Monday, February 13, 2012

Integrative Medicine Next Step For Pain Management

Pain management, especially chronic pain, does not often respond well to traditional treatments alone (such as prescription drugs).  Due to this problem, physicians often look for alternate ways to treat pain in tandem with medication.  The intersection of eastern and western medicine, called "integrative medicine", is one way to try and treat persistent pain symptoms.


CBS Local-Pittsburgh recently published an online article about integrative medicine as it relates to chronic pain managment.  Throughout the article, doctors who use the mindset of integrative medicine are highlighted, including one doctor, Dr. Gallagher, who is both a medical doctor and an chiropractor.  According to his quote from the article, "Pain is a very subjective phenomenon, but most people in chronic pain can’t get any relief regardless of what they do” which is why integrative medicine is being used when patients do not respond to traditional remedies.  The article also mentioned the fact that the United States Army is beginning to take the integrative approach as well, and is using a technique called "battlefield acupuncture" to treat wounded soldiers.

Integrative medicine may be an effective treatment option for those patients who require more multi-faceted pain management treatments. Chronic pain is a tricky diagnosis in terms of finding the right medication combination that will work, but will not lead to overmedication.  Working with your physician and seeing what is right for you is the only way to find an effective, realistic pain management treatment.  If you would like more information about this page or central Pennsylvania attorney Doug Stoehr's areas of practice, contact our Altoona, Pennsylvania, law firm by calling 814-946-4100.

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