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. Kentucky has 84 practicing pain medicine doctors. Broken out by city, pain medicine doctor density in Ashland is 4, in Auxier is 1, in Bardstown is 1, in Bowling Green is 5, in Carrollton is 1, in Corbin is 1, in Covington is 4, in Crestview Hills is 1, in Edgewood is 3, in Elizabethtown is 2, in Florence is 5, in Fort Mitchell is 1, in Fort Thomas is 2, in Frankfort is 1, in Franklin is 2, in Hazard is 4, in Henderson is 1, in Hopkinsville is 1, in Ledbetter is 1, in Lexington is 28, in London is 3, in Louisville is 21, in Newport is 1, in Owensboro is 2, in Paducah is 5, in Pikeville is 3, in Prestonsburg is 1, in Scottsville is 2, in Somerset is 3, in Stanville is 1, in Whitesburg is 1, and in Winchester is 1.

Kentucky is known for its thoroughbred horses, tobacco and bourbon, but there’s much more. The Kentucky parks system draw thousands of visitors each year for swimming, boating, hiking, biking, and picnicking. The capital city is Frankfort, and has many historic homes and sites to visit, including the Old Governor’s Mansion, the Capital City Museum, and the Liberty Hall Historic Site. Visitors can explore a cave in Mammoth Cave National Park, or when in Louisville, hear authentic bluegrass music. Famous people born in Kentucky are former president Abraham Lincoln, fighter Muhammad Ali, and actor Johnny Depp.

According to 2005 Census estimates, Kentucky has a population of 4,173,405. Of this population, 959,891 are under the age of 18 and 522,811 are at or above the age of 65.