Blog Archive
Millions of Americans suffer from chronic pain, with pervasive and debilitating symptoms that often take a toll on everyday activities. While most people consider pain a physical symptom, chronic pain also impacts emotional health. At Vulcan Pain Management, Victor Mendoza, MD, uses a comprehensive, whole-patient approach to chronic pain management...
Opioid medications can play a crucial role in relieving significant pain, but unfortunately, they can also be highly addictive. About a million Americans have died from drug overdoses over the past decade, and many more have had nonfatal overdoses and serious addiction issues that have taken a significant toll on their lives....
Fibromyalgia is a chronic pain condition that affects about 4 million American adults, causing symptoms that range from mild and bothersome to severe and debilitating. A neurological condition, fibromyalgiam happens when your peripheral nerves and your brain interpret pain and other stimuli much more intensely. Although millions of men and...
About 16 million adults in the United States suffer from chronic or persistent back pain, dealing with symptoms that take a significant toll on their activities, their mobility, and their quality of life. Back pain can be especially difficult to treat — and challenging to live with — because you use your...
About a quarter of American adults suffer from joint pain and the stiffness and loss of mobility it can bring. Joint pain can be debilitating — but it can also be treated. The key is to find the right combination of medical treatments and “home remedies” that can help. At Vulcan Pain Management in...
Many remote employees would agree: Working from home offers lots of advantages, both in terms of their day-to-day work routines and in terms of their overall quality of life. But there are some potential problems that can occur with a work-from-home arrangement, especially if you don’t have a dedicated and...
More than 20% of Americans suffer from chronic pain, and about 7.5% suffer from high-impact pain — chronic pain that’s so prevalent, that it interferes with daily living activities. For acute pain, medication can be a good solution for relieving painful symptoms. But chronic pain is different. Yes, medication can help...
Opioid medications provide powerful relief for people with acute and chronic pain — but unfortunately, they also come with many potential side effects, including increased risks of addiction and abuse. Even very brief courses of opioid medications can cause gastrointestinal side effects, including upset stomach or constipation. As a leading pain...
Smartphone use has skyrocketed over the past decade, and today, nearly 300 million smartphones are hard at work in the United States. About 85% of American adults use smartphones, and last year alone, about 150 million new smartphones were ordered by consumers eager to keep up to date with the latest technology....
Opioid abuse is a significant cause of injury and death, affecting millions of Americans. Roughly 10 million Americans misuse opioid prescription drugs every year, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Listening to news reports about the opioid epidemic, it’s easy to come away with...
Cancer is a complex disease that challenges you in many ways. Many people with cancer are also plagued by chronic pain, with symptoms that take a toll on them physically and emotionally. Thankfully, Victor Mendoza, MD, and the team at Vulcan Pain Management offer state-of-the-art pain management therapies to help...
Elbow pain is fairly common, especially among athletes and people who use their arms for repetitive activities, like lifting. Like other joint pain, elbow pain becomes more common with age as wear and tear on joint surfaces begin to take their toll. To find relief for elbow pain, you need...
Lower back pain is one of the most common medical complaints in the United States. In fact, in one study, as many as 25% of Americans reported lower back symptoms within the prior three months. Back pain can be roughly divided into acute pain that comes on rapidly and chronic...
More than one-fifth of American adults deal with chronic pain every year in the United States. For many people, their symptoms are frequent and severe enough to interfere with their regular daily activities and prevent them from socializing and enjoying the activities they love. Unlike acute pain that comes on...
Nerve compression is a common cause of back pain and neck pain in the United States and worldwide. The Cleveland Clinic says more than 250,000 American adults suffer from nerve compression — roughly 85 of every 100,000 adults. While some “pinched nerves” may resolve independently with a little TLC, some...
At this very moment, about 31 million Americans are dealing with back pain, including pain involving their discs. Back pain is so common, roughly 80% of people will wind up experiencing it at some point in their lives. At Vulcan Pain Management in Birmingham, Alabama, Victor Mendoza, MD, offers state-of-the-art...
About 50,000 Americans died from opioid overdoses in 2019 — that’s about 137 deaths every day. Opioids are highly addictive, and once you’re “hooked,” breaking that endless cycle of addiction is incredibly hard — unless you have a skilled opioid addiction recovery specialist by your side. At Vulcan Pain Management...
Chronic pain is hard enough to deal with when you know where it’s coming from. But for the roughly 4 million Americans who have fibromyalgia, pinning down the source of the pain can be difficult. Not surprisingly, that makes it even more challenging to find relief. Fortunately, Victor Mendoza, MD,...
