It's only through careful determination of your diagnosis or source of pain, that we are able to subsequently determine the best treatment available to the patient.
Whether you have suffered from your pain for one month or 25 years, having an accurate diagnosis is key to the successful treatment of your pain. Depending on your problem a complete reevaluation may be necessary. A full understanding of your particular problem is necessary to determine your best treatment. All treatments have risks associated with them, and our goal is to successfully treat you, while taking the lowest risk.
Common Methods of Diagnosis:
Interview and examination
Review of previous records
Imaging
Electrodiagnosic testing
Diagnostic blocks
Case Study: When they got it wrong.
Mrs Jones (not her real name), 55 years old, came to a musculoskeletal specialist seeking advice for a 3-year history of progressively worsening pain in both knees. Her knees were stiff for about 20 minutes when she arose in the morning and for a few minutes after getting up from a chair during the day. She had difficulty walking > 30 minutes because of pain, and her symptoms were exacerbated by kneeling, squatting, or descending stairs. Although sitting, resting, and reclining relieved her pain, she became stiff if she stayed in one position for too long. Her symptoms were worse on humid or cold days, and she occasionally felt as if one of her knees would “give out.”
Commonly used tools for treatment:
Physical modalities
Kyphoplasty
Psychological approaches
Injection therapies
Epidural injections
Nerve blocks
Vertiflex/Superion
Radiofrequency Neurotomies
Muscle and Joint injections
Dorsal Root Ganglion Stimulators
Spinal Cord Stimulators
Stem Cell Surgery
PRP injection