Orthopaedic pain treatment to support movement in everyday life

Your own description is helpful: where does the musculoskeletal pain begin, where does it travel and what has become harder as a result? Also tell us if a treatment helped for only a few hours, if movement became easier or if side effects cancelled out the possible benefit. Previous experiences can influence the choice without automatically determining a repeat treatment. Bring existing findings, images and an up-to-date medication plan, including over-the-counter painkillers. A brief overview of previous treatments helps us recognise connections. You do not need to know medical terminology or write a complete medical history. Two specific questions that particularly concern you can be a good start.

We first assess which symptoms can be better understood through movement, physical demands and the physical examination. Depending on your concern, this may include mobility, strength and sensation. We consider existing images together with the report and your current symptoms. If familiar pain returns, new images are not automatically needed. What matters more is whether the pattern of symptoms or examination findings has changed and whether an image would support a specific decision. A lack of improvement may also prompt a fresh look at diagnostic options. A further examination should answer an unresolved question; it is not an end in itself.

Perhaps it is walking to the bakery, having a more restful night or being able to stay seated at the family table again. Goals like these help assess treatment. A pain scale can add to what you tell us, but does not capture your everyday life in full. We discuss with you which change can realistically be aimed for and how you would recognise it. Complete freedom from pain cannot be promised, particularly when symptoms have lasted a long time. Even so, smaller steps forward that matter to you can make a difference. Your wishes and medically appropriate options both belong in the plan.

Advice on movement, adjusted medication or a targeted procedure serve different purposes. Pain relief, for example, may make it easier to start a suitable activity. The level of activity needs to fit your diagnosis and your response; pain should neither be ignored as a rule nor become a reason to withdraw permanently from activity. Image-guided injections may be considered for certain spinal symptoms. They are not, however, a general treatment for all chronic pain. We explain the respective pathways for back pain and for symptoms radiating from the neck into the arm on separate pages. These also explain the diagnostic question that comes before a decision.

Persistent pain can affect sleep, mood and relationships. Conversely, poor sleep and ongoing strain can influence the experience of pain. When we ask about these things, we are not looking for an explanation that dismisses your symptoms. We want to identify additional ways to help. Sometimes support alongside orthopaedic treatment is useful, such as pain-focused psychotherapy or a coordinated programme involving several professions. A coordinated treatment programme of this kind is called interdisciplinary multimodal pain therapy. If the steps taken so far do not help sufficiently, we discuss whether this type of further assessment may be suitable for you. The specific care then needs to be arranged separately.

Tell us what has actually improved or worsened since a change in treatment. Perhaps you can manage an activity again, while a medicine makes you tired. Perhaps you are still unsure about an exercise or cannot do it at home. Feedback like this helps us decide on the next step. A plan can be changed if it does not help or does not suit your situation. It is useful to understand which measure had which effect. Feel free to ask: What is this step meant to achieve? What alternative is there? When should we review the result?

At OrthoCoast, your orthopaedic pain treatment is provided by Priv. Doz. Dr. med. habil. Richard Kasch, Dr. med. Christoph Jährling and Björn Weidemann. All three are specialists in orthopaedics and trauma surgery. Their doctor profiles explain the qualifications confirmed for each of them. We first discuss the aim, benefits, limitations and alternatives. If you are covered by German statutory health insurance and then wish to pay yourself for a service not covered by GKV, you receive a cost estimate beforehand. You can take time to reconsider your decision. This self-funded service is provided only after you have signed confirmation of your wish for treatment and acceptance of the costs.