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Chronic Back Pain Management

Chronic back pain managementis aimed at relieving you of the pain and inconvenience of debilitating spinal conditions. Understanding all of the options for chronic back pain treatment, however, and knowing which course of treatment is right for you can be extremely daunting.

Your first step should be to visit a physician, where he or she will ask you to describe the nature of your back pain. Have you experienced back pain symptoms for more than three months? If so, then you suffer from chronic back pain. Is your pain in the lower (lumbar), middle (thoracic), or upper (cervical) back region? Does the pain feel sharp and radiating? Do you experience loss of feeling or loss of motor functions? Which daily activities are hardest for you to perform?

After you have answered some general questions, your physician likely will give you a full examination and send you for imaging tests such as x-rays, a CT scan, or an MRI. One key to treating back pain is finding the exact cause of the pain, and thanks to advancements in medical imagery, doctors often can find the exact location of a herniated disc, bone spur, spinal stenosis, or other condition causing the pain.

Once your doctor has arrived at a firm diagnosis, he or she will begin discussing options for chronic back pain management. Pain management is a relatively new area of medicine that offers patients many different ways to reduce their discomfort – especially discomfort that has lasted more than a few weeks. Often, pain management techniques begin with drug-free, noninvasive techniques, and if those fail to provide relief, patients often progress to more involved back pain treatments like acupuncture, medication, injections, and surgery.

Hopefully, a conservative course of non-invasive treatment will prove effective. Chronic back pain management may begin in this manner:

• Physical therapy and exercise – mild stretching, muscle-building, and exercises. Aimed at helping you increase mobility and endurance. Can often take some of the pressure off affected spinal regions.
• Spinal adjustments and massage therapy – manipulating painful areas of the spine is said to help adjust spinal components (vertebrae, discs, muscles, etc.), improve mobility, separate the vertebrae, and reduce pressure on nerves.
• Behavior modification – teaching the patient proper posture, lifting techniques, and body mechanics can reduce pain. Patients also may benefit from learning relaxation techniques, meditation, ways to cope, etc.
• Pain and anti-inflammatory medications – over-the-counter or prescription. Possible options may include muscle relaxants, narcotic pain medications, oral steroids, or acetaminophen.
• Steroid injections – commonly known as an “epidural” because the injection is delivered in the epidural space, a steroid injection can help to temporarily relieve inflammation in the spine. Usually, cortisone is administered.?

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The final step, after all other methods have failed, might be back pain surgery. If you feel that you would like to explore surgical options but you’re concerned about the risks involved, Laser Spine Institute (LSI) may be able to offer you relief in the form of minimally-invasive, endoscopic procedures. Advantages of the procedures at Laser Spine Institute include no hospitalization, no general anesthesia, minimal scar tissue, and expedited recuperation time. For more information about how our award-winning team of surgeons can help you rediscover a life without pain, or for a free review of your MRI or CT scan, contact us today. Our experts are waiting to talk to you about chronic back pain management.

Please note: Laser Spine Institute currently does not perform endoscopic procedures on the thoracic spine.