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. Connecticut has 83 practicing pain medicine doctors. Broken out by city, pain medicine doctor density in Avon is 1, in Bridgeport is 4, in Bristol is 5, in Colchester is 2, in Danbury is 7, in Derby is 4, in East Hartford is 7, in Enfield is 2, in Fairfield is 8, in Farmington is 6, in Glastonbury is 1, in Greenwich is 3, in Groton is 2, in Hartford is 14, in Manchester is 5, in Meriden is 4, in Middletown is 1, in Milford is 4, in Mystic is 1, in N Franklin is 1, in New Britain is 1, in New Haven is 19, in New London is 2, in New Milford is 1, in North Haven is 2, in Norwalk is 5, in Norwich is 6, in Orange is 2, in Prospect is 1, in Putnam is 2, in Sharon is 1, in Shelton is 4, in South Windsor is 1, in Southbury is 3, in Stamford is 5, in Stratford is 4, in Torrington is 3, in Trumbull is 3, in Vernon Rockville is 2, in Waterbury is 7, in West Redding is 1, and in Wilton is 1.

This New England state is one of the original 13 states; Connecticut’s capital is Hartford and its population is 3,510,297. This state is steeped in history. Visit the past at the Nathan Hale Homestead near New London, or Yale University in New Haven. Tour the home of Mark Twain, the New England Air Museum, or the Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk. Explore a historic tobacco farming area, do some hiking and biking, or visit the numerous antique shops or lighthouses in the eastern coastal area.

According to 2005 Census estimates, Connecticut has a population of 3,510,297. Of this population, 812,182 are under the age of 18 and 472,089 are at or above the age of 65.