An internationally acknowledged chronic pain epidemiologist has temporarily joined University of Aberdeen researchers who are investigating the causes and management of chronic pain.
Dr Fiona Blyth, from the Pain Management and Research Institute and the Centre for Education and Research on Ageing, both at the University of Sydney, is spending two months at Aberdeen after being awarded the James C Petrie Visiting Fellowship – set up to commemorate the extraordinary contribution of the late Professor James C Petrie to clinical medicine and the University of Aberdeen.
Dr Blyth will work closely with Gary Macfarlane, Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Aberdeen, whose research group focuses on musculoskeletal pain.
She will also be involved with the Aberdeen Pain Research Collaboration - which is a large multi-disciplinary group of University scientists investigating the causes and management of chronic pain.
Professor Macfarlane said: “We are delighted to welcome Dr Fiona Blyth, who is an internationally recognised expert in chronic pain research, to the University of Aberdeen.
“I believe she will play an important role in contributing to our research programmes which are examining how low back pain could be better managed.
“We recently completed and published studies which showed that current approaches in primary care to the management of new episodes of low back pain have failed to produce any real improvements in outcome. Dr Blyth will contribute to our “think-tank” which is considering future studies in this area.
“The Epidemiology Group is also investigating the possible development of a research programme into pain in elderly populations, and I would hope our visitor can be involved in that.
“I also anticipate Dr Blyth will contribute to our teaching of undergraduate and postgraduate students, both in epidemiological methods and pain epidemiology.”
Dr Blyth added: “Chronic pain, which affects many thousands of people in Australia and Scotland, can significantly affect quality of life. It has rightly been referred to as a ‘silent epidemic’.
“The James C Petrie Visiting Fellowship gives us a tremendous opportunity to combine our knowledge and experiences of studying pain on opposite sides of the world. We are all committed to finding the best ways to identify and deliver effective pain management interventions in the community”.