Chronic Pain Specialist

What is chronic pain?

Chronic pain is a problem millions of people live with every day. Pain becomes chronic when you’ve had it for three or more months, but many people endure chronic pain for years. Conditions that cause chronic pain are often incurable and last a lifetime.

While this sounds gloomy, you can overcome or manage chronic pain and lead a happy, full life with the proper treatment and support. Dr. Loomba specializes in finding ways of easing chronic pain.

We offer the following chronic pain treatments

• Cervical, Thoracic, and Lumbar Radiculopathy pinched nerve pain
• Cervical, Thoracic, and Lumbar Radiculopathy degenerative disc disease
• Low Back pain
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Osteoarthritis
•  Joint Pain (Hip, Knee, and Shoulder)
• Foot pain
• Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis)
• Central Pain, phantom limb pain, and post-stroke pain
• Post Thoracotomy pain tor Vehicle accident/ Whiplash Pain
• Post Thoracotomy pain
• Post laminacetomy syndrome
• Occipital headaches, migraine headaches
• Diabetic Neuropathy
  
  

What causes chronic pain?

Chronic pain can set in for multiple reasons. Sometimes it’s an old injury that hasn’t healed properly or a build-up of scar tissue. Nerve dysfunction is a common cause of chronic pain, or you could have a disease like arthritis that causes chronic pain. Conditions for which chronic pain is a primary symptom include:

• Fibromyalgia
• Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS)
• Peripheral neuropathy
• Bursitis
• Osteoarthritis
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Postherpetic neuralgia
• Myofascial pain syndrome

Some types of chronic pain recur rather than being present all the time. Migraines and gallbladder disease are common examples. Conditions like trigeminal and occipital neuralgia, which affect nerves in your head and face, also cause severe recurring pain episodes.

Nerve compression is a common trigger for chronic pain. In your joints, nerve compression causes problems like carpal tunnel syndrome. In your spine, where it’s called radiculopathy, nerve compression is a major cause of chronic neck and back pain.

Serious illnesses can often cause chronic pain. Cancer is one of the main ones, but conditions as varied as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and Guillain-Barré syndrome can cause long-term pain. Some people have idiopathic pain, which means the cause is unknown.

How is chronic pain treated?

Dr. Loomba begins your chronic pain treatment with the more conservative options because, for most people, they’re highly effective. He monitors your progress and introduces different therapies to enhance your treatment when appropriate. Some of the methods Dr. Loomba uses to treat chronic pain include:

• Kyphoplasty
• Lumbar Discography
• Ultrasound Guided
• Fluoroscopic Guided and Stellate Ganglion Block
• Hip and Knee Joint Injections
• Genicular Nerve Block and Ablation
• Vertiflex and Minuteman
  •  An interspinous-interlaminar fusion device needed to fixate and stabilize the thoracic, lumbar, and sacral spine, while waiting for the spine’s natural fusion to occur.

When would it be needed?

When the patient is dealing with severe back and leg pain, which could be the result of natural spinal degeneration. As we age, the spine’s degenerative changes include decreased disc height, instability/ loss of joint cartilage, and bone spurs (bony bumps present on the spine).

 

Treatment with Minuteman: 

Dr. Loomba may provide, prior to a Minute Man surgery, conservative treatments such as rest, heat, medication, Physical Therapy or Cortisone Injections. If these do not work, then Dr. Loomba may provide this procedure. The procedure consists of a 1-inch incision made at the side  of the body, dilation to access spine, and “the minuteman” is implanted.

Better lifestyle choices can also make a significant difference to chronic pain. Improved nutrition, weight loss, stress reduction, and regular exercise can be highly beneficial. Mindfulness, yoga or Tai Chi, and pain management counseling are also beneficial in successfully managing chronic pain.

 

Vertiflex:

Another alternative to Intense Surgical Options through the addition of a Vertiflex implant placed in between any of the lumbar vertebrae of the spine.

When would it be needed?

When paients have been diagnosed with spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spine), and conservative treatments listed above are not working.

 

Treatment with Minuteman: 

To implant this device, Dr. Loomba uses sedation/ general  anesthesia to relieve any possible pain from the procedure. Then  there is a small incision added to the Lumbar spine, with a fluoroscopic metal tube added to guide the incision. With the proper spacer placed through the tube, now located in between damaged vertebrae, Dr. Loomba releases the implant. Only a small surgery with minimal invasivity, the minuteman procedure can ensure the least amount of discomfort for the patient.

After the procedure

There is soreness in the general area fo the incision, and to ensure proper stability of both devices, it is essential for you to avoid any strenuous activities 4-6 weeks after the surgery. If further questions arise regarding the Vertiflex or Minuteman procedure, feel free to contact one of our three locations in Southern California.

If you face a constant battle with chronic pain, let Dr. Loomba ease your burden. Call Advance Comprehensive Pain Care, Inc. today or book an appointment online.