Pain medicine specialists work with patients to relieve suffering and discomfort that may be present during a medical or surgical procedure, or because of a disease or condition. An anesthesiologist is a physician who has had special training and is board-certified in pain management. A pain medicine specialist can be an anesthesiologist, neurologist, or psychiatrist. This specialist is either the primary physician, or acts as a consultant, to coordinate a patient’s care with other physicians.

For chronic or severe pain, narcotics are often used. Narcotics carry with them a potential for side effects and addiction, so patients and physicians must weigh the level of pain against these concerns in the pain management process.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. Alabama has 80 practicing pain medicine doctors. Broken out by city, pain medicine doctor density in Alabaster is 2, in Andalusia is 4, in Atmore is 2, in Birmingham is 27, in Brewton is 2, in Clanton is 1, in Cullman is 1, in Daphne is 2, in Decatur is 5, in Dothan is 11, in Florence is 1, in Guntersville is 1, in Homewood is 1, in Huntsville is 7, in Jasper is 2, in Madison is 4, in Mobile is 8, in Montgomery is 3, in Muscle Shoals is 2, in Northport is 1, in Prattville is 1, in Russellville is 1, in Sheffield is 1, in Tuscaloosa is 3, and in Valley is 2.

Montgomery is the capital city of this southern state, though Birmingham is its largest city. Population in 2005 was 4,557,808. Alabama is the birthplace of historical figures Hank Aaron, Helen Keller, and George Washington Carver. Take an airboat tour on the Mobile river delta, see the Alabama Civil Rights museum in Mantua, or tour the Jazz Hall of Fame in Birmingham. Visit the Shakespeare Festival Theater Complex in Montgomery, or play a round of golf at one of Alabama’s many acclaimed courses. From the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in the state’s north to the Gulf coast beaches in the south, Alabama’s scenery includes a varied and diverse landscape.

According to 2005 Census estimates, Alabama has a population of 4,557,808. Of this population, 1,074,627 are under the age of 18 and 600,258 are at or above the age of 65.