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By using this website, you signify your acceptance of these Policies.

Terms/Conditions of Use

Pain-Topics.org Does Not Provide Medical
Advice, Diagnosis, or Treatment
Use of Contents - Copyrights
Advertisements & Links to Other Websites
Liability of Pain Treatment Topics
Indemnity

Privacy Statement

Information We Collect
General Use of Site
Nondisclosure of Your Information
How Pain Treatment Topics Handles Privacy & Security Internally

Additional Policies

Independent Selection of Editorial Content
How Sponsors and Affiliates Are Selected
         Sponsors
         Affiliates

How Related Websites for Linking Are Selected
Qualifications of Pain Treatment Topics Editorial Personnel

Researchers/Writers/Editors
Medical Advisors/Contributing Faculty

Quality Oversight; Response to Inquiries

How to Contact Pain Treatment Topics

Terms/Conditions of Use

Pain-Topics.org Does Not Provide Medical Advice, Diagnosis, or Treatment

Our mission is to provide objective, accurate, and trustworthy healthcare information via the Internet. All contents of this Pain Treatment Topics website – Pain-Topics.org – unless otherwise specified, are intended for Professional Healthcare Providers. These contents (including text, graphics, images, and other materials) are for news, informational, research, and educational purposes only and should not be used without professional discretion to diagnose or treat a particular health problem or disease condition.

Pain Treatment Topics neither accepts paid advertising nor specifically recommends or endorses any products, tests, procedures, devices, or services that may be mentioned on this site or at linked websites. Medical practice is constantly changing and evolving. If there are questions as to the timeliness or accuracy of any information found at Pain-Topics.org, Healthcare Providers are advised to verify that information with other authorities and/or the most current scientific literature or reference resources on the subject, and to use their professional judgement in applying such information in daily practice.

Note to patients: The contents of Pain-Topics.org are neither intended to be nor should they be used in any way as a substitute for professional diagnosis or treatment. Any information you find here or on websites that we link to should be verified with your Professional Healthcare Provider. If you think you may have a medical emergency or any condition requiring immediate attention, call your doctor or emergency services immediately.

Use of Contents - Copyrights

All exclusive contents of Pain-Topics.org, as designated by the 'PT' symbol, are protected by copyright under both United States and foreign laws. Title to the Content remains with Pain Treatment Topics and its representatives as specified, unless otherwise indicated.

Pain Treatment Topics authorizes you to download this material residing on the Pain-Topics.org website solely for your personal, noncommercial use and only if you retain the copyright and proprietary rights notices that identify the source of the downloaded content or portions thereof. Any such copyrighted material may not be edited, translated to another language, or in any other way altered from its original form without prior notice to and the approval of Pain Treatment Topics (See How to Contact Us section below). Any duplication or use of the material, or reproduction in electronic or any other format, for commercial purposes is considered a violation of the copyright.

Fair Use Notice: In some cases, Pain-Topics.org contains noncommercial copyrighted material created by others, the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We make such use of this material because it may be difficult to access it from the originating source. It is made available here strictly on a noncommercial basis in an effort to advance understandings of medical issues pertaining to pain management. We believe this constitutes 'fair use' of such material as provided for in Section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17, USC Section 107, the material on this site is distributed to those who have expressed interest in receiving the included information solely for educational purposes. As a matter of policy, and in full disclosure, we always cite the author and copyright owner when available. For more information on this copyright law, see:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml.

Advertisements & Links to Other Websites

Pain Treatment Topics does not accept paid advertising and does not endorse any products or services, provided through or referenced on any third-party websites. Furthermore, Pain Treatment Topics is not responsible for the content of linked third-party sites, or third-party advertisements, and does not make any representations regarding their accuracy. Your use of third-party websites is at your own risk and subject to the terms and conditions of use for such sites.

Liability of Pain Treatment Topics

The Pain-Topics.org site and its Contents are provided on an "as is" basis. Pain Treatment Topics makes no representations or warranties about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the Contents, including text, graphics, links, or other communications provided on or through the use of the Pain-Topics.org site.

Pain Treatment Topics does not manufacture or market any specific brands of prescription drugs, other healthcare products, or healthcare services. Any claims regarding efficacy or safety regarding those products or services are derived from manufacturer/service-provider documentation, research reports, evidence-based literature, or other specified reference sources.

In no event shall Pain Treatment Topics, its employees, associates, agents, service providers, or any third parties mentioned on the Pain-Topics.org site be liable for any damages (including, without limitation, incidental and consequential damages, personal injury/wrongful death, lost profits, or damages due to lost data or business interruption) resulting from the use of or inability to use the Pain Treatment Topics site or its Contents, whether based on warranty, contract, tort, or any other legal theory, and whether or not Pain Treatment Topics is advised of the possibility of such damages.

