About one in five American adults experience chronic pain. That's about 50.2 million people. The lost productivity due to chronic pain costs about $300 billion each year.

You don't have to live life in pain anymore. Instead, consider visiting a pain management doctor this year. They could help provide long-term pain relief.

On the fence about looking for "pain management doctors near me?" Here are six benefits to consider first.

Reviewing these benefits can help you make a more informed choice with your health and well-being in mind.

Read on to discover the top benefits of visiting pain management doctors today.

1. Comprehensive and Personalized Care

A pain management doctor has special training to diagnose and treat acute or chronic pain. Their specialized training can ensure you receive a personalized care plan.

A chronic doctor can only treat common aches and pains. Unfortunately, they might not fully understand pain that's more complex. As a result, a general physician might refer you to a chronic pain management doctor.

Your pain doctor can help develop a comprehensive pain management plan with your needs in mind. Their customized treatment plan might include:

• Physical therapy
• Medications
• Interventional therapies

A treatment plan that's customized to your needs could prove more beneficial. After all, no two patients have the same lifestyle, condition, or symptoms. The underlying cause of your symptoms is an important factor to consider, too.

For proper chronic pain management, you need a specialist. Otherwise, you might waste time finding the right treatment through trial and error. During that time, your pain symptoms will only persist.

Your doctor will consider the different factors that are contributing to your condition. For example, they might consider your:

• Stress
• Depression
• Excessive weight
• Home or work ergonomics
• Poor posture
• Other medical conditions

Considering these factors can help your pain doctor fully customize your treatment plan.

2. Identify the Root Cause

In order to develop an effective treatment plan, your chronic pain management doctor will need to consider what's causing your pain. They'll identify the root cause of your pain to ensure they relieve the pain.

In many cases, however, identifying the root cause of your symptoms could prove challenging. After all, everyone's case is unique. The distinct factors contributing to your pain could differ from someone else's.

A pain doctor has advanced training. They'll have the ability to perform a thorough evaluation to determine what's causing your pain. Their evaluation could include several tests.

Then, they can diagnose the specific, underlying cause of your pain symptoms. From there, they'll determine the best course of action to ease your pain.

3. Recent Pain Research

Visiting a pain management doctor will also give you access to the latest research in pain management. Your doctor will remain up-to-date with new techniques and treatments, too. They'll ensure you receive the best possible treatment for your condition.

For example, some doctors use injection therapy. Radiofrequency ablation and fluoroscopy can guide them before they choose the injection site.

The field of regenerative medicine has experienced developments in recent years, too. For example, pain management doctors might recommend PRP therapy. PRP therapy is among the latest treatment options for musculoskeletal issues.

Having access to a doctor who remains up-to-date with these developments can benefit your treatment plan. Remember, your doctor will adjust the plan based on your distinct needs.

They'll ensure your plan is customized while choosing the best solutions for your underlying condition.

4. Specialized Equipment

Your pain management doctor will have access to specialized equipment. Their equipment could make it easier for them to pinpoint the root cause of your pain. It can help them effectively and quickly diagnose your condition.

Living life unaware of what's causing your pain symptoms can cause unnecessary stress. Visiting a chronic pain specialist can help. You don't have to live life with the mystery anymore.

In many cases, you can only gain access to this type of equipment at a pain management doctor's office.

These doctors also have additional training and certifications necessary to use such equipment.

5. Experience With Your Condition

Some of the most common types of chronic pain include:

• Lower back pain (27% of cases)
• Headaches/migraines (15%)
• Neck pain (15%)
• Facial pain (4%)

The older you get, the more likely you'll experience chronic pain as well. About 30% of adults over the age of 65 experience chronic pain.

Remember, pain management doctors specialize. They're more likely to have seen your condition before. As a result, they're also more likely to develop an effective treatment plan faster than general physicians.

They could recommend several ideas that have worked for their previous patients.

You can visit a pain specialist for a range of conditions, including:

• Whiplash
• Repetitive strain injuries
• Slip and fall incidents
• Neck and back injuries
• Joint pain

You could develop one of these injuries after a car crash or work-related accident.

Finding a doctor with experience treating your type of condition can ensure a more effective treatment plan.

6. More Treatment Options

Pain management doctors spend all their team treating patients who suffer from chronic, lasting pain. These doctors will have a range of treatment options that can help ease your chronic pain symptoms.

For example, they might recommend new medications. Their access to specialized treatment can benefit your treatment plan, too.

With access to a chronic pain management doctor, you might receive a diagnosis sooner as well. Remember, these doctors have specialized training. They'll have a better understanding of the condition you're experiencing.

Then, they can determine which treatment options will best suit your needs.

With their effective pain management treatments, you can experience pain relief as soon as possible.

Ease the Pain: 6 Benefits of Seeing a Pain Management Doctor Today

Don't let your chronic pain slow you down anymore. Instead, consider these benefits of visiting a pain management doctor. Their specialized equipment and training can ensure a fast, accurate diagnosis.

With their help, you can begin treatment and start easing your pain away.

Eager to get started? We're here to help.

Schedule an appointment with our specialists today to get started.

