Getting Help for Chronic Joint Pain
Chronic joint pain is more than an inconvenience; it can be life-changing. Even more, if the cause of the pain is not addressed, it can get worse and be debilitating.
The standard definition of chronic pain is any pain that lasts for longer than 12 weeks. People can develop chronic joint pain for a variety of reasons, such as an automobile accident, a fall, sports injury, lifting a heavy object or a work-related incident. The pain may be located in the hips, knee, ankle, shoulder, elbow or other joints and significantly reduce your ability to perform everyday functions.
That’s why it’s so important to seek professional help from pain management doctors who can work with you to accurately diagnose your problem and then develop a pain management treatment plan that is specially designed for you. You can find such expert help at any of La Clinica SC’s three pain management clinics in Chicago and Cicero, IL.
Our pain management clinics are staffed with healthcare professionals who know how to evaluate, diagnose, and then recommend the best pain management treatment for you. Evaluation and diagnostic services can include physical examination, x-rays, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) scans and neurodiagnostic testing. Once an accurate diagnosis has been reached, our pain management doctors can determine which therapy choices are best suited to address your needs.
Treatment options for chronic joint pain:
A variety of treatments are available to help manage your chronic pain. For example:
• Physical therapy. This treatment approach is typically used along with other choices. Physical therapy may include massage, heat, posture education and exercises you can do at pain management clinics as well as at home.
• Medications. Both over-the-counter and prescription pain medications may be recommended to help you manage the pain as well as make it easier for you to participate in physical therapy.
• Chiropractic. Doctors of chiropractic medicine are instrumental in both diagnosing and treating chronic pain. Their hands-on methods have been shown to provide significant relief.
• Medical procedures. Sometimes pain management treatment requires procedures such as injections of medications into the affected joints or invasive procedures to relieve joint inflammation.
• Work conditioning. Pain management doctors can devise work conditioning programs to help you return to your place of employment.
• Surgery. In some cases, surgery is necessary to resolve a problem with chronic joint pain.
If you or a family member are experiencing chronic pain, contact La Clinica SC for a free consultation with one of our professional pain management doctors.
