Pain Treatment Center
The Mad River Community Hospital Interventional Pain Treatment Center focuses on a large array of chronic, debilitating pain conditions stemming from spinal pain, nerve damage and joint pain, and other painful medical conditions. The director, Shahram Abbassi, MD, has been treating chronic pain for the past 22 years.
Diagnosis of Spinal Pain
The most important aspects of diagnosing spinal pain is an adequate history, followed by physical examination and radiological studies, such as X-rays, CT scans, and MRIs. Quite frequently, even all these sophisticated techniques do not give us the proper diagnosis. In theses cases, the most helpful tool in our arsenal is ‘diagnostic blocks’. These injections are done for the sole purpose of finding exactly which area is, or is not, contributing to the painful condition. Diagnostic blocks need very close collaboration between the doctor and the patient; the doctor provides a good explanation, and the patient provides a very accurate health history and journal.
Treatment of Spinal Pain
In general, spinal pain is initially treated conservatively with rest, medications, physical therapy acupuncture and other similar modalities. If and when these modalities fail to achieve the desired level of pain control, then injections, and perhaps surgery, are other options.
Risks and Side Effects
With any medical procedure or treatment, there are some inherent risks. In general, spinal and joint injections are quite safe. All of our other procedures are performed with X-ray or ultrasonic guidance to provide the safest technique and greatest likelihood of success.
