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The first test results with so-called "pain dogs" have been promising, providing a relief to long-time sufferers. However, further scientific evidence is, so far, largely missing.
In a course organized by Helsinki native Minna Marttinen, who has previously worked as a nurse and a midwife, service dogs are taught to recognize the early symptoms of pain and warn their owners of coming seizures, so that they have time to take necessary precautions.
Marttinen herself has experienced chronic pain since 2009, due to Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a rare condition affecting connective tissue.
"In my job I have handled had a lot of pain. I also have a medical background. A couple of years ago, I began to wonder if my service dog can identify a bout of pain which is still developing," Marttinen explained.
The training procedures of "pain dogs" began in collaboration with Nona Borgström, a service dog expert of The Finnish Association of People with Physical Disabilities.
"I myself have children who are diabetic and they have a diabetic dog as an assistant. After a fairly short training period, we noticed that the dog can actually recognize when an attack is coming and can even express it," Borgström said, attributing this to dogs' keen sense of smell.
When Marttinen and Borgström began searching for more information on the subject, they found no substantial scientific backing.
"Dogs who warn of pain do not seem to exist in the rest of the world. We found information about epilepsy and diabetics dogs and dogs that spontaneously responded to migraines. However, we found no research on dogs that warn of pain bouts," Borgström explained.
At present, however, a research plan is being developed by the Wise Nose association, together with the University of Eastern Finland and the University of Helsinki.
"Dogs are likely to be able to literally smell the pain. For example, there may be traces of inflammation in the tissue, or the smell has something to do with the metabolism," Susanna Paavilainen of Wise Nose said.
Both Minna Marttinen and Mika Savola, who had a severe work accident in 2010 and suffers from CRPS pain syndrome which may even render him unconscious, experienced a marked relief, as their dogs were educated to warn of seizures in advance. Marttinen pointed out that painkillers are far more effective when used at an earlier stage.
"Pain episodes have almost completely disappeared. It is clear that do I have my chronic pain, but in essence I have been able to handle it with home remedies," Mika Savola said.
Both Marttinen and Borgström are firm in their belief that "pain dogs" could have great potential in healthcare.
"For example, in retirement homes, patients may be unable to tell about their pains, or a person may have a speech disturbance," Marttinen argued.
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