Conservative pain management
The majority of patients who suffer with chronic pain do not understand the cause(s) of the on-going symptoms and the disability. A trivial injury or simple operation may result in on-going pain. Patients face frustration with disruption to their lives, while all their life activities revolve around and are controlled by the pain. Most of these patients find that they do not get enough time from their doctor or specialist to listen to their condition or to explain it to them.
MSM Pain Clinic provides the opportunity to all patients to describe their sufferings and, after assessment, education and explanation of the condition(s) responsible for pain, and the clinic helps them understand and follow through with the treatment. This involves identification of the structural dysfunction (which often goes undetected and is a precursor to a condition where structural damage is becoming obvious) resulting in pain and the correction of any abnormal stress or strain at various musculoskeletal structures that further contribute to the pain. Specific advice is provided on gentle home exercises and how to maintain correct alignment.
Pain medications are prescribed or recommended where appropriate for comfort. This is to allow individuals to increase their level of activity. However, the main aim is to reduce dependence on such medication, as medication only suppresses the pain rather than cures it.
Patients who require on-going supervision and reinforcement to maintain their exercise programme are referred to a physiotherapist and followed up to monitor their progress until their symptoms are under control. If a patient does not improve with this approach, they are offered an interventional pain management treatment.
Another way in which the MSM Pain Clinic can help the patient is to investigate further, either with imaging including MRI scans or with blood tests, and this may be done in the case of a poor response or no response following a conservative approach after the injury. This is to establish or to rule out any unusual pathology that might be responsible for on-going symptoms, helping to decide on a change of treatment plan and/or reassure the patient, encouraging him/her to persevere with a positive mind toward recovery.