Caring Medical
& Rehabilitation Services
715 Lake Street, Suite 600
Oak Park, Illinois 60301
708.848.7789 Phone
708.848.7763 Fax

RSD Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Pain

RSD pain is often felt to be the most significant life changing pain It can occur insidiously-a person sprains an ankle, gets it immobilized, the pain continues. Gets the ankle immobilized again, the pain spreads. Soon the person has RSD. RSD stands for reflex sympathetic dystrophy. It commonly occurs in the foot and spreads up the leg and can attack the whole body. It is felt to be caused by a disorder of the autonomic nervous system. This is the same nervous system that controls pain and blood flow. Thus, the person suffers from decreased blood flow in the limb leading to sometimes amputation of the limb. More commonly the condition causes severe burning pain in the extremity.

The "Hauser Theory" of RSD is that the person initially had a ligament injury that didn't heal, primarily because of the immobility. Every person I have ever seen with RSD had a prolonged history (greater than a month) of immobility. Typically they broke a bone an were casted. When the bone healed and they were left with disabling pain, the orthopedist didn't know what to do. The person then saw a whole bunch of pain specialists without help. When they see me or other Prolotherapists they have classic ligament tenderness in the ankle ligaments and foot ligaments (likewise on the hand).

If a person with RSD chooses Prolotherapy, we typically give the patient an I.V. of demerol to receive the treatment so the Prolotherapy would not cause too much pain for them. They receive Prolotherapy to the areas of pain and areas where they are tender. Typically about ten sessions of Prolotherapy are needed. When the injured ligaments and joints are repaired the abnormality causing the hyperactivity of autonomic nervous system stops. When that stops, so does most of the pain. Physical Therapy and comprehensive natural medicine is often used as an adjunct to treatment. In my opinion, Prolotherapy is a powerful weapon against the ravages of RSD pain.