Indemnity

The users of this website assume all risks of use and shall indemnify and hold Pain Treatment Topics, and its employees, associates, advisors, agents, and service providers, harmless from and against any and all damages, liabilities, losses, costs, and expenses, including reasonable attorney's fees, arising out of or related to the use of information, products, or services mentioned or linked to at this site.

Pain Treatment Topics makes no claims that the Contents of Pain-Topics.org are appropriate for viewing or may be downloaded outside of the United States. Access to the Contents may not be legal by certain persons or in certain countries. If you access the Pain Treatment Topics site from outside the United States, you do so at your own risk and are responsible for compliance with the laws of your local jurisdiction.

These Terms & Conditions were reviewed and approved as of February 10, 2008.

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Privacy Statement

Your privacy is important to Pain Treatment Topics and, by using this Pain-Topics.org website, you agree to the terms of this Privacy Statement. Be advised that if you access a third-party site from a link on Pain-Topics.org any information you reveal on that site is not subject to this Privacy Statement. You should consult the privacy policies of each site that you visit.

Information We Collect

We collect minimal information that can be used at your request to contact you or to send to you notifications via e-mail of when Pain-Topics.org is updated. This information may consist of: name, e-mail address, profession, and country. The last two items are for purposes of understanding the overall composition of our audience to better serve their informational needs.

We only collect such information that you voluntarily provide in communications that you send through the "e-Notification Registration" form at our website or e-mails sent to Pain Treatment Topics personnel.

We use the information that you provide to send e-mail notifications (e-Notifications) or to respond to inquiries/comments/complaints. You can always change or opt-out of e-Notifications via the e-Notification Registration form at our website..

Pain Treatment Topics does not sell (or otherwise provide) any information submitted to our website to any Third Parties for their own marketing, promotional, or information-collection purposes.

General Use of Site

You may use our website in its entirety without registering or submitting any personal information. We do not obtain any information regarding site visitors through the use of “Cookies.” These are small computer files transferred to a site-user's computer hard drive. We do, however, unobtrusively monitor how many people access our site and which are the most popular features of our site.

Be advised that third parties may require registrations or use cookies when you click on links to their websites. We do not control the third party use of cookies, or how they manage the information that they gather. You should review the privacy policies of other sites that you visit via a link from our site to understand how they use the information they collect.

Nondisclosure of Your Information

As set forth in this Privacy Statement, Pain Treatment Topics will not disclose any information you submit through our site. However, under certain circumstances, we may be required to release such information: (1) to comply with valid legal requirements such as a law, regulation, search warrant, subpoena, or court order; or (2) in special cases, such as a physical threat to you or others. In the event that we are legally compelled to disclose your information to a third party, we will notify you unless doing so would violate the law or court order.

How Pain Treatment Topics Handles Privacy & Security Internally

Only a limited number of Pain Treatment Topics employees or associates are authorized to access your information. All Pain Treatment Topics employees must abide by our Privacy Statement and those who violate it are subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination. Although we will make every reasonable effort to protect your information from loss, misuse, or alteration by third parties, you should be aware that there is always some risk involved in transmitting information over the Internet. There also is some risk that thieves could find a way to thwart our security systems or those of our Internet Service Provider (ISP).

This Privacy Statement was reviewed and approved as of February 10, 2008.

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Additional Policies

Independent Selection of Editorial Content

Pain Treatment Topics is dedicated to complying with the standards of accrediting and other organizations promoting the highest ethical standards and principles in the presentation of accurate and useful medical information. These include: Guidelines for Medical and Health Information Sites on the Internet from the American Medical Association; the HONcode (Health on the Net Foundation Code of Conduct); PhRMA (Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America) Code on Interactions with Healthcare Professionals; ACCME (Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education) Standards for Commercial Support; ACPE (Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education); ANCC (American Nurses Credentialing Center of the American Nurses Association); and, US FDA (Food and Drug Administration) Guidance on Industry-Supported Scientific and Educational Activities.

Accordingly, Pain Treatment Topics has adopted high standards in the selection and presentation of all information at our website and via other communications. There is an intense emphasis on principles of evidence-based medicine in the research and development of all Pain-Topics.org contents, with clear and obvious indications of our information sources and the Pain Treatment Topics personnel or contractors involved in researching, writing, editing, and reviewing those materials.

Content residing at third-party sites, which are linked at Pain-Topics.org is reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief or assigned editor.

Original articles, reports, or other communications developed by Pain Treatment Topics staff are under the direction of the Editor-in-Chief and reviewed by Pain Treatment Topics Medical Advisors and/or other peer reviewers as appropriate. All such communications follow the highest standards and principles required by those organizations noted above.

