Last update: 12-18-09                                                                                       En Español

WHO WE ARE: We are premier, state-of-the art and highly specialized Pain Management Center dedicated to treating the whole spectrum of pain, from common disorders (like cervicalgia or neck pain, headache, lower back pain, upper back pain, migraines, sciatica, hand and arm pain due to carpal tunnel syndrome) to other much less common painful conditions (complex regional pain syndrome, atypical facial pain, cranial neuropathies, etc.). We accept patients without a referral and also work closely with Orthopedic Surgeons, Neurosurgeons, Family Practice and Internal Medicine doctors to help them manage challenging conditions and for patients to achieve pain relief (Click on "Health Care Providers" button on the left side of this page).

WHAT WE CAN DO TO REDUCE YOUR PAIN IMMEDIATELY: We virtually use all advanced options and treatments available for chronic pain relief whether pain affects the lower back, neck (cervical spine) or is manifested by leg pain (including sciatica) or arm pain. Depending on the cause and mechanism, treatment options may range from simple back pain therapeutic exercises or chiropractic care to highly advanced minimally invasive treatments. If possible, we always aim at avoiding open surgery keeping maximal pain reduction and recovery of function as our primary goals.

WHAT ARE MINIMALLY INVASIVE PROCEDURES ("Interventional" Pain Management") ? Minimally invasive procedures is the "generic" name used for a group of techniques that usually (but not always) target the affected anatomical structures in the spine or other body areas suspected to be the primary cause of the pain (these are called "pain generators" in the Pain Management jargon). Pain generators are reached with either very thin needles or special needle like instruments through a skin puncture under image guidance (CT scan or fluoroscopy) in order to deliver treatments leading to almost immediate pain relief. Examples of minimally invasive procedures are: selective anesthetic blocks or treatment of nerves carrying pain signals, percutaneous discectomies (removal of a portion of a herniated disc or "slipped disc" pressing on a spinal nerve through a little needle-like device using laser light or mechanical means, thus avoiding open surgery), injection of medicines into painful joints of the spine that may cause back pain, treatment of painful discs or other painful areas with radiofrequency and many other techniques aiming at immediate pain relief.

Please click and watch our videos on the  "Services" page (or read our PAIN REPORT) to learn more about these methods. Most procedures do not require hospital admission and last only 5-20 minutes. In our clinics, they are only and always performed by a specialist MD physician who is Board Certified in Pain Medicine and Neurology and formally trained in an accredited fellowship program. Almost always, techniques are performed under highly accurate image guidance (fluoroscopy or CT scan), providing extreme precision and safety to the patient (as opposed to "blind" procedures or injections). See our page explaining our approach to carpal tunnel syndrome treatment without surgery.

WHAT WE DON'T DO: We avoid the use of opioids when the cause of the pain can be treated. We do not use "one fits all" fashionable procedures or treatments such as "laser", "spinal decompression", "VAX-D", etc. indiscriminately, because the causes of pain are very distinct from patient to patient. All options, however, are on the table if clinically indicated. We aim at avoiding surgery whenever possible.

BACK PAIN HOUSTON

 ST. MICHAEL'S CLINICS MISSION.

1-Commitment to excellence in patient care. 2-Support of the good health of the communities we serve. 3-Commitment to providing outstanding service through the entire continuum of care from evaluation, diagnosis, treatment and coordination of multidisciplinary care and disease prevention. 4-Use of the best clinical practices and the most advanced technology while providing a warm and inviting atmosphere conducive to the well-being of our patients.

OUR PHILOSOPHY: We believe each patient's pain is unique. Therefore, treatments are specially designed for the specific back pain cause or causes for each patient in particular after a thorough Neurological examination. We make it a priority to take sufficient time to fully explain the plan to each patient, the final authority and decision maker. We avoid use of opioids (narcotics) or surgery whenever possible. As mentioned, we focus on medical science, not "one treatment fits all" techniques.

MEET OUR PHYSICIAN

Miguel A. Pappolla, MD, PhD

Board Certified and Diplomate in Pain Medicine (Interventional)     

Board Certified and Diplomate in Neurology.

Board Certified and Diplomate in Clinical Pathology, Anatomic Pathology and Neuropathology.

Fellowship trained in (Anesthesia Based) Interventional Pain Management.

PhD Doctorate in Human Aging.

