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The Pain Treatment Service at Children's Hospital Boston was established in 1986 as a multidisciplinary program for acute and chronic pain management for children. Within the first year of operation this evolved into an inpatient Acute Pain Service and an outpatient Chronic Pain Clinic.
Since opening our clinic in 1986, we have been treating patients with RSD/CRPS on a regular basis. Over 750 children and adolescents with this condition have been seen here since 1986. For the subgroup of patients who had refractory pain or limb dysfunction despite outpatient treatment, we have had the option of inpatient admission to Children's for more intensive treatment, including physical therapy, cognitive-behavioral treatment and, in selected cases, trials of epidural infusions, peripheral nerve blocks or plexus infusions. Currently, these patients are admitted predominantly to the 10 NW unit in the Main building. Even with an inpatient setting, there are limits to the intensity of rehabilitative treatment that can be provided in an acute care tertiary hospital setting. For a number of years, we have looked to develop a setting that would permit more intensive and more cost-effective rehabilitative treatment of RSD/CRPS and related disorders.
In 2006, through the generosity of Sara Page Mayo and Richard Mayo, Dr. Charles Berde was awarded an endowed chair in Pediatric Pain Medicine. The Mayo Family followed this with a second donation of start-up funding to establish the PPRC as an innovative approach for rehabilitative treatment of RSD/CRPS using a partial-hospital model. After evaluation of several venues for the program, and in consultation with hospital leadership, the Waltham site was chosen. Planning, design and construction have proceeded through late 2007 and early 2008. We anticipate first enrollment of patients in mid-May, 2008.
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