When All Other Treatments Fail, How APC Found A Solution for Severe Chronic Pain- Check Out Stormey’s Story
By Austin Horrocks, D.O. and contributions from Stormey Perritt Stormey had a hip replacement with a new ball and socket joint. Unfortunately, there was a complication and the bone cement came out of the confined hip area to the surrounding muscles and nerves. In her case, it was quite severe. The cement had been rubbing against nearby nerves, causing friction, significant pain, and nerve damage in the local area and in the lower spine. She said she was experiencing a significantly reduced quality of life due to the pain and could not live or complete daily tasks without thinking about the pain.
Types of Post-Surgical Pain and How To Manage Each
By Matthew Hellman, M.D. Post-surgical pain is pretty common and has a number of possible causes, including tissue damage. Tissue damage can happen at the point of incision, during the procedure itself, or at the closing of the wound. You may also experience other forms of pain like muscle and joint pain in the nearby extremities that results due to a loss in mobility or overworking, due to surgery in a central area of your body that is either making you not able to move those other extremities or rely more heavily on them. For example, if you had back surgery and
CBD: Benefits and Uses
By Matt Sage CBD is the abbreviation for Cannabidiol which derives from the hemp plant, along with medical marijuana. Unlike medical marijuana, which includes tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), CBD does not result in the “high” feeling. According to the World Health Organization, CBD exhibits no effects indicative of any abuse or dependency. Given there is no evidence of health related problems associated with using CBD, it tends to be a good alternative to use for a variety of diseases related to physical, emotional, and mental pain. Is CBD healthy and what can it be used for? It is hard to say categorically whether CBD is
TREATING CHRONIC PAIN CAN BE DONE COMPASSIONATELY – CHECK OUT SHARON’S STORY
By Sharon Black The majority of Americans live with some sort of pain, back pain being the most common. When I met Sharon, she was one of the many Americans that suffers daily with pain in her lower back and knees. It affected her mobility and her day-to-day activities significantly. Upon my first assessment, Sharon was suffering from pain due to her facet joints, the joints that run along the back of her spine. I confirmed my first assumption was correct after I did x-ray guided nerve block injections which demonstrated that her facet joints were, in fact, the source of her
You Might Be Using the Wrong Approach When Treating Pain at Home! Try Cold Therapy Instead
By Advanced Pain Care Cold therapy, or cryotherapy, is a healing technique that exposes parts of the body or the whole body to controlled periods of extremely cold temperatures. Cold therapy can be used for a localized, smaller area like a joint or muscle, or larger swaths of the body. It can also range from a simple ice pack to much more advanced techniques like nitrogen chambers. Cold temperatures decrease blood flow to the area being treated for a short period, which can aid in reducing swelling, inflammation, and even nerve activity. In turn, this will reduce pain around the muscles, joints,
Lingering Pain From an Old Injury? How to Address Pain That Doesn’t Go Away
By Clayton Adams, M.D. Lingering pain can come from many different sources: an old trauma, surgery pain, or pretty much any injury that should have gotten better, but hasn’t. It’s usually a frustrating experience to be saddled with pain when it should have gone away. We know that any kind of pain can affect our mindset and mental health. This is especially true with lingering pain or pain that doesn’t go away, because there’s a whole other dimension of helplessness that colors the experience. However, the unfortunate truth is that the experience of pain varies widely and no two people have the
Patient Spotlight: Two Very Different Total Joint Replacement Surgeries
By Vernon Rerich When I learned I had to get both knees replaced, it was a daunting thought. How could I take enough time off of work to get both surgeries and fully recover? As someone who works a physically-demanding job, it seemed even more far-fetched. However, these were the circumstances I found myself in last year when my job gave me six months off to get my procedures done. It was already going to be a tight squeeze, but when the ice storm hit Texas, I lost two weeks. I was worried that I wasn’t going to be able to get
How We at APC Address Mental Health and Chronic Pain Together
By Robin Hendershot, LPC You might not think that a pain care clinic pays much attention to mental health, but one of the things that I love most about working here is being part of a team that knows the importance of addressing both chronic pain and mental health together. I’d estimate that 50%-70% of the clients here at Advanced Pain Care have some sort of combination of chronic pain and depression or anxiety symptoms. That’s a huge number. Let’s answer some questions about how we at Advanced Pain Care address mental health and chronic pain together. Can chronic pain come from depression or
Have Chronic Back Pain? It Might Be Sciatica
By Paul H Le, M.D. About 35% of the population over 40 will have back pain, many of which is chronic pain. There are all different types of back pain, but one of the more common ones is Sciatica. By learning more about signs and symptoms, it’ll be easier for you to get help early on so you can treat your pain easier. Read on to learn more about a common back pain that radiates all the way down to your legs and what you can do if you think you’re suffering from it. What is Sciatica? Essentially, Sciatica is radiating pain, typically down the
Rheumatoid Arthritis: Everything You Need to Know
Dr. Samuel Pegram Rheumatoid Arthritis, might not be the most common arthritic conditions, it is most certainly one to be aware of. Contrary to initial thought, it’s actually an auto-immune disease that, if not addressed early, can cause long-term damage on the bones. It can start with minor discomfort in small joints, and when more severe, can aggravate the internal organs. What Causes Rheumatoid Arthritis? There are several answers, and none of them have been totally confirmed. Like most auto-immune diseases, there’s a genetic component and then there’s an outside factor. We do know that patients with Rheumatoid have abnormalities on the short arm