Professor of Neurology

 

BACK PAIN HOUSTON NEWS RELEASE. M. Pappolla, MD included in AMERICA'S TOP PHYSICIANS list.

 

 

Please read more about Dr. Pappolla's credentials and qualifications by clicking on "MEET OUR PHYSICIAN".     

REQUEST AN APPOINTMENT (we will contact you within 24 hr. or on Mondays for appointments made on weekends)      

Click on "REQUEST AN APPOINTMENT" above or on the "Appointments-Contact us" button on the left of this page to schedule an appointment (you can either call us or do it on line, no referral is necessary). We accept most insurance plans including Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Cigna, Aetna, Humana, United Healthcare, Medicare, Medicaid and many others. We can get you in with the pain management physician today! If you are a referring physician, health care provider or doctor representative please click on "For Health Care Providers" to download a referral form.

WHY WE GET EXCELLENT OUTCOMES: Our success is based on the premise that we offer not one but a spectrum of successful options to reduce pain and avoid surgery. New and emerging treatments and techniques are constantly researched by us; whenever a treatment shows to be safe and better than a "sugar pill" or placebo, it becomes part of our program. Please click on "Services" to read more about some of the procedures we offer. (SEE Back Pain Houston and Neck Pain Houston Resource Centers, M Pappolla, MD Editor BACK PAIN HOUSTON ).

Directions to Our Office          Services (also watch procedure VIDEOS)

Take our Easy Free Online Pain Assessment

(FROM Back Pain Houston and Neck Pain Houston Resource Centers, M Pappolla, MD Editor BACK PAIN HOUSTON).

CLINICAL NEWS: TREATMENT OF CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME WITHOUT SURGERY (FREQUENT CAUSE OF ARM PAIN, HAND PAIN OR WRIST PAIN). A COMBINATION OF LASER AND A TINY SKIN PUNCTURE WITH MORE THAN 90% PAIN RELIEF WITHOUT SURGERY. CONTACT US WE WILL GLADLY ANSWER ALL OF YOUR QUESTIONS ON THIS QUICK AND VIRTUALLY PAINLESS 5 MINUTES PROCEDURE.

Call for an appointment today. We hope we can meet you soon!

The St. Michael's Pain & Spine Staff

 832-448-0706  

BACK PAIN HOUSTON. EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES ON LOWER BACK PAIN, UPPER BACK PAIN, NECK PAIN, SCIATICA, SLIPPED (HERNIATED) DISC, LEG PAIN, ARM PAIN, CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME, PAIN MANAGEMENT AND BACK PAIN RELIEF IN GENERAL.

EDUCATION CORNER where you will find articles and topics of interests and hope it becomes your "back pain Houston" resource. We began construction of this page on 02-20-09. New articles will be added daily. In the meantime please read our "Pain Report", it contains important information on back pain, neck pain, arm and leg pain, arthritis, disc degeneration (slipped disc, also called herniated disc), neck injury, back injury and potential treatments. This report also describes the roles of a back pain specialist (also known as spine specialist or back pain doctor or neck pain doctor) in primary care and how a back injury or neck pain injury can cause chronic back pain or chronic neck pain impact your mood, cause depression and affect your quality of life. Find explanations about the significance of having a slipped disc, a degenerated disc, sciatica or a pinched nerve in this section. If you wish, you may sign up for our free quarterly "Pain Newsletter" and receive periodic updates on important topics and emerging therapies for chronic pain. Click on "Services" to explore some informative videos and illustrations (which you may print) about how some common conditions may effectively be treated. We also included a "Free Pain Assessment Form" that you may use for additional education about your back pain, neck pain, sciatica, herniated discs and related conditions. 

What is Back Pain?

What injuries can cause low back pain?

How are the sources of back pain or neck pain ("pain generators") identified?

Is chronic low back pain or neck pain curable?

Are there different kinds of pain?

What is sciatica?

What are the most common medications used to treat back pain, neck pain, pain from sciatica (leg pain from a pinched nerve in the lumbosacral spine)or arm pain?

Which are the most common types of pain seen in a doctor's office?

