A panacea for pain

Kumar Pain Management and Specialty Centre is one of the few centres offering pain management

Sapna Dogra - New Delhi

Until a few weeks ago M K Gupta, an engineer at the Nuclear Science Centre Delhi, was unable to attend his work and lead a comfortable life because of an excruciating pain in his lower back and the right hip. No medication and therapy was helping him, till he visited the Kumar Pain Management and Specialty Centre (KPMSC). At KPMSC, he was given an epidural shot and his hip pain vanished instantly.

Similarly, Prem Lamba, a housewife was feeling miserable because of the nagging pain in right leg. Popping painkillers wasn’t helping and doctors were unable to identify the cause. A visit to KPMSC at this juncture helped. It identified the cause of the pain was because of a vertebra pressing a nerve that was causing the pain. And after six injections, she was hale and hearty. Like Gupta and Lamba, there are many people who have been at the KPMSC without undergoing any surgery.

KPMSC is one of the few institutes, which deals with pain management and help in healing many painful conditions. It is a multi-modality comprehensive pain management facility where a host of treatment are available for all types of acute and chronic pain. Here people get relief from back pain, neck pain, cancer related pain, headaches, dental and facial pain, neuralgias/neuropathies, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, muscle spasms, vasospastic disorders, pain associated with work related injuries and accidents, non-surgical treatment, sciatica/ruptured discs, chronic fatigue, endoscopic carpel tunnel release, osteoarthritis, spine fracture, among others.

The moment one enters the KKPMSC situated in the plush surroundings of the Vasant Vihar, a calming effect suffuses your entire being. As put in by a patient, the non-clinical air inside and non-hospital like atmosphere automatically cheer you up. The centre is a brainchild of Dr Vijay Sheel Kumar, harbinger in the field of pain management.

Despite being a neurosurgeon, Dr Kumar believes that the surgical procedure should never be used indiscriminately. Dr Kumar received his training in Neurosurgery at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. He has treated thousands of patients with head, spine and nerve injuries. Besides, he is among the first in the world to do microdiscectomy for disc disease (1974), R F lesion and microvascular decompression for trigeminal neuralgia and endoscope assisted surgery for pituitary tumors. His desire for finding non-invasive and minimally invasive solutions for pain culminated in creating KPMSC where surgery is reserved as a final option.

At KPMSC, he heads a team of doctors who specialise in neurosurgery, neurology, orthopaedics, pain medicine and surgery, internal medicine and psychology. The team is supported by physical and occupational therapists, exercise trainers, counsellors, dental specialists and nurses. The Centre has a state-of-the-art GE C-ARM flouroscopy and fully equipped surgical theatre, though complex surgeries are not done here.

Dr Kumar informs that the commonest pain complaint people come to him with is headache followed by back pain (mostly strain related, occupational), specific pain syndromes, residual pain after surgery, arthritis, among others. The multi-faceted pain has become an integral part of modern life especially the neck and lower back pain, are wreaking havoc on people’s lives.

Lamenting the lack of awareness amongst Indian doctors pertaining to pain management, Dr Kumar says instead of investigating the cause of any pain doctors usually take the easy course of surgical intervention. However, he is optimistic that in five years, the concept of pain management will catch up across the country. The Fellowship programme in pain management at AIIMS, GB Pant hospital and Apollo Hospital bear testimony to the growing awareness and increased knowledge, he declares.

Dr Kumar proudly claims that about 90 per cent of his patients get cured without undergoing any surgery. The majority of patients with pain from acute, chronic disorders and cancer are not properly treated in the world, feels Dr Kumar. Of all cancer patients, 2/3rd have severe pain and 90 per cent of whom can be helped by lessening their pain, he adds.

There is an array of treatment available at KPMSC for allaying various disorders. For instance, in the case of debilitating back pain, besides physical therapy, exercise training and other methods under medical supervision, techniques like epidural injection, endoscopy and micro discetomy are used.

And that’s not all. KPMSC also offers special services like dentistry, executive health check-ups, orthopaedics and sports medicine, among others. From relieving pain to providing support services to prevent injuries and stress, the KPMSC is a one-stop centre for various ailments.