CRPS, abbreviated as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, is a chronic syndrome. This disorder causes certain clinical conditions, chronic pain being the primary one. This form of chronic pain typically affects the arms and legs and is of two types – Type I CRPS and Type II CRPS. Type I CRPS occurs due to trauma, while Type II CRPS is caused by nerve injury in the limbs, stroke, surgery, and sometimes even heart attack.

Several terms, such as – Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy, Algodystrophy, and Causalgia, have been used for this chronic pain condition. However, since 1995, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome has been used as the standard term. See your doctor if you feel any symptoms, as CRPS can be treated with medications if detected early. Feel free to call us to fix an appointment with our specialists.

It is important to note that the cure for any disorder or condition depends on how early it has been detected. Likewise, it’s vital to check complex regional pain syndrome stages and get it treated by a complex regional pain syndrome specialist early to get the best results.

• You experience constant severe pain in the limbs
• The constant change in temperature of the affected area
• Swelling, redness, and hypersensitivity in the affected area
• Difficulty in moving the affected limb

Diagnosis and CRPS medication is made depending on its history and present state. However, detecting the CRPS of RSD depends on the patient’s physical exam and medical history. It can’t be diagnosed using a single test, but multiple procedures might help shed light on the condition. Your doctor might order the following tests to determine the disorder:

Dynamic Phase Bone Scan

A dynamic phase bone scan may help monitor changes in the bone. The test is done by injecting a radioactive substance into the patient’s veins that can be seen through a particular camera.

Sweat Production Test

This test measures the amount of sweat produced on both limbs. In case of uneven results on each stem, CRPS is suspected.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging

MRI is an imaging test that can help detect any changes in tissues of the limbs that CRPS could cause.

X-Ray

CRPS causes loss of minerals from the bones of the affected limbs. X-rays, a diagnostic test, can help detect bone mineral losses.

There’s an age-old phrase, “prevention is better than cure” while it may not always be humanly possible to stop the inevitable, one can always take specific preventive measures to help avoid CRPS.

The following may help in reducing the chances of CRPS:

• Vitamin C after a Wrist Fracture – High dose of vitamin C post wrist fracture is proven to lower the chances of getting CRPS.
• Mobilization – Remaining bedridden even after a stroke can cause more harm than good. Hence early mobilization, i.e., resuming movements and walking after recovering from the stroke, reduces the risk of CRPS.

CRPS or RSD can be treated if diagnosed early in the first six months to a maximum of 2 years. Padda Institute center for interventional pain management offers long-term relief procedures for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome Treatment.

There is a limited application for surgical sympathectomy procedures (removing part of the chain of sympathetic ganglia on the side of the spine) in treating RSD. There are dedicated treatments for crps in foot. The treatment options include sympathetic blocks with regional anesthetic techniques, radiofrequency thermoneurolysis, or neuromodulation with spinal cord or peripheral nerve stimulation.

The radiofrequency neurolysis method provides added safety to a continuous regional sympathetic or neurolytic block in providing long-term relief. The purpose of sympathetic blocks is to facilitate the CRPS pain management with analgesia and functional restoration along with simultaneous sympatholysis to provide unambiguous evidence of sympathetically maintained pain. After sympatholysis effectively reduces burning dysesthesia and allodynia or hyperalgesia, it is essential to repeat the procedure to see if the duration of the effects becomes longer for any particular patient. These individual blocks may be all that is necessary for a patient to regain their abilities. If sympatholysis effectively relieves symptoms and facilitates exercise therapy, but its duration is limited, a radiofrequency neurolysis block may be an option.

The application of radiofrequency has been described for lesioning the cervical sympathetic chain, the thoracic sympathetic chain, and the lumbar sympathetic chain, as well as for treating neuropathic pain in CRPS I and II.