Finally, do not leave our site without exploring our video collection where you will find easy to understand presentations about the following conditions (some of interesting brief educational videos include):

About Cervical Radiculopathy (also called pinched nerve, usually caused by a slipped disc in the neck or cervical spine, a herniated disc or a bulging disc, causing either shoulder pain, arm pain or hand pain with or without neck pain)
About Degenerative Disc Disease (also called degenerated disc, a potential cause of neck pain and lower back pain)
About Facet Joint Syndrome (Arthritis) (also called spondylosis, degenerative joint disease or degenerative arthritis. This is a frequent cause of neck pain, lower back pain, headaches, upper back pain)
About Fibromyalgia (a frequent debilitating condition causing diffuse pain including lower back pain, arm pains, leg pains, headaches, shoulder pain and poor sleep) 
About Herniated Discs (also called bulging disc)
About Lumbar Radiculopathy (Sciatica). (A condition frequenly causing leg pain or sciatica. The pain frequently has a shooting quality and may be associated with or without lower back pain).
About Migraine Headaches (find our how a neurologist or a pain specialist can help you manage headaches)
About Pain Management (find more about the role of the back pain doctor or neck pain doctor here!)
Post Laminectomy Syndrome (also called "Failed back syndrome")
About Spinal Stenosis (A narrowing of the spinal canal and a cause of arm pain or leg pain with or without neck pain or back pain)
About Spondylolisthesis (An abnormal displacement of one vertebra over another, often causing instability in the spine and resulting in pinched nerves and sciatica like syndromes with or withour additional neurological deficits) (SEE Back Pain Houston and Neck Pain Houston Resource Centers, M Pappolla MD, Chief Editor). 

*Common conditions treated include at our clinics: back and spine problems caused by disc degeneration,neck and lower back pain caused by facet disease and arthritis or spondylosis (a synonym of arthritis or degenerative joint disease), back injury ,leg pain due to sciatica also called radiculopathy,back and spine deformities,complex back syndromes (co-existence of various causes for your pain sometimes associated with deconditioning, gait or balance abnormalities), lumbago, disk/disc protrusion ( a form of slipped disc or herniated disk/disc, root compression or pinched nerves,cervical or neck pain,fibromyalgia, vertebral compression fracture due to osteoporosis,low back or neck pain due to neurological disorders such as dystonia, following prior failed surgeries (failed back syndrome), back pain and neck pain associated with fibromyalgia, back and neck pain associated to myofascial pain syndrome, sciatica, carpal tunnel syndrome, problems associated with rigidity due to neuromuscular disorders such as parkinsonism and others. Neuropathy associated with metabolic disorders or diabetes. Migraine and refractory headaches, daily headaches, daily migraine, atypical migraine syndrome and atypical facial pain. Complex regional pain syndrome also called RSD or regional sympathetic dystrophy. Post-herpetic neuralgia. Trigeminal neuralgia.  For more information on these conditions we recommend downloading and reading our Free Pain Report or visiting the web sites of reputable non profit organizations which provide unbiased information of the efficacy of various treatments available for your condition.

For your protection

The internet is one of the greatest informational tools of our time. However, the abundance of information obtained, sometimes ambiguous or unverified, can lead to confusion or misinformation. For additional education on the mentioned terms (below) related to spine conditions we recommend that you also visit the LINKS page which will direct you to highly reputable non-profit organizations where you can do your own additional research independent of any bias. To this end, we also prepared a Pain Report for educational purposes.  The information retrieved on searches using these terms is sometimes unverified by clinical trials or other evidenced-based medicine standards. For education on these terms, we highly recommend also (in addition to visiting the medical societies as mentioned above) to obtain information from other reputable sources such as the National Institutes of Health web site, WebMD or the American Medical Association website. You can then make an educated decision for yourself as to which information will conform with current standards of medical care in this country. Finally, note that most patients will use the term "doctor" on their searches. Remember to visit our page "about us". Therein, we describe what is considered acceptable regarding the credentials of a treating doctor. Often, your own primary care physician can be the best source for the answers to your questions.Common terms used by the public in the internet for searching information related spinal conditions frequently include: back pain doctor,back pain injuries,back pain trauma, spine doctor. Similar terms like lumbar back pain,pain orthopedics,pain specialist,back strain or back surgeons are frequently used in searches. Please use the listed non profit organizations to find additional information also when searching for "cervical pain or neck pain ,fibromyalgia,neuropathy, pinched nerve, slipped disk or back problems".

Thank you for your attention.