Proper pain management consists of establishing a specific, accurate diagnosis to guide correct treatement + judicious use of conservative pain-control modalities + appropriate management of Physical Therapy, Massage Therapy, Accupuncture, and Manipulative Therapies + coordination of surgical and non-surgical specialty solutions.

Many patients are not fully aware of all the treatment options available to them. We specialize in nailing-down your diagnosis and presenting to you the full spectrum of medical and surgical options which are available to help you recover from or manage your chronic pain.

Half-hour (and longer) appointments are utilized to help you completely understand your condition, to carefully explain test results, and to help you understand specialty consultation results.

This places you in control of your pain, and in control of all the options available to you.

Methadone

Many people think that methadone is only used for the treatment of heroin addicts. However, we now know that it is very effectively used in a variety of pain management solutions.

Patients taking narcotic pain medications can be successfully moved from Oxycontin, MS Contin, and Hydrocodone-based pills to Methadone and Medical Marijuana. The savings in cost alone are a great benefit. Many patients paying well over $1000 per month for Oxycontin can be easily treated with about $30/month of Methadone. Medical Marijuana in Hawaii is free, as the licensed users of marijuana are entitled to grow their own plants.

Methadone is a rigorously well-tested medication that is safe and efficacious for the treatment of narcotic withdrawal and dependence. For more than 30 years this synthetic narcotic has been used to treat opioid (narcotic) addiction. Narcotics release an excess of dopamine in the body and cause users to need an opiate continuously occupying the opioid receptors in the brain. Methadone occupies these receptors and is the stabilizing factor that permits former narcotics users on methadone to change their behavior and to discontinue their narcotic use.

Methadone maintenance treatment provides the narcotic user or addict with individualized health care and medically prescribed methadone to relieve withdrawal symptoms, eliminate the opiate craving, and bring about a biochemical balance in the body.

Research and clinical studies suggest that long-term methadone treatment is medically safe (COMPA, 1997). When methadone is taken under medical supervision, long-term maintenance causes no adverse effects to the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, bones, blood, brain, or other vital body organs. Methadone produces no serious side effects, although some patients experience minor symptoms such as constipation, water retention, or drowsiness. Once methadone dosage is adjusted and stabilized or tolerance increases, these symptoms usually subside.

Methadone is a legal medication produced by licensed and approved pharmaceutical companies using quality control standards. Under a physician's supervision, it is administered orally on a daily basis with strict program conditions and guidelines. Methadone does not impair cognitive functions. It has no adverse effects on mental capability, intelligence, or employability. It is not sedating or intoxicating, nor does it interfere with ordinary activities such as driving a car or operating machinery. Patients are able to feel pain and experience emotional reactions. Most importantly, methadone relieves the craving associated with opiate addiction.

Sources

American Methadone Treatment Association, News Report, pp.1–14, August, 1998.

American Methadone Treatment Association, 1998 Methadone Maintenance Program and Patient Census in the U.S., New York, NY, April 1999.

Boundy, Donna, "Profile: Methadone Maintenance: The 'Invisible' Success Story," Moyers on Addiction, New York, NY: Public Broadcasting Service, 1998. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/closetohome/treatment/html/methprofile.html

COMPA, (New York State Committee of Methadone Program Administrators, Inc.) Regarding Methadone Treatment: A Review, New York, NY, pp. 6, 9, and 10, 1997.

COMPA, "Behavior Before and After Entry Into Methadone Maintenance Treatment," adapted from McGlothlin, W.H., and M.D. Anglin, "Long-term Followup of Clients of High- and Low-Dose Methadone Programs," Archives of General Psychiatry, 38(9), pp. 1055–1063, 1981.

Firshein, Janet, "The Politics of Methadone," Moyers on Addiction, New York, NY: Public Broadcasting Service, 1998.

Greenhouse, Cheryl M., "Study Finds Methadone Treatment Practices Vary Widely in Effectiveness," NIDA NOTES, Washington, DC: National Institute on Drug Abuse, July/August 1992.

Hubbard, R.L., S.G. Craddock, P.M. Flynn, J. Anderson, and R.M. Etheridge, "Overview of 1-year Follow-up Outcomes in Drug Abuse Treatment Outcome Study (DATOS), Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 11(4), pp. 261–278, 1997.

Mathias, Robert, "NIH Panel Calls for Expanded Methadone Treatment for Narcotic Addiction," NIDA NOTES, 12(6), Washington, DC: National Institute on Drug Abuse, November/December 1997. http://www.nida.nih.gov/NIDA_Notes/NNVol12N6/NIHPanel.html

OASAS (New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services), Methadone Maintenance: Effective Treatment for Narcotic Addiction, Albany, NY: New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services, 1998.

Office of National Drug Control Policy, "Consultation Document on Methadone/LAAM," Washington, DC, p. 5, September 29, 1998a.

Office of National Drug Control Policy, "We Need More Methadone, Not Less," New York Daily News, p. 29, July 29, 1998b.

Office of National Drug Control Policy, What America's Users Spend on Illegal Drugs, p. 8, Fall 1997.

Recer, Paul, "Experts Call for Less Regulation of Narcotic Addiction Treatment," Athens Daily News, p. 10a, August 21, 1998.