How Sponsors and Affiliates Are Selected

Pain Treatment Topics is committedto providing scientifically valid, unbiased, and non-commercial content for healthcare providers on the causes and effective management of pain. Pain Treatment Topics relies on sponsor support in the form of unrestricted educational grants to fund the considerable costs of developing and providing this sort of quality information and education to a worldwide audience. Through such support, Pain Treatment Topics is able to provide these offerings via the Pain-Topics.org website absolutely free and without restriction to all site visitors.

Sponsors

Sponsors are organizations manufacturing and/or marketing products or services for sale to the healthcare industry. These organizations must meet high ethical standards and principles in the development, testing, promotion, and support of their products or services. Furthermore, those products or services must have demonstrable efficacy and safety for their intended applications.

Prospective sponsors are screened by the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Pain Treatment Topics and subsequently must be approved by our Quality Oversight Committee. Sponsors are required to support via unrestricted educational grant Pain Treatment Topics for a minimum period of one year. Sponsorship of individual, one-time, projects or discrete website components or sections is not accepted.

Sponsored product or service advertising notices, display advertising, banner ads, pop-up windows, or other marketing techniques that might detract from the professional mission and appearance of Pain-Topics.org are prohibited. Acceptance of sponsor support for Pain Treatment Topics and the Pain-Topics.org website shall not be considered an endorsement of the products or services offered by the sponsor.

Affiliates

Affiliates are associations, foundations, societies, journals, government agencies, educational institutions, and service organizations that are deemed to excellently serve the special interests and needs of the pain management community. By mutual agreement, Pain Treatment Topics affiliates or partners with such organizations for purposes of reciprocal promotion in order to achieve more effective and widespread communication of each organization's offerings and mission. This is a purely voluntary arrangement and there is no financial relationship or obligation binding Pain Treatment Topics and the Affiliate organization.

Prospective Affiliates are screened by the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Pain Treatment Topics and subsequently must be approved by our Quality Oversight Committee.

How Related Websites for Linking Are Selected

An important role of Pain-Topics.org is presenting Internet links to other noncommercial resources – in many cases those offered by associations, foundations, societies, journals, news sources, government agencies, educational institutions, and other organizations  – that serve the informational and educational needs of our audience.

Commercial sites with the primary purpose of selling specific products or services, those presenting unsubstantiated opinions or viewpoints that cannot be scientifically validated, and those presenting information in a way that might be confusing or misleading to our audience do not qualify for linking. All selected sites are expected at a minimum to qualify for the Health on the Net Foundation Code of Conduct (HONcode) for medical and health websites or similar self-regulatory best-practices guidelines. For reference, the HONcode may be accessed at: http://www.hon.ch/HONcode/.

All websites for linking are screened by the Pain Treatment Topics Editor-in-Chief and if there is any question regarding suitability approval of the Quality Oversight Committee is required.

Qualifications of Pain Treatment Topics Editorial Personnel

Researchers/Writers/Editors

Researchers, writers, and editors participating in the development of Pain Treatment Topics projects and contents of the Pain-Topics.org website are independent contractors. Their qualifications are screened and approved by the Editor-in-Chief and they are expected to have demonstrated a high level of competency in the development of healthcare informational and educational programs that adhere to principles of evidence-based medicine.

Medical Advisors/Contributing Faculty

Medical Advisors and Contributing Faculty are independent healthcare professionals who have appropriate education, training, credentials, and demonstrated expertise to support their participation as reviewers, subject matter experts, and/or advisors to Pain Treatment Topics. In some cases, these persons may participate as researchers/writers on special projects. They are screened and selected by the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Pain Treatment Topics and they may not be employees of or affiliated with Pain-Topics.org sponsor organizations.

Quality Oversight; Response to Inquiries

The Pain Treatment Topics Publisher/Editor-in-Chief has primary oversight responsibility for the quality of the Pain-Topics.org website and its Contents. Additionally, all information regarding medical products, services, diagnosis, or treatment is generally reviewed prior to posting by at least one named Medical Advisor or subject matter expert for general accuracy and consistency with sound clinical practice. Any mentions of product applications inconsistent with FDA-approved indications and/or prescribing practice (such as those representing off-label drug usage) are so indicated.

As necessary and appropriate, Pain Treatment Topics will convene a special Quality Oversight Committee to resolve questions, concerns, or complaints expressed by site visitors or others. This Committee will consist of the Pain Treatment Topics Publisher/Editor-in-Chief, one additional staff member or outside 3rd party, and one independent Medical Advisor. Receipt of such questions, concerns, or complaints will be acknowledged to the sender within 24-hours and a formal response from the Committee, as appropriate, will be provided within one week of original receipt.

How to Contact Pain Treatment Topics

If you have any comments, questions, or complaints regarding these Policies, or regarding any content at this website, please contact us at:

These Additional Policies were reviewed and approved as of February 10, 2008.

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