Blog Archive

Chronic back pain raises your risk for a range of problems, from anxiety and depression to an inability to exercise, sleep, socialize, or work normally. If your back pain has lasted for at least three months and keeps you from leading a full or satisfying life, you may be a...

Urinary incontinence affects millions of adults in the United States, including 50% of women. Just because reduced bladder control is common, though, doesn’t mean you have to grin and bear the symptoms.  Our expert team at Houston Pain Specialists, led by board-certified pain management specialist Hui Kang, MD, offers Axonics®...

If you’re dealing with whiplash after an accident, you’re far from alone. Car crashes are the leading cause of this neck injury, which can result in a range of bothersome symptoms that interfere with your daily life. Thankfully, minimally invasive treatment can help. Our expert team at Houston Pain Specialists,...

More than 1 in 5 adults in the United States lives with chronic pain. If you’re among them, you know how frustrating, or even debilitating, such symptoms can be.   That’s where interventional pain management comes in. The medical discipline devoted to diagnosing and treating painful conditions can help minimize your...

Tens of millions of Americans experience chronic pain at some point. And while chronic pain can affect any part of the body, knee and shoulder pain are the most common.  If you relate all too well to these statistics, peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) may be your best bet, especially if...

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can affect not only your joints, but systems throughout your body. When you have it, your immune system attacks tissues in your body, starting with the inner linings of your joints – resulting in tenderness, swelling, and stiffness. RA can also lead you to feel chronically fatigued,...

You dealt with an injury some time ago, yet the pain lingers on. In fact, the pain worsens over time, as a burning ache you can’t seem to relieve. Meanwhile, you struggle to move your body as usual, which makes seemingly simple tasks challenging.  If you relate to this scenario,...

If you’re living with ongoing pain in your low back, buttocks, or thighs, you could be dealing with sacroiliac joint dysfunction. Also known as SI joints, your two sacroiliac joints connect your hip bones to the bones between the bottom of your spine and your tailbone. They also absorb shock...

Car accidents are stressful even when you walk away unscathed. Sadly, quite a few survivors develop injuries and pain that carries on. Research shows that some 45% of people involved in a car accident experience related pain two years later.  And that pain can interfere with everything from your ability...

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease that affects over 32 million people in the United States alone. As a result of damage and deterioration in a particular joint, OA causes pain, swelling, and stiffness that can make it very difficult to move or function comfortably. Our expert team at...

Up to 75% of adults experience at least one headache in a given year. While the occasional headache may seem tolerable, recurrent bouts can interfere with your well-being, your moods, and even your ability to function. And emotional stress is a common headache culprit. Our expert team at Houston Pain...

Some 4 million adults in the United States live with fibromyalgia, a chronic and painful condition also known as “fibro.” While there’s no known cure, a solid treatment plan can help minimize your symptoms so you can better thrive. Our expert team at Houston Pain Specialists, led by board-certified pain...

If pain has become a near constant in your life and other measures have only gone so far, you may want to consider an epidural. While this minimally invasive treatment has a strong reputation for minimizing childbirth pain, that’s not where the benefits end. Our expert team at Houston Pain...

Difficulty controlling your bladder can seem like a lonely and embarrassing problem. But you’re far from alone, and urinary symptoms are nothing to be ashamed of. They’re also very treatable. In fact, up to one-third of adults in the United States deal with urinary incontinence. If you’re among them, you...

Auto accidents can be scary and frustrating, especially when a painful injury lingers on afterward. And whiplash is among the most common car accident injuries, especially those that involve being rear-ended. Our expert team at Houston Pain Specialists, led by board-certified pain management specialist Hui Kang, MD, treats auto accident...

When a car accident places sudden impact on your spine, you could very well end up with a herniated disc. Affecting some 2% of people each year, herniated discs are a leading cause of pain in the arms, neck, back, and legs. Disc herniation is treatable, thankfully, and epidural injections...

If knife-like pain finds you when you stand up in the morning or a dull heel ache lingers all day, you know how bothersome and painful bone spurs can be.  Bone spurs can also cause radiating heat, visible protrusions, and tenderness that makes walking difficult. And they can form in...

If you’re one of the millions of Americans who lives with chronic pain, you may want to consider spinal cord stimulation.  Designed to treat severe pain that doesn’t respond to more conservative treatments, this special device works with your body’s pain signals to bring you long-lasting relief without the hassle or risks of...

When your hips are healthy and functioning well, they allow you to stay stable on your feet, bear weight, and move about normally. And your sacroiliac (SI) joint helps ensure that your hips do their job well.  If you’re dealing with severe and lasting pain in your hips, pelvis, or...

Millions of people around the world live with osteoarthritis (OA), making it the most common form of arthritis and a leading cause of joint pain. As a progressive disease, it gradually worsens over time.  Knowing your risk factors for OA may inspire you to take preventive measures and address any...

If you’ve experienced back pain for at least three months, it’s considered chronic. Your pain may linger in one area of your spine or radiate more broadly, with an intensity that ranges from a mild, dull ache to excruciatingly severe or throbbing.  And the pain doesn’t need to be constant...

Car accidents result in over 2 million emergency room visits each year in the United States. And that doesn’t include the many people who attempt to self-treat their symptoms or believe their injuries aren’t severe enough to demand medical attention.  Most any injury from a car accident can benefit from...

If you were involved in a truck accident, getting the care you need is vital for maintaining your overall health and well-being. This is especially true if you sustained injuries that have led to ongoing problems, such as chronic pain.  Our expert team at Houston Pain Specialists, led by board-certified...

The nerves in your back play an important role in your day-to-day wellness. These electrical messages travel between your brain and spinal cord to relay sensory information, such as what feels good versus painful.  Pain can arise when an illness or injury compresses — or presses on — a nerve....

Studies show that spinal cord stimulation brings good to excellent pain relief that lasts in 50-80% of chronic pain sufferers.  While those results are promising, getting an implanted device before knowing whether the device will work well for you isn’t an ideal scenario. That’s why we provide a spinal cord...

Spinal stenosis affects an estimated 11-20% of older adults in the United States, making it one of the most common age-related conditions.  When you have spinal stenosis, the spaces in your spinal cord are too narrow. As a result, you may be prone to pinched nerves and compression issues that fuel numbness and pain....

You probably associate arthritis with joint pain alone, but rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can cause a broad range of symptoms, including, potentially, a fever.  If you’re one of the 1.5 million people in the United States who lives with this disease, understanding why fever may occur may help you get the care and relief you...

Your spine is made up of bones called vertebrae. Small, round discs act like pillows between those bones, providing support and allowing you to move about with ease. When you have a slipped or bulging disc, also called a herniated disc, a fragment inside the disc has pushed out and...

If you’re dealing with sacroiliac (SI) joint pain, you’re far from alone. Pain in these joints, which are located between your lower spine and pelvis, coincides with a whole range of painful conditions, like arthritis, traumatic injuries, and infections.  And research shows that some 30% of chronic lower back pain – which affects 4 in 5...

Reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD) syndrome is a form of complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). And once you have it, a range of bothersome symptoms can affect your well-being and daily life. One such symptom is joint pain.  Our expert team at Houston Pain Specialists, led by board-certified pain management specialist Hui Kang, MD, offers numerous...

When you have rheumatoid arthritis (RA), your immune system mistakenly attacks tissues in your body. It eats away at the lining of your joints, leading to pain, stiffness, and inflammation. Over time, especially without treatment, you can develop deformities.  Thankfully, there are effective ways to manage RA and lead a full, enjoyable...

A headache can determine whether you have an enjoyable, productive day or suffer through at a seemingly snail’s pace. And while most everyone experiences the occasional headache, up to 4% of people experience a headache on 15 or more days per month. If you’ve noticed that headaches crop up when you’re especially stressed or...

Osteoporosis can be a somewhat tricky disease. It’s sometimes called the silent disease, because symptoms typically creep up well before you’re aware of any problem. Once it does cause obvious damage, neck issues often unfold.  While osteoporosis is typically at an advanced stage when it makes itself known, treatment can still...

If you’re one of the over 32.5 million American adults who live with the aches and stiffness of osteoarthritis, a healthy lifestyle is a key part of your treatment plan.  This degenerative form of arthritis stems from wear-and-tear of cartilage in your joints over time, especially in your knees, neck,...

You would do just about anything to do away with the pain, tingling, and weakness of spinal stenosis, but is surgery your only option? Thankfully, no.  Numerous less invasive treatments can help minimize your symptoms while enhancing your overall life quality. Decompression is one such option. Our expert team at...

When your days and nights are affected by chronic pain, going under the knife may be one of the last things on your wishlist. In some cases, such surgery can seem like the only option.  Epidurals provide a far less invasive pain management option that may lower your pain symptoms...

If you’re one of the roughly 4 million adults in the United States who lives with fibromyalgia, pain relief is likely a top priority. The condition, which causes chronic pain throughout your body, can lead to a range of complications and make going about your daily life pretty difficult.  Thankfully,...

Spinal surgery is one of the most effective treatments for severe, chronic back pain when it’s successful. Unfortunately, up to an estimated 22% of people who have a traditional spine surgery end up back where they started within five years.  When this happens, it’s known as a failed back surgery,...

Pain is often a helpful signal that something in your body is awry and needs addressing. When pain carries on well after an injury, though, it becomes a condition of its own. When you live with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), the prolonged arm or leg pain and inflammation it...

It starts with a bit of pain in your fingers or toes that comes and goes. You figure it’ll go away completely on its own, but instead it worsens. Now you’re feeling increasingly stiff, especially in the mornings, and fatigue is setting in. Should you see a doctor?  The answer...

If you struggle with frequent or ongoing back pain, you’d probably do just about anything to find lasting relief.  Given how involved your back is in physical function — in everything from supporting you while you sit to allowing you to walk or lift objects — back pain can wreak...

Are you experiencing persistent back pain despite corrective surgery? Have other pain management treatments fallen short in bringing you relief?  If you find yourself in this situation, there’s good news. You may be a candidate for spinal cord stimulation, a state-of-the-art treatment that we offer here at Houston Pain Specialists....

If you’ve been dealing with back pain for a long time, you’d probably do just about anything to get the pain to subside. You may have already sought conservative pain management treatments, but they haven’t been as helpful as you’d hoped.  At this point, you may be considering a laminectomy...

Headaches are an unfortunate, but common, part of life. Everyone experiences them at some point or another. For some people, though, headaches are a more frequent occurrence. At the very least, they’re distracting; at most, they can be debilitating.  Do you get frequent headaches? Our team at Houston Pain Specialists,...

Spinal stenosis can cause pain, discomfort, and frustration. It can interrupt your favorite activities and cut short quality time with your loved ones. You may know what symptoms spinal stenosis causes, but do you know what causes the condition itself? When dealing with spinal stenosis, it’s best to understand the...

Everyone experiences a headache at least once in their life. In fact, they’re so common that they’re one of the top health complaints.  If you’ve had more than one headache — and you probably have — you may have noticed that sometimes the pain occurs in a different area than...

Navigating through life while suffering chronic back pain is one of the most difficult and draining things you could deal with. When you opted to get back surgery, you were likely thinking that your pain and worries would stop there. For some people, unfortunately, that’s just not the case. Undergoing...

Dealing with stiff or painful joints can be draining and frustrating. This condition is quite common, with about a third of American adults suffering from some kind of joint pain. You can experience pain in any joint, but the most common places include the knees, shoulders, and hips. At Houston...

Have you started noticing pain that seemingly appears out of thin air and without cause? You could be experiencing complex regional pain syndrome, a type of chronic pain that stems from an issue with your sympathetic nervous system.  Dr. Hui Kang and the rest of our team at Houston Pain...

The human neck is fascinating. Along with the spinal cord, it’s strong enough to hold you up — with the help of surrounding muscles of course — as you stroll through life. Yet at the same time, it’s fragile.  Damage to your neck can affect parts of your body that...

The pain, discomfort, or numbness that comes with spinal stenosis can be unbearable. If you suffer from these symptoms, you’re probably wondering what you can do to relieve your pain.  One of the options you may come across is the VertiflexTM procedure. Another is surgery. What’s the difference between the...

Has your chronic pain become severe enough to interfere with your daily activities? Have you been trying to manage your pain with more conservative treatments but haven’t gotten the relief you need?  Don’t allow chronic pain to hold you back any longer. Interventional medicine may be the solution you’re searching...

If you’re living with lumbar spinal stenosis, daily routines and activities can be difficult, and even unbearable. The pain, numbness, and weakness interrupts the things you love to do and leaves you feeling drained.  There are several treatments for lumbar spinal stenosis, ranging from nonsurgical treatments — like pain medications,...

Are you one of the millions of Americans who suffer from chronic back pain or other back problems? Up to 80% of Americans will have back pain at one time or another. Whether you’re living with postsurgical pain or complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), spinal cord stimulation may be a...

Do you live with chronic pain and suffer from more than just the physical discomfort? You’re probably so busy focusing on how to alleviate your physical pain that you may not even realize the effect that pain has on your emotional well-being.  If you want to return to the way...

Fibromyalgia is somewhat of a mystery, with no known cause or cure. Living with it is certainly taxing, not only because of the symptoms you may be experiencing, but also because of the frustration that comes with not fully being able to understand it. What we do know is that...

If you have spinal stenosis, you know that living with its effects can be miserable. Not everyone experiences the worst of the symptoms, but many suffer from back pain, leg pain, numbness, and tingling. In severe cases, you may even suffer from weakness in your legs and have issues standing...

Are you experiencing pain in your joints? Whether joint pain has been a part of your life for a while or is a fairly new experience for you, you should understand why that pain exists. One of the common causes of joint pain is osteoarthritis.  At Houston Pain Specialists, we...

Are you beginning to notice pain, tingling, or numb feelings in your extremities? What about neck or back pain? It’s possible that these symptoms could be associated with spinal stenosis, a condition that requires a medical diagnosis and treatment. A pain specialist like Hui Kang, MD, at Houston Pain Specialists...

Living with rheumatoid arthritis doesn’t have to limit your mobility or keep you from work and social activities. With effective treatment and daily at-home care, you can maintain your quality of life, and it’s possible your disease could even go into remission.  Over 1.5 million Americans live with rheumatoid arthritis...

Back pain is a common condition, and current research from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Strokes estimates that 8 out of 10 adults suffer from back pain at some point. Back pain isn’t just a minor inconvenience. The same research estimates that the burden of back pain is...

An estimated 10 million Americans suffer from fibromyalgia. And while up to 90% of people who have the condition are female, fibromyalgia can affect anyone, and the chance of getting it increases with age.  A chronic pain condition, little is understood about fibromyalgia, though genetics are thought to play a...

Are you constantly dealing with chronic headaches? Simple things can trigger headaches, like a small dietary change or lack of sleep. But chronic headaches are usually a sign that something isn’t right. Back and neck injuries are normally associated with headaches; patients often report that they experience headaches even after...

To give you an idea of the prevalence of low back pain, the National Institute of Health reports that 80% of the adult population in the United States suffers from low back pain at some point during their lives. And of those who experience an acute problem in their backs,...