Alternatives to Treating Pain with Opioid Medications

The increasingly widespread use of opioid painkillers for chronic pain has created a public health crisis as many people are abusing these highly addictive medications. Aiming to reduce the number of opioid prescriptions doctors write, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently issued guidelines that recommend doctors try pain relievers like ibuprofen before prescribing the highly addictive pills, and that they give most patients only a few days’ supply. But pain intervention specialists actually have a number of other alternative treatments that may address chronic pain with little or no medication. Today, Dr. Erik Shaw of Shepherd Spine and Pain Institute addresses the opioid crisis and explains some pain interventions that are helping patients manage their condition without addictive painkillers.