Chronic pain can be very disruptive to daily living but treatment with interventional pain management, a method that involves blocking pain in the body using different pain management techniques, can significantly reduce and relieve pain as well as restore quality of life for patients suffering from long-term pain. If you live in the Atlanta area and are looking for a specialized Atlanta Interventional Pain Management clinic with caring interventional pain specialists the Atlanta Health Center is dedicated to providing quality and customized care for patients living in Greater Atlanta and surrounding cities.
Interventional pain management is the treatment of pain with other methods when pain medication and other conservative options such as physical therapy have failed. This method of pain therapy is also known as non-pharmacological treatment for pain, meaning that agents other than medications are the basis of the treatment protocol. Interventional pain management is typically performed by interventional pain specialists who are trained to perform the various techniques that comprise this method of pain management.
There are different options for interventional pain management and the goal is to determine the most effective and individualized treatment option for patients based on the specifics of their chronic pain including the type of pain, severity of pain, location of pain, pain triggers, medical history and goal for therapy. A few examples of common and effective interventional pain management techniques include infusion where medication goes directly into the patient’s body, injections where medication is injected to a localized area of pain, stimulation where electrical currents are sent to pain trigger points to block pain perception, radio frequency nerve ablation (RFA) where radio waves are used to heal nerve tissues and reduce nerve pains, and nerve blocks where pain signals are blocked from reaching the brain via the nerves.
There are many reasons for using Interventional Pain Management to improve chronic pain but a few of them include:
- Reduce Drug Side Effects
Most interventional pain management procedures are non-pharmacologic treatments which means that patients won’t need to take medications to benefit from the technique. By reducing or eliminating pain medications, patient can get a break from long-term side effects of certain analgesics like narcotics that cause sedation, nausea, dizziness, constipation, respiratory depression amongst others. By switching to interventional pain management therapies like nerve blocks, radio frequency nerve ablation, and stimulation, patient get pain control without the associated side effects of pain medications.
- Alternative to Conservative Methods
When conservative methods such as pain medication and physical therapy fail to control chronic or long-term pain, or, in certain situations where a patient cannot take certain medication because of life-threatening allergies and intolerance to that medication, a more aggressive non-pharmacological treatment for pain like interventional pain management is often the next preferred treatment option. So, when patients have no other ways of managing their pain, interventional pain management is a viable option to help patient regain their quality of life.
- Localized and Targeted Treatment
Some pains are limited and focused on just one section of the body such as the knee joint, elbow, shoulder, hip, ankle, spine, and other part of the body. These localized pains are best treated with interventional pain management technique such as direct injections of medications like steroids (an anti-inflammatory agent) and lidocaine (a numbing agent) into the specific area of pain. This process is typically performed by highly-trained interventional pain specialists who not only inject the appropriate does of medications using the right techniques, but also manage the outcome of the therapy.
- Holistic and Wellness Approach to Treatment
Interventional pain management treats your body as a whole, from a holistic and wellness approach. Interventional pain specialists work with you to diagnose your unique pain and understand how your specific pain situation affects your quality of life. Based on your medical history, pain triggers, location of pain, and goal for pain management, the specialist treats your body as a whole and recommends the best and most effective approach for your individualized pain management.
- Individualized and Customized Treatment
No two bodies are alike and no two pains are the same. Interventional pain management is often customized to your needs based on how your pain presents as well as other factors that affect your pain. Unlike some other methods of pain management that involve a generalized approach to pain therapy like two people taking the same exact recommended dose of a pain medication without regards to the difference between both individuals, interventional pain management is individualized and customized to fit your specific pain needs.
- Specialized and Trained Treatment Provider
Some pain management therapies might not require a specialist to administer treatment which means that the patient is left at the mercy of someone who might not be an expert at pain management. Interventional pain management on the other hand, is strictly performed by qualified interventional pain specialists who have been specifically trained on the techniques of interventional pain management and know how to manage good and bad outcomes of the treatments.
If you live in Georgia, in the general Atlanta area, and are looking for Atlanta Interventional Pain Management options, the Pain Management & Wellness Centers of GA is welcoming chronic pain patients who are interested in regaining pain-free lives through integrated pain management. Contact us today to get answers to all your pain management concerns and schedule your appointment.
