Franklin Pain and Wellness Center

A recent article in The New York Times titled “Living With Pain That Just Won’t Go Away” states “Pain, especially pain that doesn't quit, changes a person. And rarely for the better. The initial reaction to serious pain is usually fear (what is wrong with me, and is it curable?), but pain that fails to respond to treatment leads to anxiety, depression, anger and irritability.”

Unfortunately, this is often true and as demand for pain management grows, pain specialists like the ones at The Franklin Pain and Wellness Center are constantly updating themselves on the latest technologies and methods to help patients manage their pain. Procedures like Kyphoplasty or Spinal Cord Stimulation are high-tech options that have brought several patients relief.

One patient states “I can’t say enough about the Kyphoplasty procedure and how it helped me, and I can’t thank Dr. Shwartzman enough for his expertise and how much he has helped me”. These types of results are not uncommon at The Franklin Pain and Wellness Center, so if you feel that you or someone you know could benefit from the state-of-the-art care that The Franklin Pain and Wellness Center team can offer, call us at (508) 507-8818 or e-mail us at staff@franklinpaincenter.com to set up your evaluation.

Leg pain is a common complaint. The goal of the pain specialist is to pinpoint the source of the leg pain and then determine the best treatment plan for that leg pain. At the Franklin Pain and Wellness Center, a pain specialist will first do a full examination and review of your medical history. If needed, the pain specialist will collaborate with other physicians to obtain as much information about your specific case as possible.

Followed by the initial evaluation and diagnosis, the pain specialist will recommend a procedure. A common procedure for leg pain is Spinal Cord Stimulation. Spinal Cord Stimulation uses a small implanted device to generate tiny electrical pulses that replace the feeling of pain with a tingling or massaging sensation. Spinal cord stimulation is a widely accepted medical treatment. It is an FDA-approved therapy for treatment of chronic pain of the trunk and limbs (back, legs and arms). Many major health insurance plans, Medicare and worker's compensation programs provide benefits and coverage for Spinal Cord Stimulation therapy.

If you feel that you may be a candidate for spinal cord stimulation, call the Franklin Pain and Wellness Center at 508-507-8818 or e-mail staff@franklinpaincenter.com to schedule your evaluation.

All Chronic pain treatments offered at The Franklin Pain and Wellness Center are minimally invasive and are usually a good alternative to surgery. Chronic Pain Treatments can range from injections to stimulators, depending on the type of chronic pain the patient is suffering from.

For example, low back and radiating leg pain can be treated with Lumbar Epidural Steroid Injections. Spine fractures caused by osteoporosis can be treated by a minimally invasive procedure called Kyphoplasty. Kyphoplasty provides fast back pain relief by using a thin hollow tube to insert a cast into a collapsed vertebrae and help straighten the spine. A procedure that can be very effective in relieving certain types of pain in the back, legs and arms is Spinal Cord Stimulation. This is also a minimally invasive procedure that uses electrical stimulation to mitigate pain sensations.

Our pain specialists will work with your doctors as a medical team to offer the best type of pain solution for your chronic pain. To schedule an evaluation and talk about the chronic pain treatments that are available at The Franklin Pain and Wellness Center, please call (508) 507-8818 or e-mail us at staff@franklinpaincenter.com.

Spinal Cord Stimulation is a minimally invasive procedure that controls chronic pain. A pain specialist will most likely first need to do a trial to understand if the Spinal Cord Stimulator is the best solution to manage your specific pain. During the trial, the pain specialist will place one or more leads in the area along the spinal cord. The placement area will depend on where your specific pain is.

The leads will also be connected to a trial generator. The pain specialist will use the trial generator to test your leads and make sure they are in the right place to treat your pain. You will be asked questions like:

• Do you feel a tingling sensation?
• Where do you feel the tingling?
• Does the tingling cover your pain?

By answering these questions, you will help make sure the leads are positioned well. The pain specialist will then show you how to use the trial generator to adjust the strength of the stimulator so you can experiment with what makes you comfortable. You will then be sent home to carry out your trial period with the Spinal Cord Stimulator.

At the end of your trial period, you and your pain specialist will determine if you should have a permanent system and which system would be appropriate for your pain. The pain specialist will consult and collaborate with your primary care physician and any other specialists you are under care of, to ensure that the best treatment plan is being carried out for you.

To schedule your initial evaluation to see if Spinal Cord Stimulation is a good solution for your chronic pain, please call (508) 507-8818 or e-mail us at staff@franklinpaincenter.com.

Minimizing Medication Dependency of Difficult Chronic Pain Patients.

Case of the Month - Spinal Cord Stimulation as an alternative to narcotics.

A recent pain patient from Rockland, MA finally received the pain relief he had been looking for. After trying various other treatments and going from doctor to doctor, Duane found the solution to his pain. Duane had a spinal cord stimulator placed in his back, which now gives him control over his pain and keeps his medication dosage at a much lower level.

“Many times, patients use less narcotics or even come off narcotics entirely after placement of the Spinal Cord Stimulator” states Dr. Chan, co-owner of The Franklin Pain Center.

“I have been in pain since an auto accident in 2004. The doctor’s solution who I was seeing prior to coming to the pain center, was medication and physical therapy. I felt that physical therapy and medications would not work due to me having harrington steel rods in my lower back since 1983. I was trying to manage my pain with one Tylenol-3 per day, so my primary doctor recommended the pain clinic. My biggest fear was that it would not help and I would require nerve blocks and radio frequency ablation procedures for the rest of my life. Dr. Chan placed a spinal cord stimulator and now instead of pain running my life, I control the pain. I would recommend this treatment to others in a heartbeat.” -Duane

Phantom limb pain is mild to extreme pain felt in the area where a limb has been amputated. A phantom limb is the sensation that an amputated or missing limb is still attached to the body and is moving appropriately with other body parts.

Approximately 60 to 80% of individuals with an amputation experience phantom sensations in their amputated limb, and the majority of the sensations are painful. Phantom limb pain may also occur after the removal of body parts other than the limbs, e.g. after amputation of the breast. Phantom limb pain is usually intermittent. The frequency and intensity of attacks usually decline with time.

Although the limb is no longer there, the nerve endings continue to send pain signals to the brain causing the brain think the limb is still there. A slightly different sensation known as phantom pains can also occur in people who are born without limbs. It is often described as a burning or similarly strange sensation and can be extremely painful for some.  The exact sensation differs widely. Other sensations include warmth, cold, itching, squeezing, tightness, and tingling.

Treatments for phantom limb pain can range from visual and thought exercises to spinal cord stimulation (SCS). SCS can be effective treatment for phantom limb pain. An electrical stimulator is implanted under the skin, and an electrode is placed next to the spinal cord. The nerve pathways in the spinal cord are stimulated by an electric current. This interferes with the impulses traveling towards the brain and lessens the pain felt in the phantom limb.