Reimagining Relief: Fostering Innovation in Pain Management

Pain is one of the most common reasons people seek medical care, and one of the most complex to treat. Recognizing that September is Pain Awareness Month, an entire month dedicated to a global campaign that aims to spread awareness of chronic pain, UPMC Enterprises is highlighting its multifaceted approach to supporting innovation that can help the UPMC health system and its patients who struggle with unbearable symptoms each day.

The Challenges of Traditional Pain Management

For decades, pain management has been non-coordinated and reactive. Patients often face a maze of disconnected providers, non-holistic care plans, and providers who may be overly reliant on opioid prescribing.

The consequences have been shown to be profound: the chance for increased risk of addiction, diminished quality of life, and escalating health care costs.

This often leaves patients navigating their pain alone, often without a clear path to recovery or a care team that truly understands their needs. The result is a cycle of temporary fixes rather than lasting solutions, undermining both physical and emotional well-being.

UPMC Enterprises: A Strategic Innovation Partner

UPMC Enterprises is uniquely positioned to scale insights from UPMC clinicians into transformative solutions. By investing in companies that align with our mission, we’re accelerating the future of pain care. 

Advancing Non‑Opioid Therapies Through Latigo

In the life sciences arena, UPMC Enterprises recently invested in Latigo Biotherapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech company developing best-in-class oral Nav1.8 inhibitors, which block the transmission of pain signals to the spine and brain.

These non-opioid treatments directly target the source of pain, and offer safer, long-term solutions for both acute and chronic conditions.

Latigo recently reported positive Phase 1 results for LTG-001, its lead non-opioid pain medicine candidate. LTG-001 is an oral, selective Nav1.8 inhibitor in development to treat acute pain at its source. In the Phase 1 first-in-human clinical trial, data showed that LTG-001 was well tolerated with rapid absorption. Following successful Phase 1 study, Latigo is currently enrolling patients in Phase 2 study for dental pain and abdominoplasty. 

LTG-305, an oral, selective Nav1.8 inhibitor, is currently in Phase 1 clinical trials and is potentially a best-in-class non-opioid therapeutic candidate for the treatment of chronic pain.

The Phase 1 trial is designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of LTG-305 in healthy volunteers through single-ascending dose and multiple-ascending dose cohorts. 

Leaning on the expertise from a variety of clinical faculty across UPMC, UPMC Enterprises immediately recognized how Latigo’s innovative therapeutics have the potential to fundamentally redefine how pain is treated, aligning with UPMC’s goal in offering effective relief without the risks commonly associated with opioid-based therapies, such as the increased risk of dependence.

Scaling Digital Solutions with Glimmer Health

Glimmer Health, co-launched by UPMC Enterprises and Redesign Health earlier this year, is reimagining chronic pain management through a multimodal, digital approach. Glimmer Health provides primary care physicians with a telehealth extension of their practice by offering access to treatment plans tailored to each patient’s needs. This digital-first model enhances continuity of care, reduces barriers to access, and supports long-term well-being. 

Glimmer Health leverages the clinical model established at UPMC to deliver holistic care. The approach, championed by Ajay Wasan, MD, MSc, professor of anesthesiology and psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh and vice chair for pain medicine at Pitt and UPMC, emphasizes multidimensional assessment. For example, evaluating how pain spreads, and its impact on function, mood, and sleep. This allows for the creation of comprehensive, individualized treatment plans.

Glimmer Health also provides care managers and social workers trained in pain management, who provide seamless care coordination and regularly consult with patients to ensure they are adhering to the care plans and are most effectively achieving pain relief.

UPMC Pain Management: A Foundation of Clinical Expertise

At UPMC Enterprises, we believe that innovation in pain management must reflect the same holistic, patient-centered model that defines UPMC’s clinical care and approach to pain management.  

UPMC Pain Management offers a comprehensive process for treating acute and chronic pain through personalized care plans, and draws on a range of specialties including orthopedics, rehabilitation, psychiatry, neurology, and behavioral health.

Members of UPMC’s pain management team, including clinicians, occupational and physical therapists, psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers, and more collaborate to best serve the individual patient based on their needs.

Their multidisciplinary team evaluates each patient’s symptoms, goals, and treatment options. This innovative care model prioritizes holistic, non-invasive interventions to reduce reliance on high-cost procedures and opioid medications, aiming to deliver safer, more sustainable pain management solutions. By shifting the focus toward preventative and integrative approaches, it supports long-term healing and improved patient outcomes.

Based on a patient’s needs and response to certain options, the team will explore noninvasive therapies like acupuncture, physical therapy, and counseling with advanced interventional techniques such as nerve blocks, spinal cord stimulators, and infusion therapies. The program also emphasizes movement-based rehabilitation, medication tapering, and psychological support to promote long-term healing and reduce reliance on opioids.

Ultimately, treatment plans are individualized and collaborative, tailored to help patients improve their quality of life, learn to manage pain symptoms, and regain control of their life.

Expanding Options for Pain Management at UPMC

Over 12 years, UPMC’s pain clinics pioneered comprehensive assessment and multimodal treatment approaches applied to every patient, led by Dr. Wasan. Dr. Wasan and UPMC Pain Management clinicians showed that high quality, comprehensive pain care can be delivered by telemedicine.  

Additionally, UPMC developed the Opioid-Free Surgical Pain Management Program at UPMC Shadyside. This initiative was developed by Shiv K. Goel, MD, chief anesthesiologist at UPMC Shadyside, and Jacques E. Chelly, MD, PhD, MBA, director of Acute Pain Clinical Research, director of the Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, and co-director of the Center for Innovation in Pain Care. 

Launched in 2024, this first-of-its-kind program for western Pennsylvania enrolled 39 patients in its first few months and allows patients to choose how they manage surgical and post-op pain, including regional anesthesia, nerve blocks, non-opioid IV medications, aromatherapy, hypnosis and biomedical devices.

A Vision for the Future

UPMC Enterprises is proud to champion innovation in pain management through strategic investments and clinical collaboration.

By investing in both digital health solutions and life sciences and leveraging the clinical expertise of our renowned physicians, UPMC Enterprises is bridging the gap between technology and biology to transform how pain is understood, treated, and lived with to improve quality of life for patients.

This integrated approach not only enhances patient outcomes but also empowers providers with the tools and insights needed to deliver comprehensive, coordinated care. As we continue to invest in groundbreaking solutions, our commitment remains clear: to transform the experience of pain into one of healing, resilience, and hope.

Next Steps

• Visit Latigo and Glimmer to learn more about each company.
• Explore our full portfolio of innovative companies in digital health and life sciences.

Note: UPMC has a financial interest in Glimmer Health and Latigo Biotherapeutics.