Dealing with chronic pain
More than 100 million Americans live with chronic pain every day. Many of these people take narcotic medications that, while providing relief for some patients, are not always safe and effective and can pose a potential risk for addiction. A significant group of patients experience something called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome or CRPS, often the result of an injury or trauma. Now there are new breakthrough therapies for patients who have suffered for years with chronic or excessive pain from CRPS. Find out how a new DRG Therapy, which is a form of neurostimulation, is providing relief for many patients.
Dr. Timothy R. Lubenow, one of the nation’s leading pain experts who is an Anesthesiologist and Professor at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, introduces us to Denise Zuhn, one of Dr. Lebenow’s patients, who was unable to stand or walk after being injured on the job. Now, with new therapies, Denise and many patients are living a normal life and no longer need nerve blocks or opioid medications.
BACKGROUND: The FDA has approved DRG Therapy for patients with moderate to severe difficult-to-treat chronic pain caused by CRPS in the lower limbs. DRG Therapy involves implanting a pacemaker like device that sends electrical signals along the spine to block pain signals. DRG therapy works by stimulating dorsal root ganglia (DRGs), which are nerves along the spinal column.
To learn more, visit www.sjm.com/pain.
SEGMENT IS SPONSORED BY ABBOTT