Humans can experience different types of pain, and there are many ways to treat them. Here’s A to Z on how a pain management doctor diagnoses and treats the pain.
Pains such as headaches, joint aches, backaches, etc., are common, and everyone experiences them at some point in life. However, it is challenging to determine which treatments to try or best suited to keep the pain at bay.
So, to determine the treatment, diagnosing it’s essential to visit a pain management doctor. This article explains how pain management professionals diagnose the cause of pain.
Diagnoses of Pain
Your pain management specialist will examine you and evaluate the areas you are experiencing pain. The doctor may touch or press different places on your body to understand the root cause and ask about your pain.
The healthcare provider may also suggest you keep the following to check how much pain you have or find the reason for the pain.
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A pain diary
Maintaining a pain diary may help to find the cause of your pain. You can note your pain cycles for when it occurs. In your pain diary, you should note things such as when the pain starts, how long it lasts, how bad it was, etc., in your pain diary. Do not forget to include things that make the pain worse or better.
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Pain scales
You can measure the level of pain you feel with the help of pain scales. The pain scale may include numbers or faces, and you are supposed to rate the pain on a scale of 1 to 10.
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An X-ray, CT, or MRI scan
The healthcare provider may use an X-ray, CT, or MRI scan to find the cause of your pain. The doctor may give you contrast liquid to help the pictures show up better. Ensure to tell any allergic reactions to the healthcare provider.
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Stimulation tests
These tests may help find nerves or muscles affected by the pain. Ways in which pain management professionals manage pain without medication.
You might be surprised to know that you might not need pain medication to get rid of your pain. Pain management professional helps treat or eliminate all back pain or headaches.
When to Visit Pain Management Professionals?
Most pain is an expected outcome of an injury or illness and doesn’t usually require a trip to a healthcare provider. But how can you figure out if your pain is not a normal one but something serious?
If you fall asleep in an uncomfortable or awkward position and wake up with pain in the neck or back is most likely normal. If you suffer minor first-degree burns, the pain associated with burns is normal and probably doesn’t require a doctor’s or a healthcare provider’s attention.
If your pain only lasts for the minor amount of time you expect it to be, it’s probably normal. However, if the pain is severe, lasts longer than expected, and worsens with time, you may want to contact your pain management specialist without making any delays.
Let’s look at some examples of both normal and severe pain.
Causes of normal pain
- A minor burn
- Labor and delivery
- A pulled or strained muscle.
- Muscle, tendon, skin, or bone injury
- A tension headache
- A minor ankle sprain
- A broken bone
- A skinned elbow or knee
- Post-surgical pain at the incision site
Sometimes pain that seems normal still requires a visit to the healthcare provider or the emergency room. If you got a severe injury, you should make no delays in consulting a doctor.
Some causes of pain requiring medical attention:
- Arthritis
- Diabetes
- Cancer
- A compressed or pinched nerve
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
- Stroke
- Fibromyalgia
- Chronic migraine headaches
- Sciatica
- Heart attack
If the pain lasts for more than six months, the pain is severe and won’t go away on its own. A person can suffer many kinds of pain and may need many treatments for that pain.
Pain makes doing normal things in day-to-day life difficult. Pain management centers can evaluate your pain and design a treatment that is best suited for you, which can help in easing your pain.
To conclude –
If you or your loved one is experiencing any pain that doesn’t seem normal, make no delays in seeking the medical help of a healthcare provider. If a pain started as usual but has elevated to severe pain and is not going away after months, a pain management doctor can help you ease the pain, as the doctor is an expert in diagnosing and treating such pains.
