Spinal Cord Stimulation

Pain Management Specialists of New York

Board Certified In Pain Management And Anesthesiology located in Long Island City, Astoria, NY & Pelham Bay, Bronx, NY

If you have chronic pain that doesn't improve with standard medical treatments, it's time to learn about spinal cord stimulation. Ari Lerner, MD, at Pain Management Specialists of New York has helped many patients overcome their pain with this innovative treatment. To learn if spinal cord stimulation can help you, schedule an appointment online or call 718-932-1740 to book your visit at one of the four locations throughout New York City, in Long Island City, Astoria, the Midtown East neighborhood of Manhattan, and Pelham Bay and Mott Haven in the Bronx.

Spinal Cord Stimulation Q & A

What is spinal cord stimulation?

Spinal cord stimulation relieves pain by blocking the nerve signals carrying pain messages through the spinal cord to your brain.

The treatment delivers mild electrical impulses to precisely targeted spinal nerves. The impulses block or scramble the nerve signals, which means your brain doesn't get the message.

Though the underlying problem causing your pain still exists, interrupting the nerve signal provides significant pain relief for most people.

What conditions can spinal cord stimulation treat?

Sensory nerves pick up pain messages throughout your body and carry the information to your spinal cord. From there, the information reaches your brain.

Spinal cord stimulation targets the nerves in your spine. As a result, this treatment can block pain messages that originate anywhere in your body, including your neck and back.

Pain Management Specialists of New York may recommend spinal cord stimulation to ease the pain caused by many conditions, including:

Herniated discs
Spinal stenosis
Arthritis
Joint pain
Neuropathy
Sciatica
Fibromyalgia
Joint pain
Neck and back pain
Degenerative disc disease
Complex regional pain syndrome
Peripheral vascular disease
Chronic pancreatitis
Incomplete pain relief following neck or back surgery

Though spinal cord stimulation has the potential to treat many conditions, each person responds differently and achieves different levels of pain relief.

How does spinal cord stimulation work?

Spinal cord stimulators consist of three parts: a pulse generator, insulated lead wires, and a controller. Your provider uses a needle-like device to guide the lead wires through the epidural space surrounding your spinal cord. They carefully place the leads next to the specific nerves that are relaying pain signals from your body to your brain.

Then your provider implants the generator under the skin near your buttocks and connects the wires to the generator. They use the controller to program your initial impulse intensity and frequency.

You keep the controller and use it to turn the device on and off or adjust the level of stimulation as needed.

Can I try out spinal cord stimulation to see if it works?

After your provider determines you're a good candidate for spinal cord stimulation, you have a trial period to see if it works for you. During the trial, your provider needs to insert the lead wires, but you wear the generator.

After 5-7 days of using the device, you learn whether it relieves your pain well enough to have the generator implanted. If it doesn't help, your provider can easily remove the lead wires.

To learn if spinal cord stimulation can help you, call Pain Management Specialists of New York, or book an appointment online today.