Chronic Pain in a Victim of Attempted Homicide

This Medical Psychology Forum focuses on the problem of chronic pain in a patient with a neurologic deficit incurred when he became the victim of an attempted homicide. Murderous anger, wishes for revenge and intolerance of helplessness and passivity proved closely intertwined with the patient's awareness of pain and his capacity to bear it. The use of a dorsal column stimulator to “mask” the pain and the role of personality factors in his adjustment to disability are discussed.