Millions of Americans suffer from back pain, one of the most common medical complaints for women and men. But even though it’s common, back pain can still have very different causes, affecting people in different ways. A lot of people have habits that make their back pain worse. At Vulcan...
If you’re one of the 80% of Americans who experience back pain during their lives, you’re well aware of how even a little pain can make your life miserable. Chronic back pain is a common medical complaint in the United States and worldwide, affecting millions of people every year. A...
Neck pain affects about a third of American men and women every year, and for about half of those people, painful symptoms will persist or recur. Nearly three-quarters of adults will have neck pain that interferes with their regular activities. Neck pain may be common, but the good news is,...
If you have chronic pain, getting a good night’s sleep probably seems like an impossibility. Tossing, turning, and repositioning yourself over and over again has perhaps become a regular part of your nightly bedtime routine. Without a good night’s sleep, you can wind up feeling exhausted and cranky the next...
About 4 million American adults — roughly 2% of the population — have fibromyalgia, regularly dealing with pain, stiffness, and fatigue. As debilitating as the physical symptoms are, fibromyalgia’s emotional effects can also be devastating, especially if those symptoms are ignored. At Vulcan Pain Management, Victor E. Mendoza, MD, helps...
According to data from the CDC, about a half-million Americans died from opioid overdoses during the 20-year period between 1999-2018. That’s more than 60 people every day. Opioid drugs can serve an instrumental purpose in managing chronic or severe pain. But the way they act on the brain can also...
According to estimates from the CDC, about 70 million Americans live with chronic pain, including about 20 million people with symptoms so severe, they limit their everyday activities. For these men and women, getting medical treatment is essential to help them lead normal, active lives and prevent physical and mental...
Almost everyone experiences back pain during their lifetime, but some people suffer from persistent pain that interferes with their daily activities. According to research at the National Institutes of Health, lower back pain is a leading reason people miss work. An estimated 16 million people suffer from disabling chronic low...
Chronic pain is associated with several health conditions. Reports vary, but researchers and experts estimate that chronic pain impacts between 20 and 40% of American adults. The cost for health care for people suffering from persistent pain is exorbitant, a whopping $560 billion each year, much of that linked to...
In the last 20 years, a staggering 450,000+ people have mistakenly died from an overdose of opioids. If you’ve developed an addiction to opioids, you are a candidate for a prescription medication called Suboxone® to help reduce your opioid dependence. At Vulcan Pain Management, our board-certified pain management specialist, Victor...
Your spinal cord spans a large portion of your body, houses your central nervous system, and is crucial for your overall health and well-being. It also bears the brunt of your body mechanics and is prone to degeneration from wear-and-tear and the aging process. At Vulcan Pain Management, our dedicated...
If you have bursitis, you’re not alone. More than 8 million people in the United States suffer from the condition each year. Bursitis makes it challenging to perform even simple movements, so it’s hard for you to go about your normal activities. At Vulcan Pain Management in Birmingham and Montgomery,...
Steroids are a category of anti-inflammatory medicines used to treat a wide range of pain conditions. At Vulcan Pain Management in Birmingham and Montgomery, Alabama, our experienced doctor, Victor Mendoza, MD, provides minimally invasive steroid injections when you suffer from sciatica, arthritis, plantar fasciitis, gout, back pain, neck pain, degenerative...
If you’re suffering from chronic low back pain, you may be struggling to conduct your regular activities or enjoy your favorite hobbies. There are multiple possible causes of low back pain, including disc herniation, scoliosis, spinal stenosis, and degenerative disc disease. At Vulcan Pain Management in Birmingham and Montgomery, Alabama,...
According to research, up to 75% of the adult population in America experiences neck pain from time to time. Unfortunately, for many people, neck pain is chronic and interferes with daily activities. At Vulcan Pain Management, Dr. Victor Mendoza specializes in pain relief and offers a comprehensive range of services...
If you’ve suffered from chronic pain for months or years, you’ve likely tried many therapies and treatments to restore your quality of life. For persistent pain that affects the range of motion and function in your joints, spine, back, and neck, our team at Vulcan Pain Management in Birmingham and...
It’s estimated that nearly 2 million people in America are addicted to prescription opioids. Opioid addiction is a national crisis that costs 128 people their lives every day and the United States 78.5 billion per year. At Vulcan Pain Management, we know that overcoming addiction is a real challenge, and...
