With September marking Pain Awareness Month, it’s important to remember that pain management is possible.
Dr. Gregory Powell, a physician with Memorial Health, says pain is universal.
“Pain is one of the most common reasons people actually see the doctor,” he said.
Relief is possible for short-term acute pain and chronic pain, which lasts for three or more months.
Powell likens pain management to a ladder. The first rung starts with simple, home remedies.
“Things like physical therapy, over the counter medications, ice and heat, those sorts of things,” he said.
The second rung introduces medications.
“We can go into the prescription medications,” Powell said. “We do try and avoid prescription narcotics except for very short-term things.”
The third rung offers interventional care.
“We’ll look at interventional things like joint injections or trigger point injections, epidural injections,” Powell said. “All of those things can be very effective at certain types of spinal pain or joint pain.”
Implantable devices are also considered at this rung.
“We can look at implantable devices like spinal cord stimulators or peripheral nerve stimulators,” Powell said.
The highest rung is surgery.
“Now, some people just can’t avoid surgery,” he said. “We don’t always have to follow all those steps if there’s a true surgical issue. But, even after a surgical issue, we can go back down the ladder and restart those steps to treat surgical pain.”
Powell says it’s time to seek help if home remedies aren’t working.
“The ice, the heat and the over-the-counter anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen,” he said. “If they’re not working, it’s time to probably get evaluated.”
If you’re experiencing pain, you can schedule an appointment with Memorial Health Pain Specialists and Rheumatology by calling (580) 250-6659.
In other medical news, the community is invited to celebrate the grand reopening of the Surgery Center on Memorial Health’s Southwest Campus between noon and 2 p.m. on Sept. 14.
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