Pain Management

• Herniated Discs & Degenerative Disc Disease – Back and neck pain due to spinal disc damage. 
• Sciatica & Lumbar Radiculopathy – Nerve compression causing pain, tingling, or weakness in the lower back and legs. 
• Facet Joint Syndrome – Inflammation in the small joints of the spine, leading to chronic neck and back pain. 
• Spinal Stenosis – Narrowing of the spinal canal, putting pressure on the nerves. 
• Sacroiliac (SI) Joint Dysfunction – Pain in the lower back and buttocks caused by SI joint instability. 
• Post-Laminectomy Syndrome (Failed Back Surgery Syndrome) – Persistent pain following spinal surgery. 
• Peripheral Neuropathy – Nerve damage causing numbness, tingling, and pain, often in the hands and feet. 
• Occipital Neuralgia – Severe headache pain originating from irritated occipital nerves. 

• Arthritis (Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis) – Chronic joint inflammation causing pain and stiffness. 
• Shoulder, Hip & Knee Pain – Commonly caused by joint degeneration, injury, or inflammation. 
• Bursitis & Tendonitis – Inflammation of the bursae (fluid-filled sacs) or tendons, leading to pain and swelling. 
• Trigger Points & Myofascial Pain Syndrome – Muscle knots causing referred pain and discomfort. 
• Migraine & Chronic Headaches – Severe headaches linked to nerve irritation or vascular issues. 

• Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) – Severe, persistent pain often following an injury. 
• Fibromyalgia – Widespread muscle pain and tenderness, often accompanied by fatigue. 
• Postherpetic Neuralgia – Nerve pain following a shingles infection. 
• Cancer-Related Pain – Pain associated with tumors, nerve damage, or cancer treatments. 

• Epidural Steroid Injections (ESI) – Reduces inflammation and pain from nerve compression in the spine. 
• Facet Joint Injections – Relieves pain in the small joints of the spine by reducing inflammation. 
• Medial Branch Blocks – Diagnostic injections to determine if facet joints are the source of pain. 
• Facet Radiofrequency Ablation (RFA/Neurotomy) – Uses heat to disrupt nerve signals from painful facet joints. 
• Sympathetic Nerve Blocks – Targets the sympathetic nervous system to treat chronic pain conditions like CRPS. 
• Occipital Nerve Blocks – Helps relieve chronic migraines and occipital neuralgia. 

• Joint Injections (Hip, Knee, Shoulder, SI Joint) – Delivers anti-inflammatory medication directly into painful joints. 
• Genicular Nerve Blocks & RFA (Knee Pain Relief) – Nerve blocks followed by radiofrequency treatment to reduce chronic knee pain. 
• Bursa Injections – Reduces inflammation and pain in bursitis-affected joints. 
• Trigger Point Injections – Relieves muscle tension and myofascial pain by injecting local anesthetics or steroids into muscle knots. 
• Botox for Migraines & Chronic Headaches – FDA-approved treatment that relaxes overactive muscles and reduces headache frequency. 

• Provocative Discography – Diagnoses disc-related back pain by injecting contrast dye into the spinal disc. 
• Disc Bi-Acuplasty – Uses radiofrequency energy to treat chronic discogenic back pain. 
• Percutaneous Lumbar Discectomy – Removes part of a herniated disc to relieve nerve compression and pain. 
• Minimally Invasive Lumbar Decompression (MILD) – Treats spinal stenosis by removing excess ligament tissue in the lower spine. 

• Spinal Cord Stimulator (SCS) & Dorsal Root Ganglion (DRG) Stimulation – Implanted devices that send mild electrical pulses to disrupt pain signals to the brain. 
• Peripheral Nerve Stimulator (PNS) & StimRouter Implantation – Targeted nerve stimulation for chronic pain conditions affecting the limbs and trunk. 

• Aetna Select
• Open Access Selects
• Elect Choice
• Aetna Open Access Elect Choice
• Aetna Choice POS II
• Managed Choice
• Open Choice PPO
• Aetna Medicare Advantage Plans

CLS Health does not accept:

• Aetna CVS Marketplace Plans

* Some providers may not accept this insurance, please call to confirm

• Superior Ambetter Core (Complete, Clear, Focused, Standard Silver and Gold)
• Superior Ambetter Value (Clear Value Silver, Focused Value Silver, CMS Standard Silver & Gold Value, Everyday Value Gold)
• Superior Ambetter Virtual (Ambetter Virtual Access Silver, CMS Standard Virtual Access Basic Silver, Ambetter Virtual Access Gold)
• Superior Health Plan CHIP*
• Superior Health Plan MAPD (Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug)
• Superior Health Plan Medicare
• Superior Health Plan MMP Medicaid*
• Superior Health Plan MMP Medicare
• Superior Health Plan STAR*
• Superior Health Plan STAR Kids*
• Superior Health Plan STAR+PLUS*

CLS Health participates in most Blue Cross Blue Shield plans including:

• Blue Choice PPO
• Blue Essentials
• Blue Essentials Access
• HealthSelect
• HealthSelect of Texas In Area
• Consumer Directed HealthSelect in Area
• HealthSelect of Texas Out of State
• Consumer Directed Health Select Out of State
• HealthSelect Secondary 65+
• Medicare Advantage HMO
• Medicare Advantage PPO
• Medicare Advantage Value HMO
• POS
• Traditional/Par Plan
• TRS-Active Care
• TRS-Care Standard
• BCBS MyBlue Health (Marketplace)

*Some providers may not accept Community Health Choice, please call to confirm

• MarketplacePremier
• Medicaid*CHIPCHIP PerinateSTAR
• Medicare AdvantageDual-Special Needs Plan (D-SNP)

CLS Health accepts most Cigna plans, including:

• Cigna HMO
• Cigna Local Plus
• Cigna Open Access Plus
• Cigna PPO

• ChoiceCare PPO
• EPO
• HMO
• HMO Premier
• Medicare Advantage Plans
• HumanaChoice - Medicare Advantage PPO plan
• Humana Gold Choice - Medicare Advantage Private Fee-for-Service (PFFS) plan
• Human Gold Plus - Medicare Advantage HMO & