Neck Pain, Injuries, & Conditions

Neck pain can fluctuate in intensity from a minor dull ache to chronic, severe, and incapacitating agony. Neck discomfort has risen in its widespread prevalence to rank fourth among all causes of disability worldwide, after ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular illness, and lower respiratory infections. Neck pain can prove to be very uncomfortable and can make it difficult to concentrate and go about your daily activities.

Let Us Help You With Your Neck Pain

Or Call Us at 504-732-1094

Most Common Causes of Neck Pain

The neck is susceptible to injuries and illnesses that cause discomfort and limit mobility because it bears the head’s weight. Causes of neck discomfort include:

  • Diseases: Neck discomfort can result from more several conditions, including cancer, meningitis, and rheumatoid arthritis. 
  • Strained Muscles: Muscle strains are sometimes caused by overuse, such as spending too much time slumped over a computer. Even simple activities like reading in bed can potentially put stress on the neck muscles. 
  • Damaged Joints: Neck joints deteriorate with age, much as other joints in the body. In addition, the body frequently develops bone spurs due to this wear and tear, which can impair joint mobility and be painful. 
  • Aging: As you become older, degenerative disorders like spinal stenosis and osteoarthritis, which affect the cartilage in the joints, can cause neck pain.
  • Injuries: Whiplash injuries are frequently the outcome of car accidents. The delicate neck tissues are strained as the head jerks backward and forward. 
  • Stress: Neck discomfort and stiffness are occasionally brought on by the inadvertent tightening of the neck muscles due to stress and anxiety.

Additional Causes of Neck Pain

  • Cervical Radiculopathy
  • Degenerative Disc Disease
  • Spinal Stenosis
  • Muscle Spasm
  • Nerve Impingement (Radiculopathy)

Available Treatments for Neck Pain Include: 

  • Physical therapy: Includes exercises that increase your neck and shoulder’s range of motion, flexibility, and strength, as well as therapeutic massage and ultrasound treatments.  
  • Epidural steroid injections: Epidural steroid injections are administered to the epidural space around your spinal cord in the location of the inflamed and irritated nerves to treat pain in the neck, shoulders, and arms brought on by compressed nerves in the cervical spine.  
  • Facet joint injections: Your spine’s facet joints serve as a link between its bones. Facet joint or epidural steroid injections can assist in minimizing swelling and short-term discomfort. 
  • Cervical radiofrequency ablation: Radiofrequency ablation is a generally painless procedure that requires using heat generated by radio waves to damage and stop pain-related nerve impulses from reaching the brain.  
  • Spinal cord stimulation: Clinically demonstrated to be painless and drug-free, Spinal cord stimulation suppresses painful nerve signals using a regulated electrical current. This way, these individualized treatments can better control your persistent neck discomfort. 

Why Lonseth Interventional Pain Centers?

If left untreated, neck pain can affect your mobility, daily activities, and quality of life. So whether you just woke up with a whopper of a crick in your neck, are suffering from an injury, or have been dealing with chronic neck pain, the experts at Lonseth Intervention Pain Centers can help you understand the anatomy of your cervical spine, diagnose your neck pain, and provide the right neck pain treatment plan based on your unique needs.

“I drive for over an hour to see Dr. Lonseth. Yes, we have pain management doctors closer to home, but it’s well worth my drive. I don’t trust any other doctor for injections in my back, neck and left shoulder. Great, great, great doctor and staff! ”
– Latrice

Neck Pain FAQ

Mild discomfort to excruciating agony can all be experienced with neck pain. Acute neck pain comes on quickly and strongly. A neck ache that has persisted for over three months is considered chronic. Trauma or damage are typically the causes of neck discomfort.

You can avoid neck discomfort by making certain lifestyle decisions. These lifestyle choices may include routine stretching and avoiding strenuous exercise that strains your neck unnecessarily.

The type, degree, and origin of pain will all influence the symptoms of neck pains. Muscle stiffness, burning, numbness, dull discomfort, and a limited range of motion are all possible symptoms for a patient.

The pain management specialists at Lonseth Interventional Pain Centers may request an MRI or X-ray to look closely at your neck during your appointment. They will also take your entire medical history into account when making a diagnosis.

If your neck discomfort lasts more than three days, it might be time to schedule an appointment. Radiating pain in an arm or hand and numbness or paralysis in an arm or hand are examples of emergency symptoms and you should seek treatment immediately. If these symptoms are not treated as soon as possible, the neurological impairment might make the symptom permanent.