University Pain Centre Maastricht (UPCM)
In late 2008 the financial support by the government during twelve years was ended. This made a renewed collaboration format necessary to guarantee the previous mutual successful cooperation between different medical disciplines and research institutes of the PKC-Maastricht.
The former PKC-Maastricht was a unique collaboration between the daily practice of the medical disciplines related to pain and the research institutes dealing with experimental pain research. From the beginning of its existence, the PKC-Maastricht had a clear format in which the diagnosis and treatment of pain patients were closely interwoven with pain research in different institutes. Within this collaboration, the multidimensional character of pain, characteristic for the biopsychosocial model of pain, was always guaranteed. Involving, both in daily practice and in pain research, those disciplines that were important for the development of new diagnostic tools and innovate pain treatments, effectuated this. The unique cooperation of PKC-Maastricht was also provided a direct implementation of newly developed innovative diagnostics and treatments.
In the steering committee of the PKC-Maastricht resided, outside the different medical disciplines of the azM, the department of anaesthesiology/pain management of the Free University of Amsterdam, the department of Experimental Psychopathology of the Maastricht University and the Rehabilitation an Physical Medicine Centre Hoensbroek. This steering committee, the research policy was geared. In each new scientific project, by involving form the beginning all medical and scientific disciplines, the multidimensional aspect of pain, was emphasized.
The unique collaboration format of the former PKC-Maastricht has led to a pain research, both in terms of treatment (interventional pain management, cognitive behavioral treatments) and in the field of modeling within the paradigm of biopsychosocial model of pain, with a national and international reputation. Meanwhile, there is a strong experimental translational pain research arm developed.
The present UPCM will continue the unique collaboration format of the former PKC-Maastricht. The UPCM will, outside its outdoor university pain clinic, coordinate and stimulate both clinical and experimental translational pain research.
Research Program UPCM
Based on analysis of peer reviewed publications, number of PhD thesis per pain topic and proven effective national and international collaborations of the former PKC-Maastricht a reorientation of the research vision was made. The UPCM will have one main research theme: " Pain and Pain Modulation in Chronic Pain". Research within the UPCM will focus on areas with an acquired expertise and international reputation. Within the main research theme: " Pain and Pain Modulation in Chronic Pain" two research lines can be distinguished: 1. Spine related pain and 2. Neuropathic pain.