Some types of pain can be managed with over-the-counter medications like Tylenol, but what if that doesn’t work? If you’ve struggled to find relief, know that you are not doomed to a life of pain. An interventional pain medicine specialist can help manage your symptoms and ease your pain and discomfort, which will help you resume daily activities, participate in rehabilitation, and get you back to living the life you want. “Often when people suffer from pain, they have to give up parts of their life that they enjoy, such as playing golf, exercising, playing with their grandkids, etc. My goal is to help patients regain control of their lives and return to doing what they enjoy most,” Blount Memorial board-certified and fellowship-trained interventional pain medicine specialist Dr. Jonathan McBride said.
Interventional pain medicine may be helpful with conditions such as chronic joint pain (hip, knee, shoulder, sacroiliac, etc.), chronic neck and back pain, spinal stenosis, sciatica, cervical radiculopathy, persistent pain after spine surgery, complex regional pain syndrome, pain from shingles outbreaks, and pain from nerve entrapment to name a few. Depending on the diagnosis, interventional procedures often involve X-ray guided injections of steroid and/or an anesthetic medication into a specific area to help address the root cause of pain. “I use a combination of physical treatments (massage, physical therapy, stretching), non-opioid medications, and minimally invasive interventions, such as injections. I also offer permanent treatments, such as spinal cord stimulation for patients suffering from persistent pain, especially pain following back or neck surgery,” McBride explained. “For those already on strong painkillers, through interventional techniques, I can help improve individuals' pain, and they often are able to substantially decrease or eliminate the need for the medication and thus avoid the undesirable risks and side effects of these medications,” McBride added.
McBride hopes his skillset will help improve quality of life via access to specialized therapies and services. He has in-depth knowledge and specialized training in identifying the underlying cause of someone's pain, allowing him to treat the root of the problem rather than just treating the symptoms. He utilizes a multi-disciplinary approach – considering the patient as a whole in order to create a comprehensive treatment plan that best fits his or her needs. Some services offered are facet interventions, epidural steroid injections, joint injections, spinal cord stimulators, physical, occupational and behavioral therapy, sympathetic blocks, and treatments for neuropathy.
“I specifically focus on pain – that is all I do. I offer interventions and therapies that help improve patients’ pain while avoiding addictive painkillers that have caused such an issue in our society. I truly love what I do and enjoy seeing patients improve visit after visit and resume activities that they may have thought they would never be able to do again,” McBride said.
For more information or to make an appointment to manage your pain with Dr. McBride’s office with Blount Memorial Physicians Group in Alcoa, call 865-238-6450. For Dr. McBride in the Vonore office, please call 423-884-1925.
