Understanding Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS): Symptoms and Solutions

Most injuries heal with time. For example, a mild sprained ankle improves within a few weeks, and many fractures mend in about 6 to 12 weeks, although complex fractures heal within about a year.

Even surgical pain gradually fades, but for people with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), the pain doesn’t seem to resolve on the expected timeline. Complex regional pain syndrome can persist long after the original injury has healed, and to make matters worse, the pain may be far more severe than expected.

If you suspect that you have CRPS, you’re not alone. Our team of specialists at Garden State Pain & Orthopedics can help you find answers for complex pain conditions like CRPS and develop personalized treatment solutions. 

What is CRPS?

CRPS is a chronic pain condition that typically develops after some type of trauma. This can include anything from a sports injury to surgery. Even strokes can contribute to CRPS. An estimated 12.5 to 50% of people who’ve had a stroke develop CRPS.

When CRPS develops, there’s an abnormal communication between your nervous system and your body’s inflammatory response. As a result, your body continues sending pain signals long after healing should have occurred. 

This can be further broken down into two categories:

• CRPS Type 1, where your symptoms develop after an injury, surgery, or illness without evidence of direct nerve injury 
• CRPS Type 2, which occurs when your symptoms develop following damage to a specific nerve 

Type 1 (no known direct nerve damage) is the more common form of this condition. Regardless of which type you have, CRPS most often affects an arm, hand, leg, or foot.

What are the symptoms of CRPS?

Any injury or post-surgical site can cause discomfort. That’s to be expected. However, a red flag for CRPS is pain that seems disproportionate to the original injury.

You might suspect that you have CRPS if you have noticed the following symptoms after you sustain an injury:

• Nerve-related symptoms such as burning or throbbing pain
• Extreme sensitivity to touch
• Pain from normally non-painful stimuli, such as clothing or light contact
• Swelling
• Changes in your skin color or temperature 
• Shiny or thin skin
• Joint stiffness
• Muscle weakness
• Changes in your nail and hair growth (too much or not at all)

CRPS symptoms can vary from person to person, and they may even change over time. To compound matters, some symptoms may overlap with normal healing or other conditions. For example, peripheral artery disease (PAD) can also cause changes in your skin temperature and hair growth.

How is CRPS diagnosed?

CRPS can become more difficult to treat if symptoms are ignored or treatment is delayed. Not to mention, the longer you go undiagnosed, the more uncomfortable you remain. 

Getting diagnosed as soon as possible may help reduce pain, preserve mobility, and prevent the condition from progressing. That’s why it’s important to talk to us if you’re experiencing persistent pain or unusual symptoms following an injury or procedure.

There isn’t a singular test for CRPS. Instead, our team of healthcare providers at Garden State Pain & Orthopedics diagnoses the condition based on your symptoms, medical history, physical examination, and by ruling out other conditions that could be causing your pain.

What treatments are available?

While there’s no one-size-fits-all treatment, many people benefit from a combination of therapies.

Your treatment may include:

Physical therapy

Movement is an important part of recovery for most injuries, and that’s no exception with CRPS. Physical therapy can help improve your mobility, reduce stiffness, and help you maintain function.

Medications

Depending on your symptoms, your Garden State Pain & Orthopedics healthcare provider may prescribe medications to help manage pain, inflammation, or nerve-related discomfort.

Interventional pain management

Some people benefit from interventional procedures that interrupt pain signaling before they reach your brain. 

These may include:

• Nerve blocks
• Sympathetic nerve blocks
• Spinal cord stimulation
• Other advanced pain management techniques

For eligible patients in New Jersey, the team at Garden State Pain & Orthopedics also offers medical marijuana evaluations, which may be an option for helping manage chronic pain conditions such as CRPS when appropriate.

Comprehensive pain management

Because CRPS affects each person differently, our pain management treatment plans are highly individualized and may combine several approaches.

Don’t ignore persistent pain

If you’re experiencing ongoing pain, sensitivity, swelling, or changes in your skin after an injury or surgery, it may be time to seek an evaluation here in Clifton, Edison, West Orange, Hazlet, or Jersey City, New Jersey. 

Call one of our offices or click here to get started.