New concepts in acute pain management: strategies to prevent chronic postsurgical pain, opioid-induced hyperalgesia, and outcome measures.

Chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) is a pain syndrome that has attracted attention for more than 10 years. CPSP is a pain syndrome that develops postoperatively and lasts for at least 2 months in the absence of other causes for pain (eg, recurrence of malignancy, chronic infection, and so forth). Pain continuing from a preexisting disease is not considered as CPSP. In this article, the authors discuss the etiopathogenesis of CPSP and interventions that can help prevent and treat this condition.