If you’re suffering from chronic pain, you need more than medication to improve your quality of life. The team at Tarpon Interventional Pain & Spine Care, with offices in West Plano and North Plano, Texas, specialize in helping patients with a range of chronic neuromusculoskeletal pain conditions and offer the latest treatment options. Find out how a customized pain management plan could help you lead a happier, healthier life by scheduling an appointment online or by phone (972) 596-1059 today.

Pain Management Q & A

What is pain management?

Pain management is a combination of treatments used to help relieve symptoms of chronic pain. Many of the causes of chronic pain are incurable, and managing the pain in the most effective way possible allows patients to lead a more active, happier life despite their condition.

Pain management can include a variety of treatment options, from lifestyle changes to medication, physical therapies, regenerative medicine, and in some cases surgical intervention.

When you have chronic pain, you need as accurate a diagnosis as possible and then a customized care plan that optimizes symptom relief.

What is chronic pain?

Put simply, chronic pain is constant or almost constant pain that lasts more than three months. There are many conditions that cause chronic pain, including:

  • Fibromyalgia
  • Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS)
  • Reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD)
  • Peripheral neuropathy
  • Arthritis
  • Back pain
  • Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS)
  • Sciatica
  • Scoliosis
  • Whiplash injuries
  • Spinal stenosis
  • Degenerative disc disease
  • Neuropathic pain
  • Migraines

The expert pain physicians at Tarpon Interventional Pain & Spine Care are highly qualified in all aspects of diagnosing and treating chronic neuromusculoskeletal pain and use innovative treatments in their pain management plans.

How is chronic pain diagnosed?

Chronic pain isn’t always easy to diagnose, and many conditions have few if any quantifiable characteristics that show up on tests.

Blood tests and diagnostic imaging can help with determining the cause of pain, and you may need to undergo a range of tests to assist with diagnosis, such as:

  • X-ray
  • CT scan
  • MRI
  • Ultrasound
  • Electromyography (EMG)
  • Nerve conduction study (NCS)
  • Nerve block

One of the most important ways to reach an accurate diagnosis is to describe your symptoms and the way you characterize pain to your doctor. For example, how often you experience pain, the intensity of your pain, how long it lasts, what triggers it, and information about any other sensory problems you’re experiencing can help your doctor reach an accurate diagnosis.

What approaches are used in pain management?

While there’s no cure for chronic pain in many cases, there does exist a range of treatment options that can help ease the symptoms, such as:

  • Physical therapy
  • Pain medication
  • Anticonvulsant medication
  • Antidepressants for pain control
  • Epidural injections
  • Nerve blocks
  • Regenerative medicine

Improving your general health can make a significant difference to chronic pain, and a key part of your pain management program is assessing lifestyle factors such as diet, exercise, stress levels, and smoking cessation.

If you’re living with chronic pain, there are ways to lessen the debilitating symptoms and improve your quality of life. To find out how, call Tarpon Interventional Pain & Spine Care or schedule an appointment online today.