CRPS: Treatment
There are many forms of treatment for CRPS. Treatment may include medication, sympathetic nerve blocks, physical therapy, psychological support, and spinal cord stimulation. Your patient care team will develop a treatment plan that makes sense for you. Because there is no cure for CRPS, treatment is focused on relieving pain.

Medications that may be prescribed to treat CRPS include:  

• Analgesics (e.g., Vicodin, morphine, fentanyl)
• Relaxants (e.g., Soma, Baclofen)
• Antidepressants (e.g., Elavil, Trazodone)
• Hypnotics (e.g., chloral hydrate)
• NSAIDS (e.g., Motrin, Voltaren, etc.)
• Steroids (e.g., Medrol dose pack)
• Adrenergic alpha-1 and alpha-2 blocking drugs (e.g., phentolamine, yohimbine )
• Calcium channel blockers (e.g., Procardia)
• Oral local anesthetics (e.g., Mexiletene)
• Anticonvulsants (e.g. Tegretol, Neurontin)

Other treatments may include:

Physical therapy: Physical therapy typically focuses on performing a daily range of motion exercises. Mobilization of the affected limb is a very important part of treatment and but it should be performed ONLY by a therapist who is familiar with CRPS. CRPS patients are particularly susceptible to osteoporosis and joint injury. The goal of physical therapy is to keep the limb moving as much as possible to enable the patient to perform normal activities. Aquatic therapy at a comfortable water temperature can often facilitate mobilization of extremities, especially if CRPS is in the lower extremity.

Sympathetic nerve block: A sympathetic nerve block is a specialized test used to both diagnose and treat pain. Sympathetic nerves control sweating, heart rate, blood vessels, pupil dilatation, movement of food through the intestines, and many other body functions. This network of nerves extends the length of the spine.

Spinal cord stimulation: This procedure uses an electrical current to treat chronic pain. A small pulse generator, implanted in the back, transmits electrical pulses to the spinal cord. These pulses interfere with the nerve impulses responsible for chronic low back pain or leg pain and numbness.

Intrathecal drug delivery: Pain medication is delivered through a catheter directly to the spinal cord. This pain management option, also known as a “pain pump,” may be used if all other traditional methods have failed to relieve your long-term symptoms. The system uses a small pump that is surgically placed under the skin of your abdomen and delivers local anesthetic agents and opiods (morphine or baclofen) to the area around your spinal cord.