Best Treatments for Conical Pain

Chronic pain, which is pain that lasts more than 3 months, can be relieved with medications that include analgesics, anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxants or antidepressants for example, which must be guided by the doctor. In addition, if it is a pain that is difficult to improve, it may be necessary to increase the doses or use more powerful remedies, such as opioids, adjusting according to the needs of each person.

However, the best way to treat this type of pain is with alternatives directed to the cause, after the doctor determines what is causing the symptoms, be it a spinal arthrosis, herniated disc, arthritis, fibromyalgia, herpes zoster or compression of the sciatic nerve, for example. Thus, in addition to medicines, treatments such as physiotherapy, acupuncture, radiofrequency, surgery or even psychological counseling may be necessary.

Chronic pain can appear in any part of the body, and indicates that there is some type of damage or injury to the tissues or nerves of the body, and can also be influenced by emotional issues, as situations such as anxiety and depression are important for the pain intensity and duration. Learn more about what chronic pain is and types.

What are the treatment options

The treatment for chronic pain is individualized, guided according to the needs of each person, and can be done by the general practitioner or, in more complex cases, by pain specialists. The main forms of treatment include:

1. Pain remedies

According to the World Health Organization, to treat chronic pain of any kind, the doctor must choose the medicines in steps, that is, the improvement is tried with weaker medications, and the dose or intensity of the medication can be increased according to the necessity. The steps of pain management are:

Steps	Medicines	Auxiliary remedies For all degrees of pain management, auxiliary therapies are essential for effective and lasting relief. Some options are: - Antidepressants, such as Amitriptyline; - Muscle relaxants, such as Cyclobenzaprine; - Anti - epileptics, such as Gabapentina.
1 (Mild pain)	- Painkillers, such as Dipyrone or Paracetamol; - Anti-inflammatories, such as Ibuprofen or Ketoprofen, for example (preferably in periods of acute pain, should not be used continuously).
2 (Pain that does not improve with previous treatments)	- Painkillers or Anti-inflammatories; + - Weak opioids, such as Tramadol or Codeine;
3 (Pain that is intense or does not improve with previous treatments)	- Painkillers or Anti-inflammatories + - Strong opioids, such as Morphine, Methadone, Oxycodone or transdermal Fentanyl, for example.

When the pain originates in the nervous system, being called neuropathic pain, the treatment is based mainly on the drugs that interfere in this sector, such as tricyclic antidepressants, such as Amitriptyline or Nortriptyline, and Antiepileptics, such as Carbamazepine, Gabapentin and Pregabalin, since painkillers and opioids do not have a very good effect and are reserved for when the pain does not improve with the previous options.

2. Alternative therapies

Alternative therapies are excellent ways to improve body perception, relieving tension and nervous stimuli, which has a great influence on pain. Some options are:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy, an approach of psychotherapy, which can be very useful to assist in the treatment of pain in general, mainly for treating situations of depression and anxiety; Massage, an excellent form of treatment, especially for muscle pain associated with contractures and tension; Acupuncture and needling, is a great way to relieve myofascial pain, associated with contractures, osteoarthritis and other chronic muscle pain; Physical activities, practiced regularly, at least 3 times a week, are very useful to relieve several types of chronic pain; Relaxation techniques decrease contractions and improve the body's self-perception; Physiotherapy, with local heat therapy or movement rehabilitation, useful for the improvement of all types of pain.

As the pain improves, the doctor may remove some forms of treatment, so that fewer and fewer medications are used. However, alternative therapies can be maintained, and are great ways to prevent new pain.

3. Surgery

There are cases of chronic pain that are difficult to treat, as they do not improve with alternative medicines or treatments. Thus, some surgical procedures can be performed, mainly by neurosurgeons, anesthetists or orthopedists, who can correct bone deformities or block nerves that are responsible for pain. Some options include:

• Local injections: injectable medications applied directly to nerve endings, such as infiltrations by anesthetics and corticosteroids or neuromuscular blocks with botox, for example, can be done by doctors qualified to decrease the sensation of pain, inflammation and muscle spasms, with effects that last for weeks to months; Radiofrequency: it is a minimally invasive surgical procedure, in which a modern radiofrequency generating device is used, capable of causing thermal injuries or electrical reactions that end the transmission of painful stimuli by the nerves, causing improvement or resolution of pain in the spine for several months.; Electrode implantation in the spinal cord: called a neurostimulator, this small electrode can be implanted behind the spine, capable of making stimulations that block the reception of the pain stimulus. Spinal cord stimulation is useful for the treatment of chronic limb or trunk pain; Surgeries: Surgical procedures to correct structural and anatomical changes in the spine, such as removal of herniated discs, correction of the narrow canal through which nerves pass, or correction of changes in the vertebrae can reduce overload in the nerves and relieve pain.

After performing these procedures, it is also important to maintain treatment with alternative therapies, especially physiotherapy, to allow the effects to be as long as possible.

What causes chronic pain

Despite being unpleasant, pain is an important sensation for survival, because it is when the body warns the brain that something is wrong or causing harm to the body, and needs to be resolved, such as a burn or cut, for example.

However, the problem is when the pain becomes chronic, as it indicates that the injury or inflammation is persistent, without the proper treatment, as in cases of diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, muscle contractures, abdominal organ dysfunctions or cancer, for example, or when there are changes in the nervous system and nerve fibers.

Regardless of the source of the pain, the person's mental state is a strong influencer to make him persistent and chronic, and this is proven because depressed and anxious people tend to feel much more pain than others. On the contrary, people who suffer pain in the context of satisfaction, as with sportsmen during a championship, for example, tend to complain much less about them.

Thus, it is very important to pay attention and take good care of the emotional state, since it has many influences on various functions of the organism, and can even cause or worsen diseases, called psychosomatics. Find out which diseases can have emotional causes.