What is Chronic Pain?
Acute pain is something that you feel as a normal reaction by the nervous system to alert you to possible injury. If you put your hand on a hot stove, you will experience acute pain to tell you to beware of the danger of burning. This type of pain goes away as the injury heals.
Chronic pain, unfortunately, is pain that persists for weeks, months or even years. There may have been an initial mishap — sprained back, serious infection, etc. or there may be an ongoing cause of pain such as arthritis or cancer. Some people even suffer chronic pain when there hasn’t been a past injury or evidence of body damage.
Many chronic pain conditions affect older adults. Common chronic pain complaints include:
- headache
- low back pain
- arthritis pain
- neurogenic pain (pain resulting from damage to the peripheral nerves or to the central nervous system itself)
- psychogenic pain (pain not due to past disease or injury or any visible sign of damage inside or outside the nervous system).
Chronic Pain Treatment
Many people with chronic pain can be helped if they understand all the causes of pain and the many options for treating it. Scientists believe that advances in neuroscience will lead to more and better treatments for chronic pain in the years to come. Dr. Fayaz stays abreast of all the latest technologies and treatments for chronic pain.
Treatments can range from medications and acupuncture to brain stimulation and even surgery. This is most often used for chronic pain with a known physical cause.
Psychotherapy, relaxation and medication therapies, biofeedback, and behavior modification may also be used to treat chronic pain.
If you suffer from chronic pain, contact our office to schedule an appointment to see Dr. Fayaz. He will work with you to find relief!