Helpful Treatments Can Be Received At A Tampa Pain Management Clinic

By Rachael Gutierrez


Many individuals for whom pain is a chronic condition seek treatment at a trustworthy Tampa pain management clinic. Such clinics offer help for those suffering from painful conditions for which long-term management is necessary. The approach taken with regard to one's treatment will depend on a variety of factors, including the underlying cause of the pain and the person's age and overall health.

Such discomfort can stem from a variety of conditions. These include headaches, tendinitis, shingles, bursitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, lupus, back injuries, degenerative disc disease, Crohn's disease, and arthritis. Other patients may experience painful symptoms from catastrophic illnesses such as cancer. Physicians often refer patients to the aforementioned clinics when their symptoms cannot be controlled by other methods.

As previously mentioned, the treatments recommended that such clinics will depend on the source of one's symptoms. Many times, a combination of therapies are used to treat clients. Facilities of this type also offer services to individuals whose pain is idiopathic, the latter of which means there is no known cause for the condition.

Treatments at medical establishments of this type typically include nerve blocks, physical therapy, and transcutaneous electrical stimulation. In certain cases, medications are also prescribed. However, the goal of pain management is to find an alternative to the constant use of drugs, especially those that are addictive in nature. In some instances, clinics of this kind will also perform diagnostic procedures to discover the area from which the symptoms are originating.

Chronic painful conditions are frequently treated with the aforementioned nerve block. One variation of this treatment that is frequently used is referred to as an intercostal nerve block. The latter involves injecting an anti-inflammatory medication and local anesthetic between the patient's ribs. It is usually the first course of action for individuals afflicted with symptoms of shingles, otherwise known as herpes zoster, which can be very painful.

Nucleoplasty is another treatment frequently offered by such facilities. It is completed by inserting a transmitter catheter into the nucleus of a person's disc. Multiple discs can be treated at the same time. The procedure involves the transmission of radio waves into the aforementioned nucleus in order to reduce swelling and alleviate pressure from nerve roots. It is considered minimally invasive.

Such clinics also sometimes recommend intrathecal drug delivery procedures. The latter involve the insertion of a catheter into spaces referred to as intrathecal areas. In this way, the medication is released directly into the spinal cord. Many medications can be effectively delivered in this way, and the procedure allows for smaller amounts of drugs to be used that would otherwise be necessary with traditional administration methods, such as medication that must be taken in pill form.

Physical therapy procedures are essentially always part of the treatment plans featured at any Tampa pain management clinic. Such treatments help strengthen one's muscles, and increase the patient's mobility. For certain individuals, medications can be eliminated when the benefits from physical therapy are realized. Ultimately, anyone suffering from any of the aforementioned conditions should discuss a visit to such a clinic with his or her family physician.




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