At the Weill Cornell Brain and Spine Center, we place great importance on reducing and managing pain. Our minimally invasive surgical techniques allow patients to recover faster, with less pain, than with open surgery. Still, pain has physiological, chemical, and psychological elements that sometimes must be addressed. We have a wide range of options for pain, including:
Our Multidisciplinary Pain Program, which treats pain associated with chemotherapy, nerve injury or scarring, reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD), amputations, spinal cord injury, and other disorders. Treatment options include implanted spinal cord stimulators that deliver electrical impulses to relieve pain; intraspinal pumps (also called intrathecal pumps) that deliver drugs directly to the spinal cord; and deep brain stimulation (DBS), a minimally invasive procedure that uses a neurotransmitter device — similar to a heart pacemaker — to deliver electrical pulses to the exact location in the brain that generates painful symptoms and blocks them.
The Facial Pain Program specifically addresses trigeminal neuralgia, acoustic neuroma, hemifacial spasm, and other disorders that may cause facial pain.
Our Back and Neck Pain Program serves patients with spine conditions that cause back pain or neck pain, including spinal stenosis, herniated disc, degenerative spine conditions, and more.
We also offer Cognitive Behavioral Group Psychotherapy for pain, consisting of group sessions led by board-certified clinical neuropsychologist Amanda Sacks-Zimmerman, Ph.D., ABPP-CN. Cognitive behavioral therapy is the treatment of choice to treat the psychological aspect of pain. Call 212-746-3356 for more information, and for the time and location of our next group meeting.
