Chronic Neck Pain: 5 Nonsurgical Solutions That Can Deliver Effective Relief

Neck pain affects up to 20% of adults. 

One of the reasons it’s such a common affliction is that there are so many possible causes, which include poor posture, pinched nerves, herniated discs, osteoarthritis, and muscle strains — and that’s just a partial list. 

Some find that their neck pain subsides after a few weeks, but if your neck pain sticks around for more than three months with no sign of relief, your neck pain is chronic. Even though chronic neck pain isn’t a medical emergency, the constant pain and stiffness can really wear on you. 

Thankfully, chronic neck pain rarely requires surgery, but getting treatment from our team of pain management experts, led by Don Enty, MD, at Genesis Pain and Regenerative Medicine in Colleyville, Texas, can lead to more effective pain relief and resolve the underlying issue.

Let’s explore five of our treatments that can address your chronic neck pain in this blog.

1. Steroid injections

Arthritis, degenerative disc disease, and herniated discs can irritate the nerves in your spine and lead to neck pain. Steroid injections contain a strong anti-inflammatory medication that can reduce inflammation around the affected nerve and provide much-needed pain relief. 

While steroid injections can’t heal the underlying cause of the nerve-related neck pain, they can give you the pain relief you need to undergo the physical therapy needed to promote true healing. 

In addition, reduced inflammation gives your irritated nerves the ability to heal correctly.

2. Nerve blocks

A nerve block is another treatment option that can help alleviate nerve-related neck pain. 

During this treatment, a medication is injected into the area causing pain to prevent your nerves from sending pain signals to your brain. This provides pain relief and space for your nerves to repair themselves.

3. Radiofrequency ablation (RFA)

If your neck pain hasn’t responded well to steroid injections or nerve blocks, Dr. Enty may recommend RFA.  

RFA strives to sufficiently cut off communication between your damaged nerves and your brain, so they can no longer send out the pain signals responsible for your chronic neck pain. It does this by using small needles to send thermal energy to the affected nerves, and the heat blocks the pain signals.

4. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy

When you’ve suffered a neck muscle injury that isn’t healing correctly, PRP therapy can promote better healing to hopefully eliminate the need for surgery.

PRP is a substance that’s made by isolating and concentrating the plasma from your blood. Plasma contains a large number of proteins called growth factors that are responsible for body-wide healing and cell regeneration. 

By injecting a high concentration of platelets into an injured area, you ensure that your body has everything it needs to heal quickly and completely. 

5. Human tissue allograft (HTA)

HTA is a transplant of cells from one individual to another, and it also promotes better healing and increased cell regeneration by using growth factors. However, instead of acquiring these growth factors from plasma, HTA uses donated placentas. 

When women give birth during a scheduled cesarean section, they can donate their placentas, which contain over 150 biologically active proteins needed for healing and new tissue growth.

Injecting a solution containing placental tissue promotes healing of the underlying issue causing your neck pain. It can be even more effective when combined with PRP therapy. 

To get started with any of our treatments for chronic neck pain, schedule a consultation with Dr. Enty by calling our office or using our online booking feature today.