Did You Visit Your Pain Management Specialist Today?

 Pain is an unpleasant feeling or sensation caused by an injury or illness that causes sheer discomfort and, at times and becomes severe, also causes physical and mental changes. A superficial injury causes slight pain, but if the pain gets severe due to nerve damage, it causes chronic pain and lasts quite long. Pain may be restricted to certain areas like the knee, joints, stomach, or head or spread throughout the body due to some ailment or fever. Most of the time, your healthcare advisor examines your body and suggests tests such as X-Ray and MRI to look for the cause of pain.

 

This is the time when a pain management specialist comes into the picture. Your pain management specialist develops a treatment plan to manage, relieve and reduce pain and help patients return to everyday activities by using minimum medication and avoiding surgeries, if any. These specialists are primarily medical or osteopathic doctors who are physiatrists or anesthesiologists by specialization and treat pain caused by disease, trauma, or disorder. Some physiatrists acquire advanced training in   Interventional Pain management. Pain management specialists have a total of nine years of medical training. These doctors have four years of medical education. Then, they get another four years of hands on training in fields like neurology or anesthesiology. Another year of sole training on pain treatment physical rehabilitation Examination may be physical or neurological. While physical examination includes assessing the patient's vital signs, the neurological examination includes examining the patient's sensory and motor capabilities, including balance, muscle strength, ability to walk, and muscle tone.

X-Ray- Also referred to as Radiography. It is the most commonly used test to examine the bone structure of any particular area of the body.

CT Scan- Also referred to as Computed Tomography. This is a 3d imaging study used to evaluate the bone and soft tissues of any specific area of the body.

MRI- Also referred to as Magnetic Resonance Imaging. This is commonly used for musculoskeletal evaluation to obtain details about bones and soft tissues.

PET Scan- Also referred to as Positron Emission Tomography. It makes use of a small number of radioactive isotopes to measure tissue changes at the cell level. This test is performed when doctors suspect or detect cancer.

Discography- This test helps the doctor evaluate the structural integrity of intervertebral discs as possible pain sources. This involves using a contrast dye injected into each disc to be tested through an X-Ray or CT scan.

NCS- Also referred to as Nerve Conduction Study. This test is conducted to test if there is any nerve damage in any specific area of the body. It helps detect nerve damage and helps in detecting the extent of nerve damage and if any nerves have been destroyed.

EMG- Also referred to as Electromyography. This method is used to detect muscle response and muscle damage. It can help distinguish between nerve and muscle disorders.

When do you need to see a doctor if you are experiencing knee pain?

Make a quick appointment with your doctor if your knee pain   was caused by some accident and is accompanied by fever, redness, tenderness, and warmth around the joint, and swelling. If the pain becomes severe and starts affecting your daily life activities and sleep patterns, you must mandatorily consult a pain management specialist. The pain must be appropriately treated to prevent it from getting worse and deteriorating to the point where surgery becomes necessary.

Conditions that respond well to Pain treatment are:

Sports injuries

General Body pain and ache

Headache and migraine

Arthritis and Osteoarthritis

Rheumatism

Muscle and ligament strain

Persistent knee, back, spine, shoulder, elbow, and hip pain, and stiffness