To fight pain, we usually take pills, and this, unfortunately, is not always an effective way to fight pain. It is worth trying other, alternative methods of pain treatment. Check the advantages of cryotherapy, thermotherapy, laser therapy, thermolesion, blockages, stimulations and ultrasounds.

Complement to pharmacotherapy can be alternative methods of pain treatment: thermotherapy( cryotherapyandthermotherapy ) ,laser therapy ,thermolesion ,locks ,stimulation or ultrasound. Why? Because an "intelligent" drug that works locally, selectively, eg for toothache, menstrual pain, headache or abdominal pain, does not exist. Painkillers affect the entire body, although at different levels:

  • centrally (generally) - affect the central nervous system, inhibiting the process of analyzing pain signals coming from the damaged part of the body to the brain. These include the so-called opioids (e.g. morphine, fentanyl, tramadol, codeine)
  • peripherally (topically) - these drugs affect the sensory nerves themselves and the pain fibers; prevent sensitization of pain receptors (they inhibit local prostaglandin synthesis). They are called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs - NSAIDs. Most of these drugs (acetylsalicylic acid, ibuprofen and their derivatives) not only relieve pain and reduce fever, but also inhibit inflammatory processes.

In some cases, doctors recommend other therapies in addition to or instead of painkillers.

Pain treatment methods: cryotherapy

It's cold treatment. As a result of heat loss, blood vessels in the skin and subcutaneous tissue narrow. As a result, blood flows slower and slower, and cellular metabolic processes are slower. The patient's skin becomes pale, sometimes it becomes covered with the so-called gooseflesh. All this, however, takes a very short time, and then the body's regulatory mechanisms are involved. Thanks to them, the blood vessels dilate and the skin begins to turn pink (vascular reaction). There is a temporary tissue hyperemia. As a result of cryotherapy, the patient no longer feels pain, swells disappear, and the temperature of the tissues decreases, sometimes significantly elevated with inflammation. One of the methods of cryotherapeutic treatment in specialist offices is the so-called air flow on the skin made with the use of the camerawith liquid nitrogen at a temperature of about minus 160 degrees C (but blown from the nozzle to a specific place on the body, it already has a temperature of "only" about minus 30 degrees C). Whole body cryotherapy is performed in special cold chambers in which the temperature is lower than minus 140 degrees Celsius (you can stay in them for no longer than three minutes.) Indications: cryotherapy is especially useful in the treatment of rheumatic and muscle pains, spine pains, neuralgia.

Pain treatment methods: thermotherapy

It's heat treatment. The heat transferred to the tissues (e.g. from an electric pad or heated paraffin) improves blood circulation, accelerates the removal of metabolic products and inflammatory mediators, and reduces muscle tension. One of the most effective thermotherapy treatments is the so-called fluid therapy. The procedure consists in inserting, for example, hands into a special device. They are warmed by blown air heated to a temperature above 40 degrees C and at the same time they are "bombarded" (that is, quite intensively massaged) set in motion by warm air with, for example, grains of groats, corn or tiny glass balls. Such a treatment takes about 15 minutes. A clear relief in suffering is felt after 8-10 treatments Recommendations: thermotherapy is useful mainly in recurrent rheumatic and chronic degenerative pains.

Pain laser therapy

The so-called soft (biostimulating) lasers. Mechanical laser therapy is the most commonly used therapy for pain relief. It consists in the fact that the scanner covers the entire spine with its beam, for example, going from the base of the neck to the buttocks. Manual laser therapy is performed less frequently (then the laboratory technician directs the laser beam to a specific, painful place and slowly sweeps the surrounding area). The procedure only takes a few minutes. Indications: mainly vascular and tension headaches, neuralgia and rheumatic pain.

Pain treatment methods: thermolesion

During the procedure, a very thin needle-electrode is inserted into the nerve responsible for pain. Its thicker end is connected by a cable to an electric current generator of a certain frequency. Under the influence of this current, the electrode heats up to over 45 degrees. C and - in contact with the nerve - causes it to coagulate. The nerve is not completely destroyed and can regenerate itself. On the other hand, his transmission of pain stimuli is interrupted. Thermolesion treatments are painless; usually last about half an hour. Indications: thermolesion turned out to be very effective in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia, occipital headaches and spine pains. This method works only with some painsneoplastic, e.g. caused by pancreatic cancer.

Pain treatment methods: blockades

They have long been widely used in the fight against pain. They involve injecting painkillers, anti-inflammatory drugs or chemicals such as alcohol, phenol, glycerol into a specific site. Each blockade serves to partially, temporarily or permanently switch off the nerve conduction of pain. They can be used in different places and at different levels of the nervous system. For example, nerves can be blocked over a relatively large area by intravenous injection of an anesthetic. It is also possible to apply intraarticular blockages, e.g. to the shoulder joint, where all the nerves in it are anesthetized. You can also do an epidural block by entering the spinal canal. Indications: blockades are used to treat pain of various origins, incl. post-traumatic, rheumatic, cancerous.

Pain treatment methods: stimulations

Electrical neurostimulations involve irritating the entire nerve with a low current and stimulating it to function. For this purpose, special electrodes are applied to a specific place on the body. Indications: stimulation is used, for example, in neuralgia, muscle tension and fatigue, in non-neurological back pain, discopathies, in neuropathic pain in large nerve trunks, after discopathy surgery.

Pain treatment methods: ultrasound

A beam of high-frequency sound waves (over 20,000 Hz) comes out of a special head. The patient's skin - in the place where the head will touch it - is lubricated with a special gel, which is to facilitate wave conduction (as during ultrasound examination). The head is run over the skin for 5-10 minutes where the patient feels pain. The ultrasound wave temporarily turns off or permanently damages the nerve fibers and inhibits the action of cells that are involved in the inflammatory process. Usually 8-10 ultrasound treatments are required for the patient to feel relieved. Indications: pain caused by inflammation of muscles, tendons and joints. However, such treatments are not used for post-traumatic pains.

Where to go for help

Information on where to get pain treatment is available from all pain clinics. Usually they can be performed in rehabilitation departments operating at large hospitals and clinics of the Medical University. On medical indications - they are free of charge.

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