Consider pain management if you’re one of the 51.6 million American adults who suffers from chronic pain. Pain management uses minimally invasive and integrative treatments to provide relief and improve your quality of life. At AIH Medical and Psychiatric Services in Waldorf, Maryland, Deborah Koroma, FNP-C, and the team provide pain management to teens and adults. After an exam, they make personalized treatment recommendations to relieve discomfort and promote healing. Call AIH Medical and Psychiatric Services to schedule a pain management consultation, or book your appointment online today.
Integrative pain management is an internal medicine subspecialty focused on diagnosing and treating acute and chronic pain. Rather than managing symptoms with surgery and/or prescription painkillers, it uses healthy lifestyle changes, routine checkups, and minimally invasive procedures to help you feel your best.
The AIH Medical and Psychiatric Services team knows that chronic pain often leads to mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety. As a result, they incorporate mental health care into their treatment approach.
Consider pain management at AIH Medical and Psychiatric Services if you have a condition that causes pain, limiting your abilities, such as:
Back pain and neck pain are two concerns that pain management often addresses.
Sometimes, the team uses pain management to treat sports injuries and auto accident injuries, such as turf toe and whiplash.
During a pain management consultation, your AIH Medical and Psychiatric Services provider asks you a series of questions, including when your pain started, where it occurs, and how severe it is on a scale of 1-10. They also ask if your pain is worse during certain activities, like work, or at specific times, such as when you first wake up in the morning.
Next, your provider completes a physical exam. They check the affected area, like your knee, for example, looking for redness, bruising, and swelling. They gently press on your skin to identify sensitive spots and assess your muscle strength, reflexes, and range of motion.
Some types of pain, like dislocated joints, are easy to identify with a simple exam. But if your provider suspects a more serious issue, like a tendon injury or a broken bone, they order diagnostic imaging to look at your bones, joints, and the surrounding tissues.
After pinpointing the source of your pain, your provider develops a personalized treatment plan to reduce discomfort and improve your quality of life.
No two pain management treatment plans are exactly alike. The AIH Medical and Psychiatric Services team could suggest:
Most pain responds to one or more of the above treatments, but if your symptoms continue or get worse, you might need surgery. If necessary, the team can refer you to a nearby specialist.
Call AIH Medical and Psychiatric Services to schedule a pain management consultation, or book your appointment online today.