If you live with chronic pain, you may rely on a pain-reducing drug that’s classified as an opioid. While opioids are effective and frequently prescribed by doctors to help manage moderate-to-severe pain, they also come with a number of serious side effects. Each year, thousands of people die from opioid...
Neck pain is a common medical complaint. In fact, between 20-70% of all adults will experience neck pain that limits their daily activities at some point in their lives. If you’re among those with this painful condition, you know how it can be all-consuming and disrupt your productivity. In Birmingham,...
If chronic pain is part of your daily life you’re not alone. About 20% of American adults live with chronic pain, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). While diseases such as cancer, AIDS, stomach ulcers, and multiple sclerosis can cause chronic pain, about 10 million people...
Back pain is the second most frequent reason Americans visit their doctors. Back pain is common because there are so many moving parts in the back. With the abundance of parts comes a higher potential for overuse and injury as you age. Victor E. Mendoza, MD, at Vulcan Pain Management...
Chronic pain can be debilitating, resulting in significant loss of function and ability to enjoy life. Although everyone experiences pain from time to time, chronic pain is a persistent condition that’s much worse than everyday pain. It’s estimated that about 20% of American adults suffer from chronic pain. What is...
Tech neck, text neck — it doesn’t matter what you call it — when using tech devices causes a literal pain in your neck. While it might seem like a minor inconvenience when you first experience it, tech neck can lead to serious complications if left untreated. You could see...
A migraine is more than just a simple headache—it’s an inherent instability in the way your brain handles incoming sensory information, and that instability can give rise to intense, pulsing head pain, extreme sensitivity to light and sound, blurred vision, nausea, and vomiting, among other symptoms. Migraines may last as...
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 15 million women and men in the U.S. experience severe joint pain because of arthritis. Arthritis is a group of about 100 inflammatory joint conditions that affects about 50 million adults and 300,000 children. Although arthritis is the most...
Fibromyalgia tops the list of most common chronic pain conditions. In addition to widespread pain throughout your body, fibromyalgia symptoms can include: Fatigue Difficulty concentrating or remembering things Frequent headaches Tingling in your feet and hands Lower abdominal pain Painful menstrual periods Restless leg syndrome Depression While fibromyalgia can develop...
At least 50 million Americans live with chronic pain. For many, over-the-counter pain relievers aren’t effective enough, but nonsurgical solutions like nerve block injections can provide long-term results. Dr. Victor E. Mendoza and our Vulcan Pain Management team can develop personalized treatment strategies designed to address your pain at the...
Opioids are a narcotic substance that comes from the poppy plant. These drugs, both legal and illegal, are highly addictive and affect people from all walks of life, no matter their age, race, gender, or income level. The most common prescription opioid medications include: Codeine Methadone Morphine Oxycodone, brand name...
The prevalence of chronic pain is eye-opening, with one in five adults in the United States struggling with the issue at some point in their lives. While women and the elderly tend to suffer more, no one is immune, and solutions can be frustrating. Here at Vulcan Pain Management, Victor...
At least 31 million Americans suffer low back pain at any given point in time. If you’re among this population, you want relief so you can do your favorite daily activities without discomfort and dysfunction. While medications, injections, and other more invasive procedures are sometimes necessary in times of trauma...
Approximately 10 million people in the United States grapple with widespread and hard-to-treat pain at the hands of fibromyalgia. For decades, medical researchers have spent considerable time and energy trying to pinpoint the cause of the condition, and perhaps more important, what we can do about it. While there’s still...
Chronic pain impacts every area of your life, and experts estimate that some 100 million Americans live with chronic pain. If you’re one of them, you may feel like you don’t have any options. With the current opioid addiction crisis, pharmaceutical options may be limited or simply not an approach...
As if chronic pain weren’t enough to handle, a staggering two-thirds of sufferers are also plagued by sleep disorders. This double whammy can leave you mentally and physically exhausted, leaving you less able to fight back against your chronic pain. At Vulcan Pain Management, we understand the frustration that comes...
Low back pain affects a whopping 80% of the population in the United States at some point in their lives. While many people are able to move on with their lives after simple rest, some are left with nagging chronic pain in their lower backs that radiates down their legs....
The statistics surrounding opioid use are nothing short of alarming, starting with the simple fact that 115 people die each day in the United States because of an overdose, prompting our own government to call opioid use a national crisis. Like a knight in shining armor, Suboxone® burst onto the...
If you’re one of the millions of Americans dealing with pain, you know how much it can interfere with your daily life. To complicate matters, managing pain is no easy task. Pain management specialists employ a wide variety of techniques and tools to help treat the root cause of pain,...