Conditions

Sciatica is the commonly used name for pain that arises from inflammation of the nerves that exit the spine and travel down the legs. This condition is also known as lumbar radiculopathy. It can be an extremely painful and life altering condition. There are many options for treatment including, physical therapy, medications, epidural injections, spinal cord stimulation, and surgery. The doctors at the Pain & Healing institute can explain all of these options during your office visit.

Spinal stenosis is a condition where the bony canals that hold your major nerves are smaller than normal. These small and narrow canals can put pressure on the nerves in the spinal canal or where the nerves exit the spinal canal.

Low back pain is one of the most common reasons for doctors visit in the United States. The spine is an incredible and complex marvel of technical engineering and diagnosing where the pain is coming can be equally complex. Low back pain can be caused by something as simple as a strained muscle, but can also be caused by arthritis in the joints of the back, inflammation of the intervertebral discs, or irritated nerves in the back.

Essential to life and functionality, chronic neck pain can render people nearly disabled. The neck is an intricate part of our anatomy with many potential causes of pain. Thankfully, there are also many potential treatments. Pain in the neck can typically arise from strained muscles, arthritis of the neck joints, damaged intervertebral discs, or irritated nerves in the neck.

The intervertebral disc is a vital part of the spine. It provides cushioning to our vertebrae, allows us to bend forward and backward, and creates room for nerves to come and go out of our backs. Injuries to the disc can cause the disc to leave its intended place in the back and move to irritate the spinal cord or nerves that exit the spine. The pain can be localized to the back or can cause pain that goes down the arm or legs. The good news is that herniated discs can be treated!

Cervical Radiculopathy is pain caused by irritation of the nerves that exit the neck and move to the shoulders and arms. It is similar to sciatica, however, in the neck. This pain can be felt as shooting and electric pain that goes from the fingers to the neck or vice versa. It can be caused by degeneration of the discs in the neck or arthritis of the spine.

Shoulder pain can come from many different places in the shoulder and the various articulations in the shoulder. For patients who have tried physical therapy, or want to try surgical alternatives, shoulder injections can prove to be a powerful solution. The Pain & Healing institute has multiple medications that can be injected and tailored specifically to your condition. Shoulder injections can be done with ultrasound guidance or with fluoroscopic guidance to make sure the medications are going to the right place.

Pain in the knee can come from many different places, including tears in the tendons and loss, loss of synovial fluid, and loss or cartilage. For patients who have tried physical therapy, or want to try surgical alternatives, knee injections can prove to be a powerful solution. The Pain & Healing institute has multiple medications that can be injected and tailed specifically to your condition. Knee injections can be done with ultrasound or with fluoroscopic guidance to make sure the medications are going to the right place.

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) was previously known as Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD). At the Pain & Healing institute we understand how terrible and painful this disease can be. Patients with CRPS typically have allodynia (pain to the touch), redness, skin changes, and constant burning pain typically in a leg or arm. The best results in treating CRPS come with early and aggressive treatment.

The facet joints are also known as the Zygapophysial joints or Z-Joints are the joints that attach each of your vertebrae in your back. Like any joint in the body, these joints can suffer from the normal wear and tear of daily activity and develop arthritis. Diagnosis of pain coming from these joints can be made with physical exam and confirmed with facet joint injections.

Myofascial pain is pain arising from the muscles and tendons that move the body. It can be located anywhere in the body and there are many different treatment options depending on the location. The doctors at the Pain & Healing Institute can evaluate you for specific treatments.

Sacroilitis pain is pain arising from the sacroiliac (SI) joint. The joint is where your sacrum attaches to your pelvis and can cause excruciating pain. It is often confused with pain arising from the back. The pain is typically stabbing and aching in nature and be sometimes be felt in the groin as well. The diagnosis is made with physical exam and confirmed with and injection of local anesthetic to numb the joint and then evaluate the patient.

At the Pain & Healing institute, we feel that no patient with a cancer diagnosis should suffer in pain. Cancers in various parts of the body can cause a large myriad of pain symptoms. For these patients we feel it is best to be aggressive with the pain and use all techniques possible to control the pain. This may include oral medication, destruction of the nerves transmitting the pain signals, epidural injections, or placement of powerful intrathecal pumps that can deliver pain medications directly to the spinal cord.

Pain from shingles can be terrible at the beginning and continue to cause pain long after the rashes go away. There are several treatment options available to treat shingles pain that can be discussed with you during your office visit at the Pain & Healing Institute.

At the Pain & Healing institute, we work closely with facial pain specialist and can perform procedures to help with the neuropathic pain affecting the face and neck. Procedures that can help with facial pain include sphenopalatine nerve blocks, occipital nerve blocks and stellate ganglion nerve blocks.

Sports injuries can cause havoc on your active lifestyle. However, many can be easily treated with non-surgical modalities. From muscle sprains to joint arthritis, the doctors at the Pain & Healing Institute want to get you moving!

Phantom limb pain can be notoriously difficult to treat, however, as with other chronic pain states, early and aggressive treatment can lead to excellent outcomes. There have recently been more advances in people with chronic phantom limb pain and there are many treatment options available.

Vertebral fractures can be a terrible cause of new onset pain in the back. Vertebral fractures can occur in the mid and lower back and generally localize to the back without radiating pain. The fractures can happen spontaneously in people with osteoporosis or with trauma. The diagnosis of vertebral fracture can be made with a CT scan or MRI.