Chronic and Acute Pain
Acute pain, for the most part, results from disease, inflammation, or injury to tissues. This type of pain generally comes on suddenly, for example, after trauma or surgery. The cause of acute pain can usually be diagnosed and treated, and the pain is self-limiting, that is, it is confined to a given period of time and severity. In some rare instances, it can become chronic.
Chronic pain is widely believed to represent disease itself. It can be made much worse by environmental and psychological factors. Chronic pain persists over a longer period of time than acute pain and is resistant to most medical treatments. It can-and often does-cause severe problems for patients. Pain management is an integral part of treating chronic pain.
Wallace Physical Therapy works with each patient in identifying if the pain is acute or chronic, and creating a treatment plan to help relieve the pain. For acute pain, if it’s the result of an injury or surgery, Bob Wallace and his therapists determine what is causing the acute pain and first and foremost try to calm it down by using hot/cold packs, ultrasound, massage, manual mobilizations, and TENS/electrical stimulation units.
Wallace Physical Therapy handles chronic pain by teaching the patient how to modify daily activities in order to limit the reoccurrence of flare-ups. Bob Wallace utilizes stretches and exercises, as well as good pain management programs to help each patient cope with their chronic pain. Wallace Physical Therapy also uses hot/cold packs, ultrasound, electrical stimulation, massage and mechanical traction, if needed.
For different types of chronic pain, see fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, overuse injuries, back/spinal injuries and musculoskeletal pain.
