Pain Management

But not everyone realizes that decades of research and work have led to the development of newer, more effective treatments for patients who have pain unrelated to surgery. Many techniques used to make surgery and childbirth virtually painless are now being used to relieve other types of pain.

Frequently the pain specialist and doctors work together to help you manage your pain. They all work together to evaluate your condition. Then the pain specialist will develop a treatment plan designed just for you.

When would I need to see a pain medicine doctor?

People develop pain for many reasons. Pain from a recent surgery, injury or medical illness is called acute pain. In many cases, this pain can be managed immediately and will usually get better in just a short time.

However our center treats patients with acute care by using certain treatments that can reduce your pain by 50% after the very first treatment. For more serious pain, however, your primary care doctor may ask a pain medicine doctor to help manage your pain while you are healing.

If your pain persists after the healing process should be over, you might have what is called chronic pain. If the current treatment you are receiving stops working or your pain begins to get worse over time, your primary care doctor may suggest that you see a pain medicine doctor.

What does a pain medicine doctor do? Can these doctors find out why I hurt?

Pain medicine doctors are experts at evaluating why you are having pain as well as treating the pain itself. Some of the more common pain problems they manage include: arthritis, back and neck pain, nerve pain, migraine headaches, shingles, neuropathy, carpal tunnel syndrome, sciatica, shoulder, knee, ankle and foot pain.

They also manage acute pain caused by surgery, a debilitating illness or a serious injury. Examples include: pain after a knee-joint replacement, pain during recovery from a car accident or a work related accident. The pain medicine doctor will work closely with your primary care doctor.

• Pain management doctors will review your medical records and X-rays as needed.
• They will ask you to describe your pain in detail, such as where it hurts, for how long, what makes the pain worse or what makes it feel better.
• They may ask you to fill out a detailed questionnaire that helps them to assess the impact that your pain is having on your lifestyle and if it is interfering with your daily activities.
• They also will do a complete orthopedic and neurological evaluation on you.
• They may need to order other tests and will then review all of their findings to determine what is causing your pain and how the problem can be corrected.

Treatments for Managing Pain

Medication alone may not be enough to manage certain kinds of pain. Some medicines are more effective in fighting pain when they are combined with other methods of treatment. In some cases, the patient's pain condition may respond to treatment instead of medication. In fact, for some patients, certain therapies may eventually replace the need for taking any pain medicine, or less of it, over time. Here are just some of the available treatments being used successfully to treat pain patients.

Physical and aquatic therapy - The pain management specialist may suggest an exercise program tailored for you that will increase your daily functioning and decrease your pain. Other treatments may include whirlpool therapy, ultrasound and deep-muscle massage.

Electrical stimulation - We are using the latest equipment for pain reduction including laser, auricular therapy,   We have found that many sources of pain derive from unhealthy nerves, not unhealthy muscle, bones, or organs.  Our center also has available TENS, Interferrential Therapy, and we are constantly reviewing and evaluating all new therapies so that we can offer the very best and the very latest technologies to our patients.

Laser Treatment - This practice uses a cold laser to treat specific points on the skin to decrease pain.

Psychological support - Many patients who are in pain feel the emotional effects of suffering along with the physical aspects of pain. These may include feelings of anger, sadness, hopelessness or despair. In addition, pain can alter one's personality, disrupt sleep, interfere with work and relationships and often have a profound effect on family members. Support and counseling from our Life Coach, combined with a comprehensive pain treatment program, may be needed to help you manage your condition. These trained professionals also can teach you additional self-help therapies such as relaxation training or biofeedback to relieve pain, lessen muscle spasms and reduce stress.

Pain Treatment Centers

Because this is a highly specialized field of medicine that is still growing, not every community has a pain treatment center yet. These centers are called by many different names, including: pain clinic, pain management center, pain center, and pain unit or pain service. Our Centr e offers many modalities to help reduce various forms of acute and chronic pain.

Throughout the generations, pain has been a unique, often misunderstood condition that affects every age, gender, ethnic and social group all over the world. It can occur for many reasons, and there is no one "silver bullet" that can cure pain. Yet great progress in pain medicine has been made in recent years and is expected to advance further as doctors learn more about the causes of pain.

Dr. Cichowicz is a Diplomate of the American Academy of Pain Management.

For more information on Pain Management or to set up an appointment please call: (630) 833-4007 or (708) 656-7000.