When Should You Consider Visiting an Interventional Pain Specialist?

Are you struggling with pain that does not seem to get better? Even with measures including physical therapy, activity modification, pain/anti-inflammatory medication, and rest, among other conservative options, the pain may fail to subside. Effective pain management, or lack thereof, can improve or wreck your quality of life. As you strive to up your efforts, you may have come across interventional pain management. Unlike conservative options, interventional pain specialist Houston strives to address the immediate problem and the root cause of your pain.

Interventional pain specialists are trained physicians who diagnose and treat varying pain types. The specialist uses their in-depth physiology pain knowledge to diagnose complicated pain cases. They use specialized tests to understand the pain causes and prescribe personalized treatment options. The specialists also handle various procedures. This includes spinal injections, nerve blocks, and other interventional pain management techniques. So, when should you consider visiting an interventional pain specialist?

Thorough diagnosis

Are you dealing with pain that is hard to pinpoint its cause? Your primary care doctor may not be best suited to diagnose complex pain. This means the treatment is not as effective. The specialists have skills in medical disciplines fields, including:

  • Oncology
  • Neurology

Internal medicine

  • Rheumatology, to mention few

This means they can effectively run in-depth diagnoses to establish the root cause. To uncover your pain’s root, the specialists consider:

  • Medical records
  • Review diagnostic studies
  • Conduct physical examination
  • Run neurological examination

This facilitates effective treatment by targeting the cause, not managing the symptoms.

Avoid surgery

While surgical treatment can be productive, you have to account for risks and complications. This includes infection and bleeding, among other complications. Moreover, recovery could mean taking time off, translating to lost income. Add the costs to the equation since surgery is expensive and the treatment becomes more demanding. The risk, recovery, and cost; unless it is the last resort, only a few people would entertain surgery. With interventional pain specialists, you can avoid the surgery path and explore more alternatives with promising potential.

Surgical recovery

You may need surgery to treat more than pain, such as when dealing with mechanical problems in the spine. A surgical procedure may be the best course of action, but consequential pain can affect recovery. With the help of an interventional pain specialist, you can find helpful guidance. This will help restore better function and start exercises and other physical therapy measures to facilitate more productive recovery.

Unexplained chronic pain

Are you experiencing pain with no clear association with a medical condition or injury? Nervous system abnormalities can cause unexplained chronic pain. Such pain may not respond to typical management measures. You can find effective options tailored to your situation with an interventional pain specialist. This eliminates concerns like developing drug dependence as you manage the ongoing pain. Such dependence causes more health problems, hence the need for more innovative approaches as offered by the interventional pain specialist.

Not all pain is bad, and we all experience it to a certain level. Nonetheless, you should not ignore the pain that lasts beyond a week or that comes and goes intermittently, affecting how you manage your routine. Visit William L Yancey, MD, today to learn more about interventional pain treatments and how they can help your situation.