Chronic Pain Specialist

What is chronic pain?

While you might experience pain from time to time due to an injury or acute illness, chronic pain is a different kind of medical issue. In many cases, chronic pain develops when nerves suffer damage, usually from injuries or disease, limiting your mobility and making it difficult to perform your work or daily activities.

Acute pain typically resolves over time as your injury heals or your illness gets better, but chronic pain can last 12 weeks or longer.

What are common types of chronic pain?

The most common types of chronic pain Dr. Mendoza treats include pain in the neck, back, and joints. As a pain management specialist, he can treat chronic pain from:

• Arthritis
• Headaches
• Nerve damage
• Herniated discs
• Injury or trauma

Dr. Mendoza can also treat chronic pain that stems from chronic illness, such as fibromyalgia, cancer, and degenerative disorders.

How is chronic pain diagnosed?

No specific test can precisely measure your pain level. Dr. Mendoza relies on your symptoms, the length of time you have experienced pain, and your medical history to determine what could be causing your pain.

Dr. Mendoza can recommend certain tests, including imaging tests and blood work, to identify or rule out underlying medical issues that might be causing your pain.

You can rely on seeing Dr. Mendoza at every visit to ensure your care is comprehensive and consistent.             

What treatment options are available for chronic pain?

As a board-certified pain management specialist and anesthesiologist, Dr. Mendoza has experience training and diagnosing pain to improve patient quality of life. For those patients that are candidates for chronic pain treatments, he creates an individualized care plan, evaluating your medical history and current level of pain. He offers a variety of treatment options to address the root cause of your pain, including:

• Pain medications
• Interventional (injection-based) treatment, which includes nerve blocks and epidural injections
• Laser treatments
• Physical therapy
• Cognitive behavioral therapy

Initially, Dr. Mendoza could recommend lifestyle changes to improve your pain symptoms, such as increasing your exercise and activity levels, enhancing your diet, and losing weight. If these changes aren’t effective or you have difficulty staying active because of your pain, he could recommend prescription medications to reduce inflammation and alleviate pain. Dr. Mendoza is skilled at prescribing medication for maximum benefit and minimal side effects.

If severe pain interferes with your daily life, Dr. Mendoza can recommend more complex treatments, such as injections and other nonsurgical therapies.

To find out which treatment is right for your chronic-pain issues, schedule a consultation online or by calling the Birmingham office.