BACK PAIN SYMPTOMS & CONDITIONS

This condition, often called a pinched nerve, is an irritation or compression of one or more nerve roots in the cervical spine. These nerves travel to the shoulders, arms, and hands, which can cause symptoms in these areas. Cervical radiculopathy may occur due to a variety of problems with the bones and tissues of the cervical spinal column.

The lumbar discogram is performed to determine whether a specific intervertebral disc may cause back pain. Discography is most commonly considered for patients with disabling lower back pain, groin pain, hip pain, and/or leg pain despite extensive treatments. When various spinal diagnostic procedures have failed to determine the primary source of pain, these individuals may benefit from lumbar discography, especially if spine surgery is contemplated.

Discography is a spinal fusion procedure that is designed to obliterate an internally disrupted, painful disc. It would not be the procedure of choice if pressurization of the disc didn't reproduce the patient's clinical discomfort. At The Pain Center San Diego, your spine surgeon will ensure that the fused level or levels are responsible for the patient's pain.

Working to anesthetize the facet joints and block the pain, a cervical, thoracic or lumbar facet joint injection involves injecting a small amount of numbing agent and steroid medication. Working in conjunction to help a patient better tolerate physical therapy rehabilitation, a facet joint injection can help a patient with pain relief.

Between each vertebra in the spine are discs that act as shock absorbers to protect the bones. A herniated disc, or slipped disc, occurs when a fragment of the disc nucleus gets pushed out to the outer layer called the annulus. Most commonly, herniated discs develop in the lower back and neck.

An intrathecal pump aids in chronic pain relief. The process happens by inserting small amounts of medicine directly into the intrathecal space, the area surrounding the spinal cord. The treatment acts by preventing pain signals from being perceived by the brain. A temporary pump is commonly utilized to evaluate effectiveness before a permanent pump is implemented.

Lumbar epidural steroid injection is a common treatment option for many forms of low back pain or leg pain. Epidural steoid injections (ESIs) are an integral part of the non-surgical management of sciatica and low back pain. The injection goal is pain relief; at times, the injection alone is sufficient to provide relief.

However, an epidural steroid injection is commonly used in combination with a comprehensive rehabilitation program as an additional benefit. At the Pain Center in San Diego, patients have reported low back pain relief with Lumbar Epidural Steroid Injection.

An injection of a steroid-anesthetic, lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injections are outpatient procedures. We perform lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injections in San Diego. This medication has proven to reduce swelling and inflammation of irritated spinal nerves. The injection only takes a few minutes to complete. This procedure is performed to relieve pain in the lower back and pain that radiates from the back to the legs.

A non-surgical procedure that uses radiofrequency waves to target nerve fibers. The nerve fibers are ablated or burned to interrupt the pain signals that are being sent to the brain. People with chronic neck, back, or joint arthritis pain may be candidates for Lumbar Radiofrequency Ablation in San Diego.

Post laminectomy syndrome, also "failed back syndrome", is a type of chronic pain that some people can develop after spine surgery. Patients with a laminectomy may face chronic back pain resulting from bone or soft tissue that presses on the nerves.

Medial Branch Block is a diagnostic procedure that can be performed in San Diego by our pain management doctors at The Pain Center. Facet joints, the joints between the vertebrae in the spine, allow the spine to bend, flex and twist. Medial Branch Block is performed to identify a painful facet joint.

We perform spinal cord stimulation in San Diego at The Pain Center. Spinal cord stimulation, SCS, relieves chronic pain of the back, arms and legs with electrical impulses. It is believed that electrical pulses prevent pain signals from being received by the brain. Candidates for SCS include people who suffer from neuropathic pain and for whom conservative treatments have failed.

Spinal cord stimulation can be performed in San Diego. Spinal cord stimulation (also called SCS) uses electrical impulses to relieve chronic pain of the back, arms and legs. The electrical pulses are believed to prevent pain signals from being received by the brain. Spinal cord stimulation candidates often suffer from neuropathic pain and for whom conservative treatments have failed.

At The Pain Center, patients can receive spinal cord stimulation. Spinal cord stimulation (also called SCS) uses electrical impulses to relieve chronic pain of the back, arms and legs. Candidates for SCS in San Diego include people who suffer from neuropathic pain and for whom conservative treatments have failed.

Spinal cord stimulation can be performed in San Diego. Spinal cord stimulation (also called SCS) uses electrical impulses to relieve chronic pain of the back, arms and legs. It is believed that electrical pulses prevent pain signals from being received by the brain. SCS candidates include people who suffer from neuropathic pain and for whom conservative treatments have failed.

Thoracic epidural steroid injection focuses on treating upper back pain caused by irritated spinal nerves. The injection relieves pain by delivering steroids into the epidural space around spinal nerve roots. The steroid used in the epidural steroid injection reduces those nerves' inflammation, which is often the source of the pain.

During a thoracic facet radiofrequency neurotomy, our physicians use heat from radio waves to treat painful facet joints in your upper back. This procedure, also called radiofrequency rhizotomy, is a minimally-invasive procedure that can address upper back pain. When pain doesn't respond to medications or to physical therapy, your physician may recommend radiofrequency neurotomy.

Thoracic Transforaminal Epidural Steroid Injection can be performed at The Pain Center San Diego. This injection procedure is used to relieve pain in the upper back, ribs, and abdomen caused by a pinched nerve (or nerves) in the thoracic spine. Within two or three days of the injection, patients have positive results with extended pain relief. Depending on the pain and each patient's situation, patients may only need one injection or more may be necessary to provide significant pain relief.

Spinal stenosis is most commonly used to help alleviate pain in the spine's cervical and lumbar regions. The spinal column contains open spaces that create passageways for the spinal cord and the spinal nerves. Spinal stenosis is a narrowing of (or an intrusion into) these openings, which can cause a compression of the nerves.

Upper back pain can cause significant pain and discomfort. Understand that upper back pain has different causes, which means that it affects every individual differently. At The Pain Center San Diego, our physicians can help create a treatment plan to alleviate upper back pain.

Did you know that lower back pain is among the leading causes of disability? Well, this is according to a recent study by the Global Burden of Disease. Lower back pain can affect people of all activity levels and ages. At The Pain Center, we will take a comprehensive look at everything you need to know about lower back pain.