By most conventional healthcare standards, there are generally four types of clinics that treat pain:
- Clinics that focus on surgical procedures, such as spinal fusions and laminectomies
- Clinics that focus on interventional procedures, such as epidural steroid injections, nerve blocks, and implantable...
- Clinics that focus on long-term opioid (i.e., narcotic) medication...
What is a pain clinic and how can it help?
If pain is regular part of your life, a pain clinicmay be able to help you. What Is a Pain Clinic? Also called pain management clinics, they're health care facilities that focus on the diagnosis and management of chronic pain. There are two kinds. One focuses on procedures to deal with specific types of pain, like neck and back pain.
What specialties are involved in pain management?
Other medical specialties represented in pain management are anesthesiology, neurosurgery, and internal medicine. Your coordinating physician may also refer you for services from occupational medicine specialists, social workers and/or alternative and complementary medicine practitioners.
What is the goal of pain management?
The goal of pain management is to minimize pain, rather than eliminate it. This is because quite often it is not possible to completely do away with it. Two other goals are to improve function and increase the quality of life. These three goals go hand-in-hand. 4
What does a pain doctor do?
Pain doctors may specialize in the management of specific kinds of pain, for example: spine or neck pain, arthritis pain, cancer pain, fibromyalgia, migraine headache or nerve pain.
What is the role of the pain management team?
A pain management specialist develops a treatment plan to relieve, reduce, or manage pain and help patients return to everyday activities quickly without surgery or heavy reliance on medication.
What is the benefit of pain management?
These potential benefits include: better control of pain, which may improve how you feel and function physically; an increased ability to function in personal and professional relationships, as well as an improved sense of overall well-being; and or a decrease in the intensity of pain.
What do they use for pain management?
NSAIDs include aspirin compounds (Excedrin®), ibuprofen (Advil® and Motrin®) and naproxen sodium (Aleve®). Combination: Some pain relievers contain both acetaminophen and aspirin (an NSAID). Certain OTC headache medicines also have caffeine. Topical: You apply this pain medication directly to your skin.
What should I not tell my pain management doctor?
Don'ts: Things Pain Patients Wish Doctors Would AvoidDon't label patients. ... Don't tell patients the pain is 'in our heads. ... Don't tell us to just 'live with the pain.
What are the 11 components of pain assessment?
Patients should be asked to describe their pain in terms of the following characteristics: location, radiation, mode of onset, character, temporal pattern, exacerbating and relieving factors, and intensity. The Joint Commission updated the assessment of pain to include focusing on how it affects patients' function.
What are 3 different types of pain management?
Pain Management for Specific Types of Pain Acute pain: nonopioids, weak opioids, opioids, nonpharmacological treatments such as ice or bioelectric therapy. Chronic pain: nonopioids, weak opioids, opioids, antidepressants, capsaicin cream, nonpharmacological treatments such as bioelectric therapy, radiation therapy.
What does chronic pain do to a person?
Chronic pain can interfere with your daily activities, such as working, having a social life and taking care of yourself or others. It can lead to depression, anxiety and trouble sleeping, which can make your pain worse. This response creates a cycle that's difficult to break.
How does painkiller know where the pain is?
NSAIDs don't actually "know" where the pain is, but they only work on areas associated with inflammation — aka where pain usually is. Price said that the painkiller distributes itself evenly throughout your body through your bloodstream without any specific target in mind.
What is a pain clinic?
Another type of pain clinic is one that focuses primarily on prescribing opioid, or narcotic, pain medications on a long-term basis. The practice of long-term opioid management for chronic, non-cancer pain began in earnest a little more than twenty years ago. This practice is controversial because the medications are addictive. There is by no means agreement among healthcare providers that it should be provided as commonly as it is. 20, 21
What is chronic pain rehabilitation?
