Several different techniques can be used to avoid surgery if you or your body are not prepared for it. The best way to know your options is to have an open discussion with your orthopedist or pain management doctor. At Columbus Spine Care, we offer advice based on the patient's condition, severity of the pain, cause and history of treatment.

Acute pain occurs when the body signals the brain of the initiation of an abnormality. Chronic pain is when the acute pain lasts for a long duration. The cause of both pains can be an injury, illness or bad posture or hereditary causes.

A test called discogram tells the doctors whether the pain or discomfort is associated with the disc. If it is, treatment must begin immediately. IDET, or IntraDiscal Electrothermal Therapy, and Coblation Nucleoplasty are relatively new, minimally invasive therapies for the treatment of chronic low back pain and sciatica caused by disc problems or degenerative disc disease. With IDET, a needle is inserted into the affected disc with the guidance of an x-ray machine. Doctors carefully position a wire in the injured disc and send heat through the wire. The heat destroys the small nerve fibers that have grown into the cracks and invaded the degenerating disc, producing pain.

The frequency of visits depends on the severity and duration of the pain. If a pain has persisted for several months or years, then the patient will need to see the pain management specialist at least once a week. An appointment every two to three weeks is an average for patient-doctor interaction in cases of acute to chronic pain.

Quite often people are scared of undergoing complex spinal or muscular surgery to rid them of their aches and pains. It is risky and the outcome can never be guaranteed. At Columbus Spine Care, we take care of patients who undergo surgery as well as those who want to look at other options. We use a mix of strategies like exercising, meditation and relaxation, medication management, physical therapy and rehabilitation, spinal cord stimulation, and injection procedures to help patients.

Regular exercise, with the advise of the doctor and under his supervision, can greatly benefit a patient suffering from chronic or acute pain in the muscles or joints. Regular exercise helps keep the joints moving, keep the muscles around the joints strong, increase stamina, relax the body, improves sleep and rest patterns, thus increasing the metabolism of the body and help it cure itself.

The medical term for a psychologically induced physical pain is Somatization. It is an unusual scenario, but one that needs to be thoroughly examined. People with deep symptoms related to psychological distress and depression often manifest their pain in physical terms. Psychiatric consultation can help ease the patient's doubt and put their mind to rest.

Follow the Patient Portal link on the website and you will be guided to our records management system where you can access your treatment history and doctor's notes.