Neck Pain

Neck pain is discomfort in the area ranging from the base of your skull down to the top of your back. Most people have neck pain in the back or on the sides of their neck. 

Neck pain can range from steady and dull to burning and severe, depending on its cause. It often occurs alongside muscle spasms in your upper back and shoulders. In some cases, the pain can radiate down your shoulders, arms, hands, and fingers.  

Because neck pain affects the cervical spine and back pain affects the other connected parts of your spine (thoracic and lumbar), many people have both types of pain at once.

There are quite a few causes of chronic neck pain; some of the more common include:

• Whiplash 
• Osteoarthritis
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Cervical disc herniation
• Cervical spinal stenosis
• Cervical facet syndrome 
• Neuropathy
• Nerve compression
• Cervical degenerative disc disease

Ultimately, most neck pain happens because of wear-and-tear over time or an accident. 

The Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh team systematically determines the cause of your neck pain through symptom evaluation, medical history, diagnostic testing, and careful exams of your neck muscles, joints, tendons, ligaments, and nerves.  

Neck pain management at the Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh includes a combination of integrative treatments. The goal is to reduce your pain while restoring the maximum level of function possible through treatments such as:

• Osteopathic manipulation
• Physical therapy
• Massage therapy
• Pain medication
• Condition-specific medication
• Medical marijuana
• Electrical muscle stimulation
• Steroid injections – cervical epidural, trigger point, or facet joint injections
• Cervical nerve root blocks
• Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections
• Radiofrequency nerve ablation
• Spinal cord stimulator implant
• Intrathecal pain pump implant

The team personalizes a pain management plan that can improve your quality of life and allow you to return to normal activities. A multimodal treatment plan like steroid injections along with physical therapy and osteopathic manipulation can potentially relieve your pain in less than a week, with long-lasting results. 

Learn more about how a customized interventional neck pain management plan can resolve your chronic pain by calling the Pain Control Center of Pittsburgh or clicking the provided online booking link now.