What Does “Pain Management” Actually Mean?
Pain management refers to treatments used to reduce pain, restore function, and help you return to daily activities. It isn’t a single treatment but rather a range of approaches, from conservative therapies to advanced medical procedures, including interventional pain management services that target pain at its core.
What Are the Types of Pain?
Doctors often describe three types of pain based on how long symptoms last. These are:
- Acute pain: Sudden onset pain that improves within days or weeks.
- Subacute pain: Pain lasting several weeks or months.
- Chronic pain: Pain lasting longer than three months.
People experiencing persistent or worsening pain, especially neck pain, should speak with a healthcare provider or visit a clinic with experienced pain specialists to determine the most appropriate treatment approach.
Another way doctors understand pain is by identifying the physical source of symptoms. These three types of pain are what often guide the most effective treatment plan. They are:
- Nociceptive pain: This is pain that occurs when tissues in the body are injured or inflamed. Nociceptive pain is common with muscle strain, joint pain, or certain spine conditions.
- Neuropathic pain: Also called nerve pain, this type of pain happens when nerves themselves are irritated or damaged due to an injury or disease. Patients often describe this as burning, shooting, or radiating pain. It is commonly associated with conditions like sciatica or other nerve compression syndromes.
- Nociplastic pain: This type is caused by changes in the way the nervous system processes pain and is not directly related to tissue injury or inflammation. It can be seen in conditions such as fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, and some cases of chronic low back pain.
Once doctors identify the source and duration of symptoms, they can determine which types of pain management may work best.
What Are the Three Types of Pain Management?
Clinically, most spine specialists think about pain care as a continuum of three categories:
- Conservative (nonsurgical) treatment
- Interventional pain management
- Surgical care
Patients often move through these stages gradually. The goal is always to start with the least invasive approach that can most effectively treat pain.
What Is Conservative Pain Management?
Conservative care is often the first step in managing spine-related pain and can be effective for acute pain or milder chronic conditions. Common conservative pain management approaches include:
- Physical therapy to strengthen muscles and support the spine
- Prescription medications such as anti-inflammatory drugs or muscle relaxers
- Activity modification and short periods of rest
- Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)
While medications can help reduce pain, providers aim to minimize reliance on opioid medications and prioritize safer, long-term solutions. If underlying spine conditions continue to cause nerve pain, doctors may recommend more targeted pain management treatments.
What Is Interventional Pain Management?
Interventional pain management uses minimally invasive procedures, often guided by imaging, to target pain at its source. These treatments are typically recommended when conservative care has not provided sufficient relief.
Examples of interventional pain management treatments include:
- Nerve blocks
- Epidural steroid injections
- Radiofrequency ablation
- Trigger point injections
- Spinal cord stimulation
- Peripheral nerve stimulation
At Goodman Campbell, these procedures are performed by fellowship-trained interventional pain management specialists with expertise in the spine and nervous system. Physicians focus on identifying the source of symptoms so treatment can be precise and effective.
When Is Surgical Pain Management the Right Call?
Surgery is the third category of care and is typically considered only after other pain management approaches have been explored. Surgical treatment may be recommended for certain conditions, including:
- Herniated discs
- Severe spinal stenosis
- Spondylolisthesis
- Cervical myelopathy
- Persistent nerve compression
Surgery is not the default solution, but when it is necessary, the expertise of your surgical team matters. Neurosurgeons receive more specialized training than orthopedic surgeons for matters of the brain, spine, and nervous system, which matters when you are seeking treatment for a spine condition.
At Goodman Campbell, our neurosurgeons provide advanced spine care, pursue breakthrough research, and participate in clinical trials to advance their neurosurgical treatment.
How Do Doctors Build a Pain Management Plan for You?
Every patient’s situation is different. A personalized pain management plan considers the person’s type of pain and its severity, any underlying medical conditions, and how symptoms affect daily life.
Your interventional pain management specialist will begin with an evaluation, identifying the source of your symptoms. Care often starts with nonsurgical back pain treatment and progresses only if needed. Tracking your pain in a simple pain diary can help your healthcare provider identify patterns and guide treatment decisions. Helpful details to include are your pain level (0–10 scale), the location of your pain, what makes it worse (such as sitting, standing, walking, bending, or lifting), and what makes it better (such as changing position, lying down, ice, heat, movement, or medications). It can also be helpful to note the time of day that your symptoms are worst and any activities that seem to trigger or relieve your pain.
At Goodman Campbell, patients have direct access to our care team throughout the process. If you’re experiencing worsening pain, it may be time to schedule an evaluation with a spine specialist.
Why Does It Matter Who’s on Your Pain Management Team?
Not all interventional pain management specialists have the same level of training. When symptoms involve the nervous system, the background of the physician guiding your care can affect the treatment options available to you. Our interventional pain management team specializes in evaluating and treating conditions involving the spine and nervous system using minimally invasive, image-guided procedures. This expertise allows the team to accurately identify pain generators and recommend targeted treatment options when conservative care is not enough.
At Goodman Campbell, patients benefit from a team that manages the full spectrum of spine-related conditions and pain management, from conservative therapies to advanced interventional procedures and surgical care when necessary.
Our interventional pain management physicians work closely with our neurosurgeons, who receive specialized training in the brain, spine, and entire nervous system. This expertise becomes especially important when surgery may be part of the treatment.
Our patient outcomes data, research participation, and leadership in neurosurgery training reflect a commitment to exceptional care. All of our patients receive world-class spine expertise right here in Indiana.
If you’re experiencing persistent back, neck, or nerve pain, exploring your options with a specialist is an important first step toward lasting relief. Get started today.
