The Pain Management Centers
The department is a leader in the multidisciplinary approach to the management of chronic pain, and is located in two outpatient settings.
For more information about pain management, visit our Pain Management site.
FOR APPOINTMENTS, CALL:
Center For Advanced Medicine - (314) 362-8820
West County - (314) 996-8631
Chronic pain can lead to loss of employment and income, to depression, fear, isolation and anxiety. Marital and family dysfunction can result. The Pain Management Center at Washington University School of Medicine offers hope and a supportive environment for people suffering from debilitating pain.
The center treats all kinds of pain, including back, neck, arm or leg pain, headaches, arthritis, herniations, Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD), nerve damage, complex neurological problems, neuropathies, muscle disorders, muscular strains, and pain resulting from cancer and injuries.
Because chronic pain is a complex problem, the center takes a multidisciplinary approach in devising patient treatment plans, which may include the following:
Medical Management of Pain
Basic treatment plans incorporate medications to help relieve pain and its associated problems, such as sleep disorders, anxiety, depression and frustration. Medical treatments may include injections of specific nerves for both diagnoses and pain-blocking, radiofrequency neuroblation, spinal cord stimulators and implantable morphine infusion pumps.
Relaxation / Biofeedback Therapies
A psychologist introduces patients to relaxation therapy, biofeedback, self-hypnosis and stress management techniques to help them learn to control pain and its associated symptoms by themselves.
Physical Therapy
Physical therapists evaluate patients for muscle weakness, muscle tightness and movement problems that contribute to pain, then individually tailor exercise programs to help reduce pain and increase activity levels.
Pain Management Center Team
The Pain Management Center is staffed by five board-certified anesthesiologists, a psychologist and four physical therapists, who coordinate patient care through regularly scheduled pain management patient conferences. Additionally, the center draws upon the wide-ranging medical expertise to be found at Washington University School of Medicine for referrals. For example, a patient with complex neurological pain may receive consultation from or be referred to a neurologist on the university faculty.
Patients may be assured of access to the latest medications and pain management therapies through the ongoing research studies conducted by Washington University School of Medicine.