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Pain.
It can be debilitating, stressful and depressing.
And in many cases it can be helped.
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Pain.
It can be debilitating, stressful and depressing.
And in many cases it can be helped.
Merced Sun-Star - Dr. Ramakrishna Thondapu shows the needle used to treat pain patients on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2009. Thondapu, an anesthesiologist, specializes in pain management at the Interventional Pain Center in Merced.
At the Interventional Pain Center of Merced, three doctors work to help people with back and neck pain.
Dr. Ramakrishna Thondapu, Dr. Gundala Reddy and Dr. Pratap Kurra are board-certified anesthesiologists and pain-medicine specialists.
"Interventional medicine is when something is put into the body," Thondapu said. "Non-interventional is medication or therapy to help with the pain."
The type of pain control the three doctors use varies with the type of pain the patient is suffering.
An epidural injection is probably the most common pain reliever used by doctors seeking to help patients with pain. The injections consist of an anesthetic and steroid medication injected into the epidural space, usually along the lumbar region of the spine, to relieve pain. Most patients get relief for at least six months.
"Among the three of us, we've treated between 1,800 and 2,000 patients since 2005," Thondapu said.
The pain center has been accredited by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care, Inc. for three years. Thondapu has been treating patients in Merced for 20 years, Reddy has been in town for 10 years and Kurra splits his time between Los Banos and Merced.
The pain center mostly treats pain in a patient's neck or back. Most patients have a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study done before any treatment, Reddy said. With an MRI, the doctors can tell exactly where the pain is originating.
Thondapu said patients undergoing treatment for pain are given medication to keep them comfortable before an injection is given.
"We give an intravenous injection first, and then inject a local anesthetic to numb the area that is being treated," Thondapu said.
When the doctor is injecting the medication, an X-ray is used to make sure the needle is going in the right place. Thondapu said a contrast dye is also used, which shows exactly where the tip of the needle is.
"An injection of cortisone is what we normally use," Thondapu said. "It reduces inflammation."
After the procedure is done, the patient is kept for a while to make sure recovery is uneventful.
With all the procedures available to patients, Reddy said about 90 percent of patients get relief from their pain.
"We see patients for whom medical treatment has not worked," Thondapu said. "When medications and physical therapy don't work, we can usually help the patient."
Reporter Carol Reiter can be reached at (209) 385-2486 or creiter@mercedsun-star.com.
