Doctors may use one or more of the following to treat your child’s pain.
Physical Therapy
Our physical therapy team works with other medical staff to offer treatment for kids of all ages. Sessions work on helping kids build strength, improve movement and lower pain sensitivity.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type of talk therapy. It helps kids with long-lasting pain understand and manage their thoughts, feelings and actions. It teaches them to know what thoughts are unhelpful and replace them with more positive ones.
CBT helps reduce pain, stress, anxiety and depression. Kids learn simple skills to help them relax, manage stress and feel more in control. These tools can greatly impact how kids handle pain and enjoy everyday life.
Medicine Management
Doctors may prescribe one or more of the following medicines to treat or prevent pain:
- Acetaminophen
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
- Opioid analgesics
- Triptans for migraines
- Antidepressant, antiseizure or blood pressure medicine
Procedures
Your child’s doctor may suggest one of the following procedures:
- Baclofen pump: Baclofen is a medicine that relaxes muscles. This makes it easier for a child with serious muscle tightness to move their body. A baclofen pump gives medicine through a small tube that goes into the area around your child’s spinal cord.
- Nerve blocks: These injections treat chronic pain. They target swelling or irritation of the nerves and surrounding areas. They deliver medicine through a tiny plastic tube placed next to the nerve.
- Trigger point injections (TPI): TPIs treat painful muscle areas. These areas have trigger points, or muscle knots, that are made when muscles don't relax. Some injections include a mixture of local pain-relief medicine and steroids.
- Botox injections: Botox may prevent headaches and migraines. Doctors inject it with a small needle in areas around the head, face and neck. This is done about every 12 weeks. It normally takes two treatments to see if it’s working.
- Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS): This treatment provides short-term pain relief. It uses an electric current to stimulate the nerves.
- Biofeedback: This helps kids learn to control body responses to stress. Controlling heart rate or muscle tension and help lessen pain.
Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Your child's doctor might recommend complementary and alternative medicine. These may include treatments such as acupuncture, changes to their diet or aromatherapy. Our providers use them together with standard care.
