Hyou in the East Valley, but also brings our inter-disciplinary approach to more people with chronic pain conditions.

We continue to bring you The Pain Show, which showcases painful conditions, patient success stories and the latest in pain news. The episodes can be found on our website, www.ArizonaPain.com, at www.ThePainShow.com, and on YouTube.

In our episode based on radi-ofrequency ablation and facet arthritis, we meet Mary Cook, a patient who had su! ered from back pain for over 20 years. In this episode, we explain the anatomy of facet arthritis and the two-step treatment process we used to relieve Mary’s pain. Also featured in this episode, Dr. McJunkin receives acupuncture from one of our expert chiropractors and dispels myths regarding this treatment.

Our latest exciting episode of The Pain Show discusses epidural steroid injections. We meet Mike Ives, a patient who faced possible surgery to relieve him of excru-ciating pain – until he met the

team at Arizona Pain Specialists. Mike su! ered from back, hip and leg pain for years and after epi-dural steroid injections, he tells us he is always smiling and could have danced a jig right there for us. All this and more are available to you on these and upcoming episodes of The Pain Show.

We are constantly updating our website to bring you the most up-to-date and accurate infor-mation available. Our research department is hard at work to bring you the most innovative in medical advancements and treat-ments.

We hope that this issue is use-ful, educational and informative. Please contact us at newsletter@ArizonaPain.com if you have any questions or comments.

We thank you for your continuing loyalty if you are a long-standing patient, and we welcome you to the Arizona Pain Specialists family if you are a new patient.

Until next time, remember that we at Arizona Pain Specialists be-lieve you can be pain-free.

Dr. Paul Lynch & Dr. Tory McJunkin

Happy spring! We hope you are enjoying the beautiful Arizona weather and are able to spend time with your loved ones and friends.

We have some exciting changes and new projects coming up, and are sure all of them will aid us in better serving you, our patients.

The biggest and most exciting change is the addition of our new East Valley o" ce in Chandler. Located at 655 S. Dobson Rd., we plan to be open April 5th, 2010. Coming to the new Chandler o" ce are two distinguished pain physicians; Dr. Tristan Pico, M.D., joining us from MD Anderson, and Dr. William Thompson, M.D., joining us from Harvard Medical Center. Please see page two for more information on their train-ing and quali# cations. We are con# dent that Dr. Thompson and Dr. Pico will bring the exceptional level of care you’ve come to ex-pect from Arizona Pain Specialists to the East Valley.

With the addition of the Chan-dler o" ce we now have three locations Valley-wide and are hoping that this new location not only makes it easier for those of

Doctor William Thompson is a fellowship-trained Interven-tional Pain Medicine Physician who is committed to multidis-ciplinary treatment of pain. Early in his medical school educa-tion, Dr. Thompson was exposed to the stark reality of pain and the devastating e! ects that it had on his patients. By watching and learning from pain medicine experts, he quickly came to realize that there is little more ful# lling than dedicating one’s life to the alleviation of pain and su! ering and decided to pur-sue his residency training in Anesthesiology.

Throughout his residency training in Anesthesiology at the University of California Los Angeles, Dr. Thompson gained con-siderable experience in the treatment of all varieties of pain conditions under the mentorship of world-renowned pain physicians and anesthesiologists. Additionally, Dr. Thompson had the honor of being elected Chief Resident by the faculty and his resident colleagues. Following the successful com-pletion of his residency, Dr. Thompson moved to Boston for fellowship training in Interventional Pain Medicine at Harvard University’s prestigious Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center program.

The product of a Midwestern upbringing, Dr. Thompson has strong family ties to Arizona and feels fortunate to be a part of Arizona Pain Specialists and their mission to provide multidisci-plinary treatment of pain to the people of this great state.

Doctor Tristan Pico is fellowship trained in both Interventional Pain Management and Anesthesiology. While the excitement of the oper-ating room was di" cult to leave, he found he wanted more personal interaction with his patients. This, paired with his desire to treat pain led him to the # eld of pain management, which not only provides the opportunity to connect with his patients during their time of greatest di" culty, but also alleviate their su! ering.

There is a great diversity of treatment options for patients who su! er with chronic pain. While a resident in Anesthesiology at the University of Alabama, Dr. Pico learned many di! erent techniques to treat both acute and chronic pain. His training at MD Anderson, the nation’s premier cancer treatment facility, helped him master the most advanced pain treatment techniques that can be o! ered to patients. Dr. Pico is an advocate of providing patients with a wide array of treatments to ensure that pain treatment is tailored to each patient’s unique pain pro# le.

