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note: the 2019 Call for posters is closed. stay tuned for next year’s poster submission window.

“Chronic pain is not a ‘thing,’ it is an experience,” said Henri Roca, MD, in a recent interview with IFM. Surely, the same can be said for stress and addiction, as all three conditions are closely interconnected. What are your experiences with pain, stress, and addiction in the patient population? Have you compiled research in these areas or incorporated innovative treatments in your practice? How have you used the tenets of Functional Medicine to bring your patients back to a place of homeostasis?

These are some of the questions that could be addressed in the 2019 Annual International Conference (AIC) Poster Sessions. IFM is calling for digital poster submissions on the topics of chronic pain, stress, and addiction that focus on research and innovation, as well as techniques and tips for treating these patients in a Functional Medicine framework. Selected posters will be displayed on touch-screen monitors outside of the Exhibit Hall during AIC; each presenter will be present at their poster for a specified time during a break for Q&A.

In the video below, IFM Director of Medical Education Dan Lukaczer, ND, further explains what IFM is looking for:

For many, chronic pain, stress, and addiction are interconnected, and each condition has the potential to break the human spirit, sending the patient into a downward spiral. Patients often present cases that are difficult for the clinician to unravel…but there is hope, and innovative therapies for the treatment of pain, stress, and addiction continue to evolve. Illustrate your techniques. Show us your research.

Submit poster here

Posters are selected by IFM staff for relevance, innovation, and how useful they are to the learners. Note that at least one poster author must attend AIC to present.

References

1. Sinha R. Chronic stress, drug use, and vulnerability to addiction. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2008;1141:105-130. doi:10.1196/annals.1441.030.
2. Felitti VJ, Anda RF, Nordenberg D, et al. Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study. Am J Prev Med. 1998;14(4):245-258.
3. Shonkoff JP, Garner AS, Siegel BS, et al. The lifelong effects of early childhood adversity and toxic stress. Pediatrics. 2012;129(1):e232-e246. doi:10.1542/peds.2011-2663.
4. McCauley JL, Killeen T, Gros DF, Brady KT, Back SE. Posttraumatic stress disorder and co-occurring substance use disorders: advances in assessment and treatment. Clin Psychol. 2012;19(3). doi:10.1111/cpsp.12006.
5. Flaten M, al’Absi M, eds. Neuroscience of Pain, Stress, and Emotion: Psychological and Clinical Implications. 1st ed. London, UK: Elsevier Academic Press; 2016.

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