Muskuloskeletal Pain - Assessment, Prediction and Treatment : A Pragmatic Approach

Musculoskeletal Pain - Assessment, Prediction and Treatment presents a common sense approach to interpreting and applying existing clinical knowledge and new research to help clinicians make sense of the complex phenomena of acute and chronic post-traumatic musculoskeletal pain. Built upon the Assess, Predict, Treat framework, the authors offer a method to help clinicians better understand their patients' pain. They present evidence-based decision tools to predict the natural and clinical course of common conditions, such as neck and low back pain, and they then synthesize that information into a logical, integrated treatment approach, which respects the individuality of the patient, the experiences of the clinician, and the value of evidence-informed practice.

David Walton and James Elliott are leaders in the field of post-traumatic pain and recovery. Their work provides a valuable framework to facilitate novice clinicians in their transition towards experts and helps mid- and late-stage clinicians better interpret, synthesize, and discuss complex information on pain with the goal of optimised outcomes for patients.

David Walton is an Associate Professor with the School of Physical Therapy at Western University (Ontario, Canada). Following a 10-year career as a clinical physical therapist, he returned to academia and completed a PhD in Health and Rehabilitation Science in 2010. Since that time he has grown a successful clinical and translational research program with foci in areas such as pain measurement and prognosis, use of consumer technologies in rehabilitation, and professional education and development. Other affiliations include his role as Associate Scientist with the Lawson Health Research Institute, Director of the Pain and Quality of Life Integrative Research Lab, and a member of international steering committees for the International Whiplash Consortium and the 2018 Global Year for Excellence in Pain Education. He has been recognized as an opinion leader for and by Canadian physical therapists, and has won a number of awards for his roles such as the 2014 Canadian Physiotherapy National Mentorship Award, twice winner of Western's Faculty of Health Sciences Teaching Award of Excellence, and in 2017 became the first faculty member in Western University's history to hold the titles of Faculty Scholar and Teaching Fellow simultaneously.

He is an active researcher and scholarly author with over 70 publications, and continues to build research capacity through grants and supervision of graduate students. He has spoken at several national and international conferences, most commonly on the topics of measuring pain and related experiences, and understanding the mechanisms of the acute-to-chronic pain transition following trauma. More recently he has launched a series of professional development workshops for clinicians intended to develop knowledge, skills and behaviours in areas such as pain assessment and prognosis, interpersonal ('soft') skills development, and teaching skills for providers of continuing professional development.

Jim Elliott completed his PhD at the University of Queensland, Australia (UQ) in 2007 and held a post-doctoral fellowship (2010) at UQ's CCRE-Spine. The primary focus of his interdisciplinary laboratory is to quantify altered spinal cord anatomy and whole-body skeletal muscle degeneration as potential markers of recovery following spinal trauma. His work has resulted in external recognition as a global expert in neck pain (broadly) and whiplash injuries (more specifically).

He is currently a Professor of Allied Health in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Sydney and the Northern Sydney Local Health District. Prior to this, Jim was a tenure-track Associate Professor in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago, USA, where he remains an adjunct Professor.

He currently serves as an Advisory Board Member for the journal, Spine and is a Board of Director for the Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy. Jim was the recipient of the 2011 Eugene Michels New Investigator Award from the American Physical Therapy Association, the 2015 Faculty Award for Engagement from Northwestern's Graduate School, and the 2017 Ver Steeg Faculty Award for Excellence in work with graduate students.