Dr. Pico witnessed the devastating consequences of pain during his grandfather’s battle with colon cancer. At MD Anderson, he learned that pain is a highly personal experience and does not a! ect any one person in the same way. All patients who endure pain on a day-to-day basis can have their lives immeasurably improved with advanced pain treatment.

Dr. Pico was raised in Glendora, California and will reside in Mesa, Arizona with his wife and three children.

Charla Barrick is a compassionate nurse practitioner at Arizona Pain Spe-cialists. She has been a nurse practi-tioner for 3 years, worked at Stanford University Hospital and has been part of the Arizona Pain Specialists family since June, 2009. With the new o" ce opening this month in Chandler, Ari-zona, Charla will take her expert care to the patients of the East Valley.

A nurse practitioner is a vital part of the team at Arizona Pain Specialists. They partner with our physicians in gathering crucial medical informa-tion, creating personalized care plans and making sure each patient has the medical support they need. Many patients enjoy the extra time and attention nurse practitioners bring to the team.

Charla is dedicated to her patients and truly enjoys her job. She always has a smile and a positive attitude for everyone, and her expertise and high-level of patient care will surely be welcome in the East Valley.

Charla took a few minutes to answer the usual questions; see how much you have in common with Charla below!

Favorite activities: habitually hosing down the patio, walking, running and keeping up with my dogs.

Favorite TV shows: When I have the time, I usually watch shows like The Mentalist, The O" ce, Good Wife and Criminal Minds.

Favorite sports teams: Indianapolis Colts.

Favorite food: raspberries.

Favorite movie: Italian Job, August Rush.

Favorite location in the world: Costa Rica, and soon to be Greece.

Favorite Eatery in Arizona: The Breakfast Club in Scottsdale.

Favorite location in Arizona: Sedona.

Favorite things about Arizona: I love the heat and the fact that I live in a place where people vacation.

Least favorite things about Ari-zona: the dust.

Favorite bands: The Rippingtons, Coldplay, Train and Bon Jovi.

Crazy fact about you: People call me a lizard because I love the sun so much!

Interesting fact about you: Someday, I plan on helping even more people with my medical skills through Doctors Without Borders.

Unknown talent: I could easily work as a box-packer at Costco; I can pack anything into any size space!

What celebrity do people say you look like: Patients have told me I look like Heather Locklear, and some of the sta! have said I look like Jennifer Aniston!

Meet Charla Barrick, Nurse Practitioner

C h i r o p r a c t i c C o r n e r

At Arizona Pain Specialists, we adhere to a multi-disciplinary approach to pain management. Within this cohesive design, chiro-practic care is an excellent option available to you, our patients.

Each month, we bring you tips recommended by our quali-# ed chiropractors to assist you in pain relief and management at home.

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Back Stretch--Lie on your stomach. --Use your arms to push your upper body o! the $ oor. --Hold for 30 seconds.--Let your back relax and sag. --Repeat. --This stretch may be performed several times per day.

--Kneel on mat on hands and knees, with palms directly under shoulders and knees hip-width apart. --Slowly raise your right arm and extend it forward parallel to the $ oor. --Balance by contracting your abdominal muscles. --Keep right palm parallel to the $ oor, then lift the left leg and straighten it behind you. --Hold opposing limbs o! the ground for 30 to 60 seconds with-out arching your back. Switch sides. Repeat 3 to 6 times.

The Pointer

According to the United States Department of Labor’s 2008 report, an estimated 23,231,750 Ameri-cans were o" ce workers. This large group of people spend most of their day seated at a desk using a computer, keyboard, and mouse.

For those seated at a desk, ergo-nomics is more important than you may realize. Ergonomics is intend-ed to modify the workplace to the comfort of the worker, minimizing discomfort and fatigue. Poor ergo-nomics and staying in the same po-sition for extended periods of time can cause a multitude of problems, back pain among them.

The chair you sit in can make all the di! erence and is the most important part of ergonomics. Ergonomic chairs support the back and promote good posture.

According to Spine-Health.com, there are some things that are vital to the features of a good ergonomic chair. Adjustable seat height is important, as it is best for the user to be seated with feet $ at on the $ oor, thighs horizontal and arms even with the height of the desk. The chair should have lumbar (lower back) support, and the back-

rest should be adjustable. It is also important that the chair swivel to accommodate reaching di! erent areas of the desk without straining, in addition to the chair having at least 5 legs and being able to roll without much e! ort.

There are multiple forms of ergonomic chairs available on the market, and it is recommended to find one that works best for your body type and medical his-tory. Other factors including seat width and depth should be taken into consideration.

Feet should be flat on the floor, arms should rest comfortably on your desk and your wrists should be flat when typing.

