Diagnostic Testing | Stanford Pain & Sports Medicine of NYC

In order to gain an accurate assessment of your painful condition it may be necessary to have X-rays, a CT-Scan, MRI, EMG, or another diagnostic test such as discography or EMG. Diagnostic testing is painless and allows the pain management specialists of Stanford Pain & Sports Medicine of NYC to pinpoint the exact reason and location of your pain. Diagnostic imaging offers necessary information to help your pain management specialist better plan your treatment and pain management. The type of imaging  test your doctor will order will depend on your symptoms and the part of your body being examined.

CT-Scan: A CT-Scan is a medical diagnostic test that uses x-rays combined with computer imaging to produce a high-tech 2D or 3D image. CT-Scans are used to visualize specific details within the bone and soft tissues of the body that may not be as clear on a general X-ray. CT scans can be performed on any part of the body and clearly show several kinds of body tissue (bone, soft tissue, and blood vessels) with great clarity.

Discography: Since discography is a more invasive procedure than other diagnostic tests, your pain management doctor only uses it when he absolutely (s)has to. You may feel some pain during the injection, but it’s usually short-lived. There is no permanent damage from the test, as your body eventually absorbs and discards the dye. The discography test is done when your doctor suspects a disc is causing your pain but can’t find other corroborating evidence. During the discography:

  • The  process takes about a half hour, although you may need up to three hours from the time you arrive to the time you can leave.
  • You may be given a sedative to help you relax.
  • A fluoroscope or X-ray allows your doctor to pinpoint the spot to insert the needle with the dye.
  • If your back pain is due to the disc, you may feel similar pain during the injection. It is not intolerable, and the sedative helps reduce the pain.
  • After the dye is injected, the fluoroscope or X-ray shows if the dye stayed in the center of your disc, indicating that it’s healthy, or not.

Your doctor reviews the image while you relax and recuperate.

Electromyography: An electromyography (EMG) is a type of muscle test offered by the specialists of Stanford Pain & Sports Medicine of NYC. This painless test can reveal problems in muscles themselves, as well as in the nerves that transmit motor signals between the muscle and your brain.

There are two types of electromyography tests:

  1. Using needle electrodes
  2. Using surface electrodes

Which of the two types of tests your pain management doctor chooses depends on several factors including the location of the muscle to be tested. For needle tests, the doctor sticks tiny needles directly into the muscle. All EMG tests performed by our pain management doctors are quite safe when done properly. The specialists at Stanford Pain and Sports Medicine are experienced in both types of EMG tests.

An electromyography (EMG) test is used to evaluate muscle and nerve activity during contraction. EMGs help diagnose neurological disorders, muscle disease, and nerve abnormalities associated with pain. Our doctors will order this test for various reasons including:

  • Carpal tunnel syndrome
  • Peripheral neuropathy
  • Radiculopathy (pinched nerve roots)
  • Muscle disease

MRI: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a method of obtaining images of a specified region of your body without the use of radiation (X-Ray technology). During an MRI test, signals are sent through the body then processed by a scanner to depict anatomy in various orientations that your pain management doctor is interested in investigating.

Please note: It is not possible to have an MRI scan if you have the following:

  • A heart pacemaker
  • Certain surgical plates within your head
  • Certain metallic heart valves
  • Certain inner ear valves
  • Metal fragments within your eye or head

Ultrasound (Diagnostic): Diagnostic Ultrasounds (often referred to as “musculoskeletal ultrasounds”) are used to evaluate joints, muscles, ligaments and nerves. Musculoskeletal ultrasound uses sonic waves and therefore there is no exposure to radiation. This noninvasive test offers real-time imaging, allowing for examinations of structures at rest and in motion. This ability to capture the movement of musculoskeletal components is very different from other diagnostic test and yields an extraordinarily accurate diagnoses.

X-Rays: X-Rays are oftentimes ordered by our doctors to acquire images inside the body. X-rays are one of the most common digital imaging test ordered by doctor’s worldwide. Modern X-ray technology uses very low dose radiation.

Stanford Pain & Sports Medicine of NYC focuses solely on the prevention, diagnosis, best in class treatment and rehabilitation of painful disorders. Comprehensive assessments by our pain management doctors are an essential component of our pain management & sports medicine practice. We are committed to providing personalized solutions for pain to greatly improve your quality of life. We understand that each patient has a unique problem and therefore customize each and every pain management program.

Stanford Pain & Sports Medicine of NYC
51 East 25th St, 4th Floor, Ste B
New York, NY 10010
(212) 533-3954