Reconceptualising Pain Rehabilitation

As modern clinicians, we need to make clinical reasoning based upon the current scientific consensus, as well as use the goldmine of knowledge we have from modern pain research. 
Dogmatic and unprogressive musculoskeletal therapists may find themselves being phased out of their traditional roles if other updated clinicians quickly grasp the current ‘pain research’ paradigm. Our treatments and modalities should be based upon what we currently know, not what we wish to know in 5-10 years or what we knew 30 years ago.


We need to take a critical look at the governing theories, narratives, philosophies, and world-view that there are in pain management. Updating this world-view is a large part of learning the skills of providing modern evidence-based pain management.

We need to reconceptualize the practical approach to people living with pain. Research can encourage and facilitate clinical change, but research does not help people; the skillful clinical reasoning of a clinician does. Only we as clinicians can implement this change, and every single person we take under our care deserves this change. 

Lars Avemarie is a physiotherapist, writer, internationally acclaimed lecturer, myth-buster, and teacher. Before completing his bachelor's degree in physiotherapy, he worked almost a decade full-time in the health care industry.

He has a unique blend of knowledge about pain research, neuroscience, physiotherapy, evidence-based practice, exercise science, rehabilitation, sleep research, and critical thinking. The latter includes expertise in argumentation theory and informal logic.