05 Feb 2024Do you find that the pain you’re experiencing keeps you from your favorite activities? You’re not alone. Chronic pain is a problem for all ages, and 29% of Americans live with chronic pain or high-impact chronic pain. When people don’t address chronic pain with their doctors or doctors prescribe prescription pain relievers and patients become dependent on them, problems arise.
In the U.S., people living with chronic pain (52.4 cases out of 1,000 cases) outnumber people with depression (15.9 cases per 1,000), diabetes (7.1 cases per 1,000), and high blood pressure (43.5 cases per 1,000). If you’re among them, don’t feel ignored or believe there isn’t help. Pain management is possible with these tips.
The Common Causes of Chronic Pain
Many things can cause chronic pain, but sometimes there is no clear cause. Here are some of the causes.
Injuries and muscle strain can trigger chronic pain, but there are also chronic health conditions that lead to pain that doesn’t go away. Arthritis is one of them, and there are over 100 types of arthritis, but some are far more prevalent than others and the condition has no cure.
- Osteoarthritis – Occurs when the cartilage in a joint thins out over years of repetitive use. As bone starts to rub on neighboring bone, it’s painful. There is no cure, but if the issue becomes serious, joint replacement surgery may be recommended.
- Rheumatoid Arthritis – This form of arthritis occurs when the body’s immune system determines that tissue in the joints and other areas of the body is an invader and triggers an immune response. Treatments to ease the inflammatory response are important as joint damage can occur. If the joints in the fingers are twisting, physical therapy is essential for maintaining function in the hands.
- Gout – Gout affects more men than women, and it occurs when uric acid crystals build up in the joints, typically the big toe joint. It makes it incredibly painful to walk. Diet is one area of importance as certain foods increase the risk of a flare-up.
That’s just arthritis. Some conditions trigger chronic pain that is not fully understood. Fibromyalgia is one example. It’s not clear what causes it, but people with fibromyalgia are very sensitive to pain and experience chronic, widespread pain throughout the body, as well as fatigue and insomnia.
Chronic regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is another condition where pain is extreme and the cause is unknown, but it often follows an event like a heart attack, serious injury, stroke, or surgery. It’s not as common as the others, but it affects about 200,000 Americans each year. Electrical nerve stimulation and physical therapy are two recommended treatments.
Nerve pain is also possible with conditions like diabetes and shingles. Shingles is a health condition that occurs when the dormant herpes varicella (chicken pox virus) returns and creates a painful rash and nerve inflammation.
Chronic pain in the organs is also a possibility. Pain from inflammatory bowel disease, extreme pelvic pain from menstrual conditions like endometriosis, and stomach ulcers are possibilities. There are so many different causes of chronic pain. That’s why it’s essential that you work with a Fresno orthopedic specialist.
Treatment Options That Help Ease Chronic Pain in Fresno
Premium Sports & Orthopedics offers a range of treatment options and programs that help with chronic pain management.
Back Pain Treatment
Eight out of 10 Americans experience back pain at some point in their life. It’s common, and it can be tied to arthritis, degenerative disc disease or herniated discs, sciatica, scoliosis, spinal cord injuries, and others. Our doctors have pain management options that can help, including massage and PRP and stem cell injections.
Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) Training
EMS involves the use of electrical impulses to cause muscles to contract. This helps muscles work harder as you work out. While this in itself doesn’t help with chronic pain, it can help with weight loss and muscle toning. If you’re overweight, that alone increases the chance of arthritis, and EMS helps you tone and shape muscle, lose weight, and lose body fat, all of which will help.
IV Drip Therapy
Did you know that if your body is low on something as simple as magnesium or potassium, you can deal with muscle pain? Our IV drip therapy helps restore the essential vitamins and nutrients your body needs for peak performance. That can help ease some of the spasms and muscle pain you experience, and boost energy levels to where they should be.
Medical Weight Loss & Fitness Programs
Being overweight and out of shape can lead to chronic pain from arthritis. With our customized weight loss and fitness programs, you work with a doctor to safely and effectively lose weight over time. That alone can help take some of the strain off your joints and ease the pain you experience every day.
Orthopedic & Sports Injury Treatment
Sports and orthopedic injuries also cause painful trauma that can become chronic if you don’t heal correctly or keep reinjuring yourself due to poor posture or failure to properly warm up before a game or practice. Our doctors use the latest technology for diagnosing injuries and developing a treatment and therapy program that’s effective for healing and long-term pain relief.
PRP Injections
Plasma-Rich-Platelets (PRP) are drawn from your blood. Your blood is drawn, processed to separate the PRP from the rest, and injected into a muscle or joint to help speed healing and reduce pain. It’s especially helpful for rotator cuff injuries, osteoarthritis, and carpal tunnel syndrome.
Shoulder, Knee, & Ankle Pain Treatment
When a person has osteoarthritis, the knees, ankles, and shoulders are the three primary areas for experiencing pain. Our specialists use massage, physical therapy, and other treatment options to help manage chronic arthritis pain and pain from injuries in those areas.
Stem Cell Therapy
Finally, stem cell therapy has been proven to effectively ease pain from injuries to bones, cartilage, ligaments, and tendons. It also helps ease pain in conditions like arthritis, chronic tendonitis, and sports injuries. Healthy stem cells are harvested, processed, and then reinjected into the pain-afflicted area.
Getting Started With Premium Sports & Orthopedics
It’s so easy to get started easing chronic pain. Fill out the online form or call to schedule an appointment. Let our staff know what issue you face, and we’ll talk to you about the recommended treatment plan, how often you’ll come in for treatments, and what you can expect.
Chronic pain is an experience that can make you feel very alone and helpless. It doesn’t have to be something you deal with on your own. Our Fresno sports and orthopedic team has the expertise to help you learn the best ways to manage pain, whether it’s due to a sports injury or a chronic health condition like arthritis. It’s our goal to help you regain as much flexibility, mobility, and endurance as possible so that you enjoy your favorite hobbies and social activities again.
