Severe joint pain, back pain, and other orthopedic conditions can prevent you from carrying out your normal everyday activities, from working to driving to grocery shopping. To the rescue is professional medical pain management, which harnesses various techniques to help mitigate acute or chronic pain.
There are some common misconceptions and myths surrounding medical pain management. Let’s address those issues, talk about how pain management really works, and explain where you can go here in Southeast Michigan for effective pain-relief treatment.
Myth #1: Pain Management Doctors Always Prescribe Opioids
Actually, pain management involves a variety of techniques and non-opioid medications to provide long-term pain relief. Inflammation can be a major cause of pain, so corticosteroid injections are frequently administered by pain specialists to quell pain rather than prescribing opioid medication.
To treat back pain, physicians typically use injections that consist of a local anesthetic and/or corticosteroid. These non-opioid treatments can include nerve blocks, epidural injections, and facet joint injections. Your pain management doctor may also recommend and perform radiofrequency ablation, which stops the pain signals from an irritated nerve from being sent to your brain.
Myth #2: Pain Management Treatments Don’t Work as Well as Surgery
On the contrary, pain management techniques can help to provide long-term relief from acute or chronic pain conditions, avoiding the need for surgery. In the case of treating back pain or pain emanating from the spinal cord, surgery is usually only recommended when other treatments have been fully explored and have not worked successfully.
Myth #3: Resting Is Enough to Ease My Pain Symptoms
A period of rest may work to address pain caused by acute conditions such as a sprain or a strain, but chronic pain can actually be made worse with too much rest. Instead, certain aerobic, strengthening, and flexibility exercises can help to ease chronic pain. Speak to a medical specialist to find out which exercises are right for you.
Myth #4: Prescription Pain Medication Is Only for Older People
Nonsurgical pain management can effectively address pain and inflammation in people of virtually all ages, including young athletes and active adults. Osteoarthritis is wear-and-tear arthritis that can affect young athletes who are performing repetitive movements which are causing deterioration of the cartilage in one or more joints, and this can cause ongoing pain that warrants long-term relief.
Myth #5: Pain Treatments Cannot Be Used with Other Treatments
Whereas sometimes a pain management technique may be used as a standalone treatment, it is usually even more effective when used in conjunction with other treatments – such as physical therapy. Combining treatments can help to successfully target the source of pain or stiffness, improve function and mobility, strengthen the affected area, and prevent the issue from reoccurring in the future.
Pain Management for Back Pain in Rochester Hills, Michigan
If you have ongoing back pain and would like to find out your options for pain management, visit the spine specialists at Ahlgren Spine. To schedule an appointment, contact our friendly staff today by calling us at (248) 215-8080 or by filling out our easy-to-use appointment request form online now. We look forward to serving you!
