Millions of Americans suffer from chronic pain, with symptoms that affect daily living and last for months or years. Some types of chronic pain are progressive, meaning they tend to worsen over time.
Despite differences in symptoms, intensity, and causes, all pain shares one thing in common: It needs to be treated. Sometimes, that means having surgery. But other times, pain relief can be achieved with nonsurgical therapies.
At Powell Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, Thomas E. Powell, MD, and his team offer a wide array of nonsurgical pain treatments, focusing on helping patients feel better and restore their strength and mobility. Here, learn about six of these options and the role they can play in helping you manage your pain.
Oral medications are often a first-line treatment for people with both acute and chronic pain. Medicines don’t just alleviate pain — they can help reduce inflammation, too, including inflammation following an injury or due to an underlying condition like arthritis.
Over-the-counter nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) can help manage midler types of pain, but for more severe pain, you may need prescription medication. In addition to helping with pain and inflammation, prescription medications can help relieve muscle spasms that can occur with some types of pain.
Topical products can be a good choice for muscle-related pain and some types of arthritis. These medicines penetrate your skin over the site of pain. Once absorbed, they go to work directly in the injured area. Gels, creams, and even patches are available to provide pain relief and muscle-relaxing warmth without the risk of stomach irritation that can occur with oral medications.
For some types of pain, applying an ice pack to the area for 10-15 minutes a day several times a day can help reduce inflammation and the painful symptoms it causes. After the first few days of healing, you may benefit from a heating pad or warm compress to relax tight muscles. Hot and cold therapy is frequently combined with topical or oral medications in the early stages of healing.
For stubborn joint pain, corticosteroid joint injections help relieve inflammation associated with many types of pain. Some injections also include a local anesthetic for immediate relief.
Other injections use lubricating solutions to reduce friction so joints move more smoothly. These solutions frequently feature a natural substance called hyaluronic acid to promote smooth joint movement and help retain more moisture in the joint components. Because they reduce friction, these injections may also help slow the progression of arthritis.
Trigger point injections target tight muscles instead of sore joints. Also called muscle knots, trigger points form as a result of muscle overuse and strain from daily activities, injury, or even poor posture. Although these knots can form anywhere, they often happen in the neck, shoulders, and upper back, with localized symptoms and sometimes pain that radiates into your arms.
Trigger point injections help relax these tight muscles with solutions of corticosteroids and anesthetics to numb pain. In addition to pain in your neck and shoulders, trigger point injections can benefit people with chronic tension headaches and pain syndromes like fibromyalgia.
Physical therapy is frequently prescribed for pain that’s chronic, recurrent, or intense enough to interfere with everyday activities. But it can also be a good choice for milder pain, preventing symptoms from progressing.
Therapy plans include special exercises and stretches, therapeutic massage, soft tissue mobilization, and other techniques to promote circulation and natural healing. Each plan helps patients relieve pain while improving strength and flexibility.
One of the major benefits of physical therapy is that it’s completely customizable, meaning it can be tailored to each person’s symptoms, health profile, lifestyle, goals, and other personal factors. Therapy plans can be adjusted over time as your body responds to therapy.
Don’t let pain take a toll on your physical and emotional wellness. To learn about these and other therapies that can help, request an appointment online or over the phone with Powell Orthopedics and Sports Medicine in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, today.
