|
Table of Contents
-
What
is chronic pain?
-
What
types of pain can be treated at The Clinic?
-
What
are some of the procedures administered?
-
When
should a person seek treatment for chronic pain?
-
How
much pain reduction can a person expect?
-
How
does a person seek care for chronic pain?
-
What
types of insurance are accepted at The Pain Management Clinic of Laredo?
 Chronic
pain is pain that no longer serves a biological function, that is, it does not
provide a reason for being there. For example, you feel pain when you touch a
hot iron with your hand because your "biological function" or thought
processes in the brain, tell you to remove it, to prevent burning your hand.
Chronic pain has no purpose, in that doing something about it will prevent
further bodily injury, as in the case with the iron, which prevented the burn.
Therefore, chronic pain does not respond to treatments which are not specific to
the pain, such as over-the-counter drugs. Many times, the pain has bothered the
sufferer for a long time.
Lower
back, neck, and joint pain, migraine headaches, work and sports-related
injuries, abdominal and pelvic pain are the most frequently treated types of
pain at The Clinic. This pain is often described as being sharp, burning, dull
or pressure. Of course, other types have been seen as well, such as pain related
to cancer, osteoporosis or after surgery, with the pain described in the same
way. Chronic pain can occur for many reasons, and there are solutions for all.
The
latest pain management techniques available are used at The Clinic. Once a
"bad nerve" has been located through evaluation and testing,
non-invasive nerve blocks can provide relief. In additional, medication may be
prescribed, and steroids may be injected. Once the pain has been controlled,
physical or occupational therapy may be recommended to rebuild the unused
muscles near where the pain was.
Patients
should look into pain management when they have sought relief with
non-pain-specific treatments and have not been effective, and before they begin
to experience stress from the pain and are less productive lives. Chronic pain
demands attention that a pain management specialist can treat much more
effectively because he or she has the training and the tools to identify the
source and prescribe therapy.
The
amount of pain reduction is never certain at the beginning of treatment.
Typically, a patient will receive 50% to 100% reduction in pain through pain
management treatment. Unfortunately, chronic pain is like many other chronic
illnesses in that frequently the treatment can only reduce the symptoms.
It
is recommended that a patient first visit his or her primary care physician who
may be working with the pain. Of course, self-referrals are accepted, if one's
health plan allows it.
The
Clinic accepts and will file most major insurance company, Medicare and Worker's
Compensation claims.
Back to Top
|
6801 McPherson, Suite
334