If you experience severe joint pain, you're not alone. Approximately 15 million people here in the U.S. are trying to manage painful joints. Roughly half of them report joint pain as persistent — meaning they have pain all or most days over three months.

Are you concerned about your pain but aren't sure how to manage it?

The secret to dealing with painful joints is troubleshooting the cause. Once your doctor figures that out, they can offer help.

We've put together a quick guide to five of the most common types of joint pain. In this article, you'll also find helpful information about treatment options. Take a minute and learn more about how you can manage this common health condition.

1. Finger Joint Pain

Whether a person develops pain in their fingers all of a sudden, or it happens gradually, it can be a life-altering situation.

We depend on nimble fingers for just about every one of the daily tasks we ask our hands to perform. Anything that requires grasping, such as writing, opening doors, preparing meals, and even daily hygiene, relies on healthy finger joints.

If you have pain in your fingers, the first thing you'll need to do is work with your doctor to figure out the source of the pain.

Arthritis of the hand is the primary cause of pain in the fingers. Three common types of arthritis affect your hands:

• Osteoarthritis
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Psoriatic arthritis

Degenerative arthritis, a.k.a., osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis. It's also called wear and tear arthritis because it causes the breakdown of cartilage. Once cartilage wears away, the ends of your bones no longer have protection, meaning they rub together.

The result is stiffness, loss of movement, and, of course, pain. If you have joint pain in the base of your thumb, middle, and top joints of your fingers, you could have osteoarthritis.

Finger joint pain is also one of the classic first symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Psoriatic arthritis only affects people with a diagnosis of psoriasis.

2. What Causes Painful Toe Joints?

Unless you've injured your toe, you can probably blame big toe joint pain on one of the same conditions that cause pain in finger joints. Osteoarthritis and RA both cause pain in the toes.

Another culprit in toe joint pain is gout. Gout causes pain, swelling, redness, and tenderness, primarily in the big toe. It can also affect the other toes.

If you broke or sprained a toe in the past, you may develop arthritis later in life.

3. Pain in Your Thumb Joint

When you feel pain in your thumb, a few things could be the cause.

Have you broken your thumb? Maybe you stretched or damaged one of the ligaments in your thumb. Injury or overuse are both common reasons for pain in the thumb joint.

It's also possible you have arthritis in the thumb.

Consider your lifestyle. Do you type a lot or participate in a hobby that requires you to use your thumbs (gaming, crafts)? All of these activities can lead to thumb joint pain.

People who are significantly overweight can also develop thumb arthritis. Often people with diabetes deal with pain in this area as well. Both conditions can cause the body to experience low-grade inflammation — yet another cause of arthritis in the thumb.

4. Hip Joint Pain

Feeling pain in the hip area can mean life comes to a halt until the pain resides. Hip joint pain often makes any kind of movement difficult, including walking and even sitting.

Weekend warriors often experience hip pain. Inflammation or straining of the tendons in the hip area causes the pain and typically goes away within a few days.

When the pain doesn't reside, you may have one or more of the following conditions:

• Osteoarthritis
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Tendonitis
• Hip Bursitis

Hip joint pain that doesn't go away on its own with home treatment (NSAIDs, cold, or heat therapy) should never be ignored, especially if you're an older adult. What you feel as hip pain could result from a hip fracture, which needs immediate medical attention.

5. Your Achy Knee Joints

Researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) claim that 37 percent of adults experience knee, foot, or hip pain. If you deal with knee pain on any level, you know how frustrating it can be to try and live with it.

Knee pain doesn't discriminate. People of all ages lose time from work and play because of the most common cause of achy knees — arthritis. Injury can also cause excruciating knee joint pain.

Unless you've taken a recent human anatomy course, you may not realize what's going on in your knee area.

Three bones connect to form the knee joint:

• Thighbone (femur).
• Shinbone (tibia).
• Kneecap (patella).

Cartilage covers each bone to prevent them from rubbing together. The synovial membrane lubricates the cartilage.

There's no creaking, cracking, knee buckling, or pain when all is well. But once arthritis sets in, you may not be able to walk at all.

Is There Joint Pain Relief Available for You?

There's good news if you suffer from joint pain! It doesn't matter whether it's the joints in your fingers, toes, thumb, knees, big toe, or hip. You can find relief.

Most people start with simple things they can do at home, such as:

• Ice
• Rest
• Heat
• Exercise
• Topical treatments
• Brace or other orthotic devices

When those treatments don't help, visiting your doctor should top your to-do list.

A pain management doctor has a wide range of options to help people experiencing joint pain. Your personalized treatment could include:

• Chiropractic care
• Acupuncture
• Muscle relaxers
• Cortisone injections
• Steroid injections

It would be best if you look for a doctor who can offer these and other research-proven treatments to help manage your chronic joint pain.

We Have the Solutions for Your Painful Joints

Whether one of the several types of arthritis or a recent injury has resulted in joint pain, you don't need to suffer in silence. The first step is getting a diagnosis so that you can benefit from the treatment options best suited for your condition.

The next step is working with your pain management doctor on a treatment program targeted toward getting you back to a place where you can enjoy life again without severe pain.

The care team at AZ Pain Doctors understands pain and is on a mission to help you improve your quality of life. Contact us today and schedule an appointment. We look forward to seeing you soon.