Offering the Only Interventional Pain Center in the
Region
The physicians and staff at Lima Memorial's Interventional Pain
Center are dedicated to providing patients with relief from chronic
and persistent pain. Our experienced team, lead by Dr. Keith Snow,
board certified aneshesiologist and fellowship trained pain
management specialists, has devoted years of training to become
experts in the newest techniques and interventional procedures
available.
Recent medical advances, along with a new understanding of the
physiology of chronic pain, make it possible to accurately diagnose
and effectively treat many types of persistent pain previously
thought untreatable. The Interventional Pain Center offers a
comprehensive approach to pain relief and rehabilitation therapies
coordinated to manage a the full spectrum of chronic pain
causes.
We specialize in treating:
- Back pain
- Knee pain
- Neck pain
- Neuropathy
- Cancer-related pain
- Complex Regional Pain Syndrome formerly known as
RSD/Causalgia
- Arthritis pain
- Sports injury-related pain
- Post Surgical Pain Syndrome
Procedures available:
- Epidural steroid injections - Perhaps the
single most useful intervention for chronic pain available.
Epidural injections provide a safe, low-risk, nearly painless means
of delivering a variety of medications directly to the nervous
system. Once delivered into the epidural space, these medications
may block pain impulses, stabilize irritated nerve structures,
reduce inflammation and swelling, and reverse the biochemical
changes known to occur within the nervous system when pain
persists.
- Facet joint injections - Facet joints are
numerous, with two at each spinal level. These small, delicate
joints provide stability and help guide motion. They are prone to
injury, deterioration, and inflammation, and they sometimes become
sources for chronic neck and back pain. A cervical (neck), thoracic
(upper back), or lumbar (lower back) facet joint injection involves
injecting an anti-inflammatory medication, such as a steroid, which
can numb the facet joints and block the pain. If multiple levels of
pain exist within the facets, several injections can be performed
to pinpoint the source of pain in each location.
- Nerve blocks - Injury or damage to peripheral
nerves can result in neuralgia, neuritis, and certain neuropathic
pain "states" implying that pain is emanating from damaged nerves
that are sending inappropriate pain impulses in the absence of an
underlying tissue injury. Identification of a damaged peripheral
nerve as the source for ongoing pain is possible using nerve block
techniques. A nerve block is an injection placed into the sheath
surrounding a nerve root in the spine. The exam uses therapeutic
steroid and local anesthetic to decrease pain and inflammation.
Pain relief from the procedure varies from minimal to long-term,
depending on the specific symptoms.
- Trigger point injections - Trigger points are
tender areas within skeletal muscle that may result from primary
abnormality of the muscle itself, or as a secondary phenomenon when
nerves that supply muscles become irritated. Pain from trigger
points may be mild or severe. When trigger point pain is severe and
refractory to conservative measures, trigger points may be injected
with steroids using tiny needles of variable lengths placed through
the skin and into the substance of the muscle. Five to ten trigger
points may be injected in one session. Many patients respond with
long lasting benefits from a single session of trigger point
injections.
- Spinal cord stimulation - As a part of this
treatment, a small pulse generator, implanted in the back, sends
electrical pulses to the spinal cord. These pulses interfere with
the nerve impulses that make you feel pain. The stimulator itself
is implanted under the skin of the abdomen (belly), and the small
coated wires are inserted under the skin to the point where they
are inserted into the spinal canal. This placement in the abdomen
is a more stable, effective location. Most stimulator batteries
must be replaced every two to five years.
- Intrathecal Pain Pumps (ITPs) - The pumps have
been shown effective in treating cancer pain, severe back pain,
neuropathic pain, and muscle spasticity. ITPs are an automated
piece of equipment that are programmed to deliver medication into
the spinal fluid through a small catheter. ITP implants are
considered when oral pain medications and other methods of pain
control have been exhausted or proven ineffective.
If you or someone you know suffers from chronic pain,
ask your family doctor of the Interventional Pain Center is right
for you. You can also call the Interventional Pain Center at
419-221-6133 for more information.