Chronic pain rehabilitation programs are another type of pain clinic and they focus on teaching patients how to manage pain and return to work – and to do so without the use of opioid medications. They have an interdisciplinary staff of psychologists, physicians, physical therapists, nurses, and oftentimes occupational therapists and vocational rehabilitation counselors.
Why is opioid treatment controversial?
This practice is controversial because the medications are addictive. There is by no means agreement among healthcare providers that it should be provided as commonly as it is.20, 21.
What is fusion surgery?
A fusion is a surgical procedure that joins one or more vertebrae together with the use of bone taken from another area of the body or with metallic rods and screws. Patients often think of spine surgery as a cure for chronic neck or back pain.
What to keep in mind when going to a pain clinic?
When going to a pain clinic, one thing to keep in mind is that not all pain clinics are alike. It's important to know about the differences between them. When going to a pain clinic, one thing to keep in mind is that not all pain clinics are alike. It's important to know about the differences betwee...
Can back surgery help with neck pain?
In most cases of chronic backor neck pain, the goal for surgery is to either stabilize the spine or reduce pain, but not get rid of it altogether for the rest of one's life. Patients are commonly surprised to learn that there are few studies on the effectiveness of back surgeries for chronic spine-related pain.
Why is my doctor sending me to pain management?
Your primary care doctor can usually treat any initial pain problems, but sometimes you need more specialized care. Pain management doctors can help to direct your care in a stepwise and safe fashion. If you need a pain management doctor, your primary care physician can recommend one in your area.
What should I expect from a pain management doctor?
A pain management doctor is trained in various techniques and procedures to diagnose and address your pain. In addition to excellent medical care, your pain management doctor should offer you good communication and listening skills, medical experience, and compassion for your condition.
What medicines do pain management doctors prescribe?
Most pain medicine specialists will address your pain in a stepwise fashion, choosing the safest medicine with the least side effects that provides the best relief for your pain.
Can I treat pain without medicine?
Medicine is not always the best option for pain management. In many cases, you may be able to combine lower doses of pain medicine with non-drug options for a greater effect.
How do I change my pain management doctor?
If you feel that your pain is not being addressed adequately, speak to your pain management doctor or primary care doctor. It may be that you need added therapies or adjustments to your medication to help with any breakthrough pain you may be experiencing.
Will I get addicted to pain medicine?
Addiction is a possibility for anyone taking an opioid pain medicine, especially if they are misused. Regular use of opioids can lead to dependence upon the medication.
What is the difference between addiction and dependence?
Addiction is the compulsive use of prescription of illicit drugs, with drug-seeking behaviors, despite a known harmful effect. The person cannot stop use of the drug and it interferes with work or family obligations. Dependence, tolerance and withdrawal can occur along with addiction.
What is pain management?
Updated on January 26, 2020. Pain management is a branch of medicine that applies science to the reduction of pain. It covers a wide spectrum of conditions, including neuropathic pain, sciatica, postoperative pain, and more. Pain management is a rapidly growing medical specialty that takes a multi-disciplinary approach to treating all kinds ...
Who does best with a pain management program?
Back and neck pain sufferers who do best with a pain management program, says Yonan, are those who have had multiple back surgeries, including failed surgeries, and are still in pain, those with neuropathy, and those for whom it has been determined that surgery would not benefit their condition.
What is the best treatment for chronic pain?
Interventional treatment, such as injections or spinal cord stimulation. Physical therapy to increase range of motion and strength, and to prepare you to go back to work. Psychiatry to deal with depression, anxiety, and/or other issues that may accompany your chronic pain.
Is pain a disease?
While some types of pain can be chronic, such as headaches, and others acute, such as from surgery, the field of pain management treats all of it as a disease. This allows for the application of science, and the latest advances in medicine to relieve your pain.
Is pain clinic patient centric?
Ideally, treatment at a pain clinic is patient-centric, but in reality, this may depend on the available resources of the institution. Currently, there are no established standards for the types of disciplines that must be included, and this is another reason why treatment offerings will vary from clinic to clinic.
