Burbank Pain Management Doctors

Non-Surgical Treatments 

Your first consultation with the pain management physician is comprehensive. Because pain can be both physical and emotional, the physician will assess your current pain level, consider your medical history plus your social history, and understand the medications and treatments you have had previously. The physician's experience as a pain management specialist allows her / him to resourcefully come up with a sound and responsible treatment plan. 

The physician then gives treatments in our office and in our procedure centers. Below are some of the procedures the physician routinely performs: 

Epidural Steroid Injection
The epidural space is an area of the spine next to the nerves and discs. This is an injection of steroid (cortisone) into the epidural space in the spine to treat pain related to bulging or herniated discs.

Joint Injection
A joint is the location where bones connect, often allowing movement. Over time, the joint can develop arthritis and cause pain. Placing medication directly into the joint can help treat your pain, depending on the area of the body injected.

Bursa Injection
A bursa is a small fluid filled sac located around bones, muscles, and tendons. Bursas provide cushion and reduce friction between two surfaces that move in opposite directions. Sometimes bursas can become irritated and inflamed, causing pain. This is known as bursitis. Placing medication directly into the bursa can help treat your pain, depending on the area of the body injected.

Piriformis Muscle Injection
The piriformis muscle is located deep in the buttock. The sciatic nerve travels very closely to the piriformis muscle in the buttock. Irritation of the piriformis muscle can cause irritation of the sciatic nerve, leading to pain in the buttock and leg. This injection can help.

Trigger Point Injections
A trigger point is a focal area of spasm and inflammation in the muscle, which can often be felt as a knot. When the trigger point is pushed, it will frequently cause pain and irritation. Trigger points can develop in any skeletal muscle in the body. Our pain management specialist will advise if this injection type could help.

Peripheral Nerve Block
Peripheral nerves are located throughout the body. They connect the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) to the rest of the body. Peripheral nerves can become irritated or inflamed, causing pain depending on its location. Our pain management specialist will advise if this injection type could help.

Medial Branch Block
The facet space is a joint space connecting two vertebra where you may have developed arthritis. Each of these spaces has its own nerve called a medial branch. This injection is meant to be a temporary diagnostic test to identify whether these are the nerves that are contributing to your pain. If this injection does take away your pain, it may be followed by a more permanent therapy, like a radiofrequency ablation. 

Radiofrequency Ablation/Rhizotomy
This is the more permanent therapy after you achieve significant, temporary relief from the medial branch block procedure. This procedure is performed to ablate or kill the nerves contributing to your pain. The nerves do eventually grow back and your pain may return but this process occurs very slowly.

Peripheral Nerve Stimulation/Spinal Cord Stimulation
Peripheral nerve stimulation is a method of neuromodulation or changing the perception of your pain by stimulating specific nerves. This therapy is a pacemaker-like device that can treat your pain by eliminating it, or by replacing the pain with a warm, pleasant, tingling sensation overlying your painful area.

Botox Injection for Migraine
Chronic migraine is a specific type of headache which may respond to certain over the counter and/or prescription medications. If those medications are ineffective and the headaches are severe, you may be a candidate for Botox injections. These injections are completed during an office visit and may be helpful to control the frequency and intensity of migraine headaches.

The pain management physician has extensive experience with injectable therapies and implantable devices including Boston Scientific, Abbott, Nevro, Stimwave, Nalu, and SPRINT. 

Common Problems 

You or a friend should seek out help from our pain management specialist if you have one of these chronic problems:

• Spine pain (neck, mid-back, low-back pain)
• Joint Pain / arthritis
• Abdominal / pelvic pain
• Musculoskeletal injury / pain
• Headaches / facial Pain
• Pain after surgery
• Nerve disorders (CRPS, herpetic neuralgia, peripheral neuropathy, nerve entrapment)