be able to provide sustained pain relief for weeks.”

Why You Should ACT On Your Chronic Pain

December 9, 2022 / Thomas Cohn, MD

One of the biggest drawbacks of dealing with a chronic pain condition is the uncertainty that comes with it. You don’t know if a flareup will occur at the wrong time, and unfortunately this uncertainty can end up dictating your life and decisions. One treatment technique that aims to address this problem is known as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT. In today’s blog, we take a closer look at ACT as a treatment technique for patients with chronic pain.

What Is ACT?

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is similar in nature to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy focuses on changing the way you think about your pain condition and the challenges that it presents, hoping to reframe the situation in a less negative light. ACT is a little different, but its roots are also based in acceptance and understanding. With Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, the patient is taught to focus on what’s happening in the moment and not to over-analyze or fear what could happen down the road. Patients are guided to face situations head-on instead of shying away from things because of what may or may not happen.

CBT focuses on setting goals and doing what you want to do in life instead of limiting yourself because of your chronic pain. Through these technique, patients are empowered to live life to the fullest in spite of a pain condition that used to hold them back.

In order for ACT to be successful, patients need to be willing to both accept and commit. The vast majority of chronic pain patients accept that they are dealing with an uncomfortable condition, but acceptance is just part of the equation. If you’re not willing to do anything about it or reclaim your power from the condition by committing to yourself and your life, you’re not going to see any improvements. Accept that you have a pain condition, but then commit to making sure that it doesn’t dictate your life.

As you might imagine, ACT is best when paired with other treatment techniques, like exercise or physical therapy. ACT focuses on improving your mental health and your mindset, which is a major part of your chronic pain condition. However, as we’ve said in blogs in the past, chronic pain conditions typically need to be treated mentally, physically and emotionally for best results. You’ll still need to address the physical issues being caused by your pain condition, otherwise the benefits of ACT will be limited. If you’re truly doing the second part of the technique and committing to not letting chronic pain control you, it should be no problem to commit to a physical therapy or exercise routine.

It’s really easy to self-limit when we are dealing with a chronic pain condition. We sometimes put ourselves in a box where we’re comfortable, and we’re scared to step out of these walls we’ve created for ourselves out of fear of what could go wrong. Instead of focusing on what could go wrong, start thinking about what would happen if things went right. Accept your pain and confront it by committing to live the life you’ve always wanted, don’t sit on the sidelines because of pain.

If you want to learn more about the guiding principles of ACT, or you want to connect with a pain specialist who is committed to helping you find a treatment plan that works for you, reach out to Dr. Cohn and his team today at

Could Green Light Therapy Help With Chronic Pain And Headaches?

December 1, 2022 / Thomas Cohn, MD

Researchers are always looking for new ways to help chronic pain sufferers find relief, and a new technique involving green light exposure may be beneficial, although the reason for the encouraging findings aren’t completely understood.

You may have heard how blue light exposure can reduce strain on your eyes if you work on a computer all day, but green light therapy may soon be making waves in the pain care community. According to new research, people may be able to reduce the severity and intensity of pain and headaches by wearing specific green-tinted glasses.

For the study, 34 patients with fibromyalgia were assigned glasses with different shades for four hours a day over the course of two weeks. 10 wore blue glasses, 12 wore clear glasses and 12 wore green glasses. At the end of the two-week trial patients wearing the green glasses were four times more likely than those in the other groups to report that their anxiety in regards to their pain had declined, as had their reliance on opioids. The results mimic previous studies on green light therapy, including a 2020 study that found that migraine sufferers exposed to green light therapy saw a significant reduction in headache onset and intensity.

Why The Success?

While there is no concrete evidence as to why green light exposure may be successful in relieving pain and headaches, researchers are working on confirming a couple of theories. The first is that the green light disrupts neural pathways in the brain that are responsible for pain or headache onset. Others believe the relief could be related to the release of melanospin, a neurotransmitter in the eye that is responsible for regulating pupil dilation and contraction. Green light may be better able to trigger this neurotransmitter, which can inhibit certain pain pathways, effectively turning off pain relays.

According to researchers, not just any old green light or green-tinted glasses will do, so don’t just go out and buy the first set of green lights you see if you have chronic pain or headaches. Specific wavelengths yielded different results, so on top of figuring out exactly why green exposure may be beneficial, researchers also want to fine tune which wavelengths are the most effective. Future studies want to combine green glasses and real-time functional MRIs to better visualize possible neural pathways.

For now, the best way to treat your chronic pain issues or your frequent migraines is to connect with a chronic pain specialist like Dr. Cohn, but don’t be surprised if you hear more about green light therapy or similar passive techniques as a compliment to traditional approaches in the near future. For more information about overcoming your chronic pain condition, reach out to Dr. Cohn and his team today at (952) 738-4580.

8 Quick Tips For Keeping Chronic Pain At Bay This Thanksgiving

November 23, 2022 / Thomas Cohn, MD

Thanksgiving can be a wonderful holiday to spend with family and friends, but for many with a chronic pain condition, the holiday presents numerous challenges if they want to avoid a painful flareup. And while everyone celebrates Thanksgiving a little differently, we wanted to use today’s blog to share eight ways you can work to keep chronic pain at bay this Thanksgiving.

Below, we share some tips for managing your chronic pain condition over the Thanksgiving holiday.

8 Chronic Pain Tips For Thanksgiving

While enjoyable, Thanksgiving is oftentimes much more stressful than your average day, and stress is one of the most common chronic pain triggers. To help reduce your stress and keep other potential issues at bay, here’s a look at eight tips to keep in mind as you navigate the Thanksgiving holiday.

1. Give Yourself Plenty Of Time – While we know that sleep is important, you may find it easier to keep chronic pain at bay if you wake up a little earlier and give yourself plenty of time to get ready for the day. Starting the day stressed and behind schedule can increase your risk of a flare up.

2. Leave Early – If you have to travel a decent distance, leave a little early so that you can stop for a couple minutes to stretch if pain starts to develop. Leaving a little early can also help to reduce stress in the event that you run into traffic on your journey.

3. Mind Your Diet – The Thanksgiving meal can easily trigger a painful flareup, so be particularly mindful of what you put on your plate. Foods that are high in sugar and fat are pro-inflammatory, and inflammation can cause a chronic pain reaction.

4. Skip The Alcohol – Alcohol can also end up triggering a chronic pain response, so consider sticking to water, which will also aid in the digestive process.

5. Share Duties – If you’re hosting Thanksgiving, make sure you share duties so that you’re not trying to do everything by yourself. Have others bring a dish to pass, and seek out help cleaning up the kitchen after the big meal. Overloading yourself physically during Thanksgiving can cause problems for your chronic pain condition.

6. Keep The Conversation Light – Family members don’t always see eye to eye, and the stress levels can get ratcheted up if the conversation turns sour. You can’t always control what gets discussed at Thanksgiving, but consider removing yourself from stressful conversations if the topic turns to politics, sports or previous family issues.

7. Stay Active After The Meal – We know that it can be tempting to lay down on the couch after the Thanksgiving meal, but being sedentary will make it harder for your body to break down and digest the meal, and this can actually increase your risk of a chronic pain flareup. Make it easier on your body to digest your food by standing or walking for 15-20 minutes after the meal.

8. Good Night’s Sleep – It can be easy for our body’s sleep schedule to get a little thrown off by the Thanksgiving holiday, and healthy sleep is imperative for chronic pain patients. Work to maintain a normal sleep schedule over the next few days.

Keep these eight tips in mind over the next couple of days, and we hope that you’ll have a wonderful and pain-free holiday! For more information, or for help with a chronic pain issue, reach out to Dr. Cohn and his team today at (952) 738-4580.

Individualized Care Key To Treating Back Pain

November 17, 2022 / Thomas Cohn, MD

Back pain is incredibly common, as more than 90 percent of people will deal with acute or chronic back pain at some point in their life. So while back pain is common, it doesn’t mean that any old one-size-fits-all treatment will cut it. In fact, researchers actually found the opposite to be true. In today’s blog, we take a closer look at the importance of connecting with a pain management specialist if you want to put an end to your back pain.

Patient-Specific Care Key For Combating Back Pain

Although general back pain is common, the underlying condition that you are dealing with is highly unique. Nobody else is experiencing exactly the same type of back pain, so we shouldn’t just assume that a singular type of treatment will work for everyone.

That theory was at the heart of a recent meta-analysis published in the Journal of Pain. For the study, researchers looked at the data from 58 randomized trails involving over 10,000 individuals suffering from chronic low back pain throughout the world. When looking closer at the data, researchers scoured to learn more about treatment techniques and whether an individual was treated with a conventional form of treatment or a more individualized care plan. In this instance, individualized meant things like personal coaching, targeted physical therapy, and professionally-guided patient care techniques.

According to the study, patients who received individualized therapy for their chronic back pain were much more likely to experience successful treatment results. The success rate for pain alleviation was 38 percent greater in the individualized group compared to conventional treatment techniques. As you might imagine, individualized attention may require more professional resources and effort, but researchers say it’s worth it.

“The higher effort required for individual treatment is worthwhile because patients benefit to an extent that is clinically important,” said lead author Dr. Johannes Fleckenstein from the Institute of Sport Sciences at Goethe University Frankfurt.

Researchers took the study even one step further. They also compared treatment success when combining individualized techniques with a talk therapy technique known as cognitive behavioral therapy. By giving patients individualized attention and talking with them about personal ways to handle and cope with pain, researchers found that treatment was 84 percent more effective than conventional back pain treatment.

If you are dealing with back pain or a similar chronic pain condition, it’s imperative that you seek out a professional and get individualized advice instead of just trying some generic exercises that you find on the internet. We pride ourselves on giving each patient the time and attention they need to overcome their physical pain, and we know we can to the same for you, and the research backs up this individualized approach! For more information, or to connect with a specialist to have a conversation about your pain condition, reach out to Dr. Cohn and his team today at (952) 738-4580.