Proceedings of the 12th World Congress on Pain: An Informative Compilation

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The 12th World Congress on Pain, the biennial meeting of the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), was held in Glasgow in August 2008. This was an extraordinary meeting that addressed the most timely topics, delivered by esteemed clinicians, scientists, and others interested in pain. This book superbly translates the plenary sessions delivered by these experts into an interesting compilation that will be appreciated by all, regardless of whether they attended the meeting or not. In particular, this book provides an excellent primer for those wishing to update their knowledge of a broad array of pain-related topics, from the basic sciences to psychology to methodology issues in pain research and quality improvement.

The editor, Jose Castro-Lopez, who also served as the chair of the Scientific Program Committee, has edited these disparate chapters into a clear and concise collection that accurately reflects the mission of the IASP. The IASP aims to “bring together scientists, clinicians, health care providers, and policy makers to stimulate and support the study of pain and to translate that knowledge into improved pain relief worldwide,” and this text upholds this mission. Many organizations publish proceedings of meetings, yet attempts at being inclusive of all presentations limit the depth that can be allocated to each chapter. Castro-Lopez has wisely elected to only include the plenary sessions, which tend to be more comprehensive discussions of topics of interest to a wider audience.

There are 17 chapters included in this book, beginning with basic science-oriented topics, followed by methodology issues, psychology, and global issues. The first chapter is authored by Tony Yaksh, who delivered the John J. Bonica Distinguished Lecture on the role of spinal systems in encoding nociceptive information. Yaksh, a renowned scientist and educator at the University of California, San Diego, uses historical references and clinical implications to clearly describe the complex systems of spinal processing in nociception. Stephen G. Waxman, at Yale Medical School, creatively uses the example of a rare disorder, erythromelalgia, as a model to teach us about pain mechanisms in the second chapter. The third chapter, by Andrew Todd from the University of Glasgow, reviews the anatomical organization of the dorsal horn region of the spinal cord and receptors involved in nociceptive signal processing. The following chapters address the role of inhibition in pain by Jürgen Sandkühler from the Medical University of Vienna, the neurobiology of itch and pain by E. Carstens from the University of California, Davis, and the role of cytokines in pain by Claudia Sommer at the University of Würzburg. Hans-Georg Schaible from the Jena University Clinic in Germany addressed neuronal mechanisms of joint pain. The next two chapters concentrate on the complicated topic of neuropathic pain. Yves De Koninck, from Laval University in Quebec, discusses signaling and spinal inhibition in neuropathic pain, followed by Satu Jääskeläinen from Turku University Hospital in Finland, describing traumatic nerve injury in neuropathic pain. The tenth chapter is poignant in that it represents one of the last lectures given by Mitchell B. Max before his untimely death. In this chapter, Max advocates for genome-wide association studies to advance pain research and treatment, clearly articulating steps pain investigators can take to better compete for funding in this area. This is followed by a thoughtful chapter addressing the relevance of randomized controlled trials. Peter M. Rothwell (from John Radcliffe Hospital in the United Kingdom) and C. Peter N. Watson (from the University of Toronto) combine their extensive experiences in conducting research in neuropathic pain to evaluate threats to external validity in these studies.

Chapters 12 through 14 address crucial topics related to pain memory, stress, and catastrophizing. Herta Flor, from the University of Heidelberg, provides an excellent review of learning in chronic pain, with strategies for extinguishing these memories through extinction training. Using fibromyalgia as a model, Daniel J. Clauw from the University of Michigan and Jacob N. Ablin from Tel Aviv Medical Center, describe the relationship between stress and pain. Jennifer A. Haythornthwaite from Johns Hopkins University describes the history, neurobiology, and risk factors associated with catastrophizing and pain.

The final three chapters address disparate but equally important topics. Chapter 15, written by John J. Collins, Kirsty Campbell (both from the Children's Hospital at Westmead in New South Wales), and Suellen M. Walker (from the University College London and Great Ormond Street Hospital, London), explains the science of quality improvement efforts in pediatric pain and palliative care. This is followed by a compelling chapter by M.R. Rajagopal from Pallium India portraying pain and suffering in the developing world, along with strategies to address these needs. The final chapter represents the John D. Loeser Distinguished Lecture delivered by Inge Genefke and Bent Sørensen from the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims in Copenhagen. This compelling chapter defines torture and outlines the physical and psychological consequences of these horrific acts. This is particularly affecting given events in the world today.

Each of these chapters is well written, with subtitles that nicely break up and organize content. Most chapters include figures, many in color, and tables that complement the text. One recommendation for future editions is to include more of these illustrations. The book is a readable size at 338 pages and the IASP Press has done a superb job on the cover art, as well as the font, color of paper, and the resulting clarity of the text on each page. At the end of the book, the Index is comprehensive. All of these efforts, combined with the timely topics addressed, make this a superb addition to the library of anyone interested in studying and relieving pain.