Those with desk jobs sit for an average of 7 % hours per day. The human body isn’t designed to sit still in the same position hour after hour, day after day. By remaining immobile, ten-sion in your muscles will set in from being stuck in one position. “Deskercise” is a catch phrase that is gaining more and more popu-larity as people are becoming more aware of the implications of desk jobs.

There are many simple stretches that can be performed easily right at your desk during your workday.

The easiest deskercise stretch that can be performed is to slowly roll your neck side to side and front to back. Another recommended move is to simply raise your arms above your head and stretch your back. This will stretch these mus-cles and relieve tension and stress. Many people # nd that keeping a balance ball at their desk either at work or home will improve posture and strengthen their core.

Movement throughout your workday is important. By taking short breaks throughout your day, you can improve circulation, ease muscle tension, lower stress levels and cause a mental boost. Even if you just walk to the end of the hall-way and back, or to a coworker’s desk and back, a little movement results in great bene# ts.

In April, a new episode of The Pain Show will showcase a feature about deskercise and will focus on the bal-ance ball.

Each month, we invite our readers to ask questions of our medical providers. This month, we cover the topics of radiofre-quency ablation (RFA) and spinal disc decompression, a treatment available from the chiropractors at Arizona Pain Specialists.

I have multiple questions re-garding radiofrequency abla-tion. 1. Can you explain RFA? 2. Is it common to feel pain after RFA? 3. How long will pain relief last?

We are glad you asked this question, as we get this inquiry often. RFA stands for Radio Frequency Ablation, an exciting procedure in pain management that disrupts nerve conduction, essentially eliminating the pain signal to the brain.

1. Can you explain RFA? The procedure begins with sedation given by the nurse anesthetist. Your pain physician will then administer a local anesthetic to numb your skin. Using fluo-roscopic (X-ray) guidance, the proper placement of a needle is determined by sensory and mo-tor stimulation. When it has been confirmed that the needle is in the correct position, a local anes-thetic is injected. An electrode is threaded into the needle, and is heated to 50-80 degrees Celsius. That temperature is maintained for several minutes, destruct-ing the surrounding pain fibers, which results in the interruption of the pain signals to the brain.

Radiofrequency ablation is extremely safe, has high success rates and is performed in our in-house procedure center daily.

2. Is it common to feel pain after RFA? Most patients feel mild to no discomfort follow-ing the procedure and typically

experience a dramatic decrease in pain. Rarely, however, post-operative inflammation of the nerve (neuritis) may occur, and a patient can experience a pain similar to a bad sunburn on their skin. This only affects a small number of patients following RFA, and should resolve in ap-proximately four to six weeks. If post-operative pain is moderate to severe, we recommend that you schedule an office visit.

3. How long will pain relief last? Pain relief from RFA typical-ly lasts a little under a year, how-ever in our experience, we have seen pain relief last anywhere from six months to six years.

For more information about RFA, watch The Pain Show at www.ThePainShow.com, or visit our ePainBook at www.Arizo-naPain.com

-Dr. Tory McJunkin, M.D.

Can you explain spinal disc decompression?

Spinal disc decompression has been shown to help patients suffering from disc abnormalities (bulging, herniated, degenera-tive and/or ruptured discs), sciat-ica and facet related pain. Spinal disc decompression is available at Arizona Pain Specialists and of-fers patients a non-surgical alter-native to pain relief. Disc bulging and herniation occurs when disc material is compressed by verte-bra and causes the disc to press against nerves in the spine. The physical irritation and inflamma-tion caused by the bulging disc material causes severe and often debilitating pain.

You will remain fully clothed and will be lying on a table spe-cifically designed for disc de-compression. The FDA-approved

equipment used at Arizona Pain Specialists includes the thera-peutic table and a computer connected to that table to elec-tronically control your treatment. While resting comfortably on the table, a padded harness will gen-tly take pressure off your spine and is called “spinal traction.”

By using this decompression, negative pressure similar to a vacuum is created, allowing the disc material that is crowding the nerves to be drawn back into the disc, removing the painful pres-sure from the nerves.

The sessions include multiple cycles of decompression and relaxation. Each cycle will last approximately 3 to 5 minutes, and your entire session should last approximately 15 to 20 minutes, but may be longer or shorter depending on your needs. A patient typically needs multiple spinal disc decompres-sion treatments, but often feels significantly better early in their treatment process.

We are proud to offer spinal disc decompression at Arizona Pain Specialists and often use this modality in conjuction with interventional pain treatments. Patients who wish to begin chiropractic care do not need a referral and services are often typically covered by insurance. If you feel you may be a candidate for or have any questions regard-ing disc decompression, please contact us today.

-Dr. Chance Moore, D.C.

If you have a question you would like to see featured in Ask The Expert, please write to us at :

newsletter@ArizonaPain.com