Chronic Pain Syndrome (CPS) occurs when pain continues to last long after the triggering injury or illness heals or runs its course. It can also occur where there is no known trigger for the pain. CPS can cause near-constant pain in one or more area of your body, involve flairs of more intense pain due to increases in stress or activity and can include symptoms such as:

• Joint pain
• Muscle aches
• Burning/nerve pain
• Fatigue
• Sleep problems
• Difficulty with concentration
• Mood problems including depression and anxiety.

CPS can be linked to certain conditions such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, mechanical back pain and fibromyalgia. However even if/when these conditions improve via medications or other therapies, some people can still experience chronic pain. Treatments for CPS can include pain relieving medications, physical therapy, nerve block injections and psychological/behaviour therapy which can have a positive effect on mood.

We commonly see claims where a person’s disability benefits have been denied or terminated because the insurer has taken the position that there is “no explanation” for ongoing pain and this “objective medical evidence” of a disabling condition. This can occur even where a person has received a diagnosis of CPS, and their doctors have advised that they are not able to continue or return to work.