• What Causes Pain

    When you experience pain, it is your body's natural response to actual or potential damage. In other words, your body is protecting you—even when it might feel like it isn't. The feeling of pain is triggered when special nerve endings, called pain receptors, cause electrical signals to be sent to the

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  • Types of Pain

    When describing pain, the types will fall into three categories: Nociceptive Pain, Neuropathic Pain and Mixed Pain. Depending on the type of pain you are experiencing, your pain specialist will be able to create an appropriate treatment plan for relieving your pain and restoring your normal lifestyle.

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  • Permanent Implantation

    After the patient has completed the “test drive,” the patient and pain specialist will decide whether or not spinal cord stimulation is an effective therapy. If they decide to go forward, then the patient will undergo another surgical procedure to surgically place the device. The leads may be inserted

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  • Level 2

    If your pain does not respond to conservative approaches, a second line of therapy may be needed. The therapies offered in the second level can be used in conjunction with level 1 treatment. Tanscutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) A TENS unit is an external stimulation device that sends

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  • Level 1

    During the first level, your pain specialist will offer conservative treatment options. These treatment options will include rest and nutrition, exercise and physical therapy, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), and cognitive and behavioral modification. Basic therapies are the first step

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  • Level 3

    When pain persists after Level 1 and 2 therapies have been tried, your pain specialist may recommend more complex treatment options. Relieving stubborn, chronic pain may take time and patience, and your pain specialist may need to try multiple treatments to find the most effective solution for your

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  • Is it right for you?

    Spinal Cord Stimulation may be an effective tool in reducing your chronic pain. However, it is important to understand that pain is unique to each individual—not everything works the same on everyone. SCS is one of several therapies used to help control severe, ongoing neuropathic pain. Other options,

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  • Impact of Pain

    Today, pain is one of the most common reasons Americans seek medical treatment, with back pain as the leading reason. An estimated 26 million Americans between the ages of 20-64 visit their doctor because they are experiencing frequent back pain. Other common painful conditions include: Arthritis Fibromyalgia Osteoarthritis Knee

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  • How it works

    Spinal Cord Stimulation, or SCS, offers hope for many of the estimated 75 million people who suffer from chronic pain. SCS sends electrical impulses that trigger nerve fibers selectively along the spinal cord, masking the pain message traveling to the brain. When this happens, the painful sensation is

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  • How do I Know SCS Will Work?

    One of the advantages of SCS therapy is that the patient gets to “test drive” an external version of the device to see if spinal cord stimulation is an effective treatment for their pain. During the “test drive,” insulated leads are inserted through a needle or small incision in an anesthetized

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  • Chronic Pain

    Chronic pain is persistent pain that never seems to go away. It is defined as pain that has not gone away or recurs frequently over a six-month period. While the pain may not be constant, it is the dominant fact of life for many chronic pain sufferers. According to the American Medical Association,

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  • Benefits

    With SCS, you can experience numerous benefits in addition to the relief of your pain. Some of the benefits of SCS therapy include: The ability to try the therapy before having a permanent system placed in your body. You can test drive the SCS system to see if it helps control your pain before committing

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