Chronic pain is difficult for anyone to bear, but when it is impacting the life of a child it can be downright tragic. It can impact children’s quality of life, their personalities, and even their ability to perform well in school. Often children and their families must make the difficult choice between attempting to eliminate this pain entirely through the use of pain medications and finding alternative means of controlling it.
A Holistic Approach
Pediatric physicians must take a holistic approach to Chronic Pain Treatment in Starkville MS. They must evaluate the different aspects of the children’s lives that are impacted by this pain, and find ways to work with them to develop appropriate treatment strategies that do not lead to overmedication or negatively impact their school performance.
Prescription Medications
Children do not always respond the same way to prescription medications as adults do. Choosing a medication to help with managing pain is largely a matter of diagnosing its underlying cause and working to treat it. Medications commonly used by pediatric physicians to treat chronic pain in their patients include anticonvulsants, antidepressants, muscle relaxants, anti-inflammatories, and topical analgesics.
Non-Drug Treatments
There are a wide variety of treatments that can be used with varying levels of success to treat chronic pain in children. These include everything from progressive muscle relaxation to massage and biofeedback. In some circumstances, alternative treatment methods such as aromatherapy and hypnosis have also been proven useful.
Interventional Techniques
Although it is not appropriate for every condition, some children suffering from chronic pain respond well to interventional techniques such as nerve blocks. These may include the injection of an anesthetic, which can help to reduce the child’s sense of feeling, and consequently his or her sense of pain, in the impacted areas. Nerve re-training via on-going physical therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and mood enhancement can also be helpful in certain cases.
Learn More Today
No parent wants to watch his or her child suffer. The first step toward alleviating this pain is to find a pediatric doctor who can offer Chronic Pain Treatment in Starkville MS. Learn more about us online or call to schedule an appointment today.
