Pain Management
AHMC Anaheim Regional Medical Center offers comprehensive pain management services from outstanding Pain Management Specialists. An estimated 86 million American adults are affected by chronic pain to some degree. At AHMC Anaheim Regional Medical Center we understand that living with this kind of pain deserves exceptional treatment. We recognize that receiving accurate care is essential to guide you towards a better quality of life in a timely fashion. AHMC Anaheim Regional Medical Center recognizes that chronic pain is, at times, difficult to diagnose, however we are committed to taking the time with each patient in order to properly diagnose and treat all types of acute and chronic pain.
Outstanding Pain Management Physicians accompanied by an exceptional staff specializing in medicine, psychology, physical and occupational therapy will assist you at Anaheim Regional Medical Center. AHMC Anaheim Regional Medical Center and the team of Pain Management Physicians offer incomparable patient and medical care.
For more information about our Pain Management Services, please contact:
The Pain Management Department
(714) 999-3994
1111 W. La Palma Ave.
Anaheim
, CA 92801
Pain Management Services Offered:
Biofeedback Therapy
Biofeedback therapy is a technique that is used by clinicians to improve the health of their patients by teaching them how to control certain bodily processes that occur involuntarily, such as blood pressure, muscle tension, or heart rate.
Your clinician will attach electrodes to your skin to measure these processes and display them on a screen. With these on display, your clinician can then teach you how to lower these. The monitor is used to see the change of rate of specific processes that you are aiming to lower. Over time, you will gain the ability to alter these processes without the use of a monitor or electrodes. Among the tests used in biofeedback therapy is the electromyography which can have diagnostic purposes as well.
Biofeedback therapy is commonly used for: high blood pressure, tension headaches, migraine headaches, chronic pain, and urinary incontinence.
Electrodiagnostic Testing
Your brain communicates with other parts of the body through a communication system generated by electrical signals. For example, let's say you want to move your fingers -- your brain will send an electrical message down the spinal cord to the muscle nerves in your arm down to your fingers to generate movement in your fingers. Sensory nerves deliver information back to the brain about the environment surrounding you and can give feedback to the brain about how successful a particular action was. This communication mechanism allows us to do every day activities, such as talk, walk, run, and smile.
Diseases and injuries that affect the muscles and nerves can slow down or halt the communication of these electrical signals that are sent from the brain to the motor muscles and sensory nerves. If you experience pain, weakness or numbness in your back, neck or hands, measuring the speed and degree of electrical activity when your muscles and nerves can assist your doctor in making a proper diagnosis.
There are 2 specific types of tests used in electrodiagnostic testing:
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Electromyography (EMG)
- This test will determine the electrical activity of muscles in your arms and legs. Thin needles will be placed within the muscles to record electrical activity. Although this may cause some pain and discomfort, your physician will ask you to relax and tense up your muscles. The motion will create a sound, picked up by the needles, demonstrating their broadcasting activity. When the needles are removed, you may experience some soreness or bruising, which is only temporary.
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Nerve conduction studies (NCS)
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Nerve conduction studies are done in conjunction with the EMG to ensure that a nerve is functioning normally. In the image to the left, you can see that there are stimulating electrodes and recording electrodes. The stimulating electrodes will stimulate the nerves within the finger leading up the arm. The recording electrodes will determine how fast the signal is traveling. A healthy nerve has a rate of 120 miles per hour, a signal that is
slower or weaker can indicate that the nerve is damaged.
Nerve Blocks
A nerve block is an anesthetic or anti-inflammatory injection that is targeted toward a certain nerve or group of nerves to treat pain. Nerve blocks are meant to 'turn off' a pain signal that may be coming from a specific location in the body; it can also serve to decrease swelling in a particular area. Nerve blocks are commonly used for patients who suffer acute (short-term) or chronic (long-term) pain to provide them with temporary pain relief.
Most of the pain that patients feel occur in the spine or in the neck, arms, back, buttocks, or legs. Using a CT Scan, your physician can determine precisely where that pain is radiating from and will also decide where to inject a nerve block. Your physician will choose a location that is close to the pain center. Once the injection is made, the effects will be immediate and typically last for a week or two and then wear off.
Spinal Cord Stimulator
A spinal cord stimulator is a device used to control pain and functions similar to a pacemaker. The stimulator will conduct mild electrical pulses and send them to your spinal cord. These electrical pulses replace the feeling of pain with a tingling or massaging sensation.
Spinal Cord Injections
Anaheim Regional Medical Center offers its patients several types of spinal cord injections, 2 of the major spinal cord injections offered are: epidural steroid injections and facet steroid injections.
Epidural Injections
These types of injections are used to treat pain that starts in the spine and radiates out to the arms or legs. This is indicative of pressure applied to the nerves. An epidural injection that consists of steroid medication (anti-inflammatory) can reduce the swelling, decreasing the pain.
Facet Injections
A facet injection is used to treat degenerative spinal conditions that are caused by arthritis or are the result of an injury. They can treat any part of the spine, whether the pain is in the neck, mid or lower back. It is also used to treat pain in the following areas: arms, shoulders, buttocks, or upper legs.
Your physician may recommend one of these injections for therapeutic or diagnostic purposes after he or she performs a physical examination and reviews your medical history.
For more information about Pain Management at
Anaheim Regional Medical Center please call:
Anaheim Regional Medical Center
(714) 774-1450
1111 W. La Palma Ave.
Anaheim, CA
92801