title: Self-treatment of pain in a rural area.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In the United States, 42% of adults say they experience pain daily, the majority often relying on self-treatment. In addition, an increasing number of people are seeking complementary/alternative therapies, often without informing their health care providers.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To explore the occurrence of pain and the modalities of self-treatment used by community members (N = 108) from a rural area of Michigan, the potential for interactions between pain self-treatment modalities and other medications currently being taken, and demographic variables that might affect self-treatment choice.
  
  
  METHODS
  This exploratory descriptive study was conducted using a survey method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Findings revealed that 66% were taking prescription medications, 75% over-the-counter medications, 20% herbal supplements, and 35% nonpharmacological treatments. Of the reported prescription and over-the-counter medications, 18% were opioids, 77% were nonopioids, and 18% were adjuvant medications. One-third of the subjects were taking more than 1 medication and/or herbal product or supplement, increasing their risk for potential drug-herb interactions, complicated by the fact that 20% did not inform their primary care practitioner of their self-treatment choices.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study contributes to the knowledge of current self-treatment choices regarding pain management and potentially harmful interactions that might occur from using multiple medications and supplements.
authors.affiliation: Wayne State University, College of Nursing, 5557 Cass Avenue, Cohn Bldg. #364, Detroit, MI 48202, USA. April.Vallerand@wayne.edu
authors.forename: April Hazard
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Vallerand
authors.forename: Judith M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Fouladbakhsh
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Templin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000698:Analgesia / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000529:Complementary Therapies / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017281:Cost of Illness; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008824:Michigan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000453:epidemiology; D059408:Pain Management; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D012423:Rural Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012648:Self Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors