Currently, there is no universally accepted definition for breakthrough pain.

The original definition of breakthrough pain was “a transitory exacerbation of pain that occurs on a background of otherwise stable pain in a patient receiving chronic opioid therapy” [1].

An updated version of the definition of breakthrough pain is “a transitory exacerbation of pain experienced by the patient who has relatively stable and adequately controlled baseline pain” [2].

Recently, an expert group has suggested an extension of the updated version of the definition of breakthrough pain: “a transient exacerbation of pain that occurs either spontaneously, or in relation to a specific predictable or unpredictable trigger, despite relatively stable and adequately controlled background pain” [3].

References

[1]. Portenoy RK, Hagen NA. Breakthrough pain: definition, prevalence and characteristics. Pain 1990; 41(3): 273-81.

[2]. Portenoy RK, Forbes K, Lussier D, Hanks G. Difficult pain problems: an integrated approach. In: Doyle D, Hanks G, Cherny N, Calman K, editors. Oxford Textbook of Palliative Medicine. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2004. p. 438-58.

[3]. Davies AN, Dickman A, Reid C, Stevens AM, Zeppetella G. The management of cancer-related breakthrough pain: recommendations of a task group of the Science Committee of the Association for Palliative Medicine of Great Britain and Ireland. European Journal of Pain 2009; 13(4): 331-8.

References Library