RSD Treatment

What is RSD / Complex Regional Pain Syndrome?
RSD, now commonly referred to as complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), is a chronic pain condition. The key symptom of CRPS is continuous, intense pain out of proportion to the severity of the injury, which gets worse rather than better over time. CRPS most often affects one of the arms, legs, hands, or feet. Often the pain spreads to include the entire arm or leg. The pain syndrome is divided into two main categories CRPS I and CRPS II.

CRPS Type 1: often referred to as “RSD” where the injury injury can’t be identified

CRPS Type 2: also referred to as “Causalgia” involves a specific nerve injury that is identified

Typical features include dramatic changes in the color and temperature of the skin over the affected limb or body part, accompanied by intense burning pain, skin sensitivity, sweating, and swelling. Doctors aren’t sure what causes CRPS. In some cases the sympathetic nervous system plays an important role in sustaining the pain. Another theory is that CRPS is caused by a triggering of the immune response, which leads to the characteristic inflammatory symptoms of redness, warmth, and swelling in the affected area.

Is there any treatment?

Because there is no cure for CRPS, treatment is aimed at relieving painful symptoms. Doctors may prescribe topical analgesics, antidepressants, corticosteroids, and opioids to relieve pain. However, no single drug or combination of drugs has produced consistent long-lasting improvement in symptoms. Other treatments may include physical therapy, sympathetic nerve block, spinal cord stimulation, and intrathecal drug pumps to deliver opioids and local anesthetic agents via the spinal cord. There are good doctors and clinic for RSD treatment in Minnesota. The difficult thing can be finding a doctor that regularly treats RSD patients.

Minnesota RSD Treatment

Because there is no cure for complex regional pain syndrome, CRPS therapy is aimed at relieving painful symptoms so that people can resume their normal lives. The following therapies are often used:

 Physical therapy: A gradually increasing exercise program to keep the painful limb or body part moving may help restore some range of motion and function.

 Psychotherapy: CRPS often has profound psychological effects on people and their families. Those with CRPS may suffer from depression, anxiety, or post-traumatic stress disorder, all of which heighten the perception of pain and make rehabilitation efforts more difficult.

 Sympathetic nerve block: Some patients will get significant pain relief from sympathetic nerve blocks. Sympathetic blocks can be done in a variety of ways. One technique involves intravenous administration of phentolamine, a drug that blocks sympathetic receptors. Another technique involves placement of an anesthetic next to the spine to directly block the sympathetic nerves.

 Medications: Many different classes of medication are used to treat CRPS, including topical analgesic drugs that act locally on painful nerves, skin, and muscles; antiseizure drugs; antidepressants, corticosteroids, and opioids. However, no single drug or combination of drugs has produced consistent long-lasting improvement in symptoms.

 Surgical sympathectomy: The use of surgical sympathectomy, a technique that destroys the nerves involved in CRPS, is controversial. Some experts think it is unwarranted and makes CRPS worse; others report a favorable outcome. Sympathectomy should be used only in patients whose pain is dramatically relieved (although temporarily) by selective sympathetic blocks.

 Spinal cord stimulation: The placement of stimulating electrodes next to the spinal cord provides a pleasant tingling sensation in the painful area. This technique appears to help many patients with their pain.

 Intrathecal drug pumps: These devices administer drugs directly to the spinal fluid, so that opioids and local anesthetic agents can be delivered to pain-signaling targets in the spinal cord at doses far lower than those required for oral administration. This technique decreases side effects and increases drug effectiveness.

If you are struggling with getting proper RSD treatment in Minnesota or have any legal questions please contact us and we will do our best to answer any questions you may have. There is never any cost to speak to one of our Minnesota RSD lawyers.