Pain Management
Pain Management Doctor in Naples, FL
At the Joint Replacement Institute, we understand there are many patients who experience debilitating spine pain – the kind of pain that keeps you from the activities you love. It’s important to us that we help these patients so they can return to living full, active lives.
There are many different ways to address chronic neck and back pain. Our interventional pain management therapies are designed to reduce or eliminate your symptoms while avoiding opioid medications or decreasing your reliance on those types of prescription drugs.
As a part of any comprehensive pain management plan, Dr. Paul Beebe will first try to address your symptoms with the most effective and appropriate conservative therapies. This often includes physical therapy or nonopiate medications.
In some cases, treatments designed to help you heal can also offer long-term pain relief. This includes platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy, which does not promise immediate results.
Pain management strategies can be used to address pain caused by any number of spine disorders, including:
- Arthritis
- Degenerative disc disease
- Herniated disc
- Spinal stenosis
- Facet joint syndrome
- Sciatica
- Spinal compression fractures
- Spondylolisthesis
- Cancer-related spine pain
Treatments are centered on discovering the cause of your spine pain and finding the most appropriate treatment for you.
Common Pain Management Therapies
Dr. Paul Beebe, our board-certified and fellowship-trained pain management specialist, performs a number of minimally invasive pain management therapies on site at the Joint Replacement Institute in Naples, Florida, including:
This technique administers corticosteroids (which relieve inflammation) and a local anesthetic (which acts as a painkiller) into the epidural space around the spinal cord.
Epidural steroid injections are often used to relieve neck and back pain due to herniated discs or spinal stenosis, which can compress nerves anywhere along the spine.
Epidural injections may be made in the low back, upper back, or neck.
Facet joints exist between the vertebrae of your spine. They help to stabilize the spine while allowing movement. Arthritis can cause the facet joints to break down, leading to inflammation and pain in the area.
Facet joint injections involve administering an anti-inflammatory steroid and a local anesthetic into the affected joint. The steroid medication should begin working within a few days and its effects can last for months.
With nerve root blocks, medication is injected into the area near where a specific nerve exits the spinal cord. This serves to interrupt its pain signals to the brain so you won’t experience any sensation of pain. The medication used may be some combination of anti-inflammatory steroids, local anesthetic, and painkillers in some circumstances.
Nerve blocks can be used to help identify the precise source of a patient’s pain as well as alleviate symptoms. Because this therapy targets a particular nerve, fluoroscopic imaging is typically used to guide the injection to the right place.
The effects of a nerve block are immediate and may last for a couple weeks.
This nonsurgical pain management method destroys nerve fibers to stop the transmission of pain signals to the brain. It is done using an electric current to heat and kill nerve tissue. During the procedure, your doctor will insert a special needle with a tiny electrode that can deliver a radiofrequency current into the target area.
Radiofrequency ablation is used for patients experiencing chronic back and neck pain due to arthritis and other causes. Pain relief typically lasts from 6 to 12 months, although some patients may be pain-free for years.
Spinal cord stimulation is a treatment for chronic back pain. It involves implanting a tiny device in the back that delivers a low-voltage electrical current to the nerves along the spine to block pain sensation. For many patients, the pain relief they get from this device allows them to participate in their favorite activities again.
Some of our injectable therapies may be placed into the precise spot the medication is needed with the help of fluoroscopy-guided imaging.
At the Joint Replacement Institute, we strive to provide our patients with every appropriate pain management treatment option available.
Suffering from Joint Pain? Contact Our Pain Clinic in Naples, FL
Contact the pain management doctor at the Joint Replacement Institute in Naples, Florida, to discover the best way to manage or eliminate your neck or back pain symptoms. Call (239) 261-2663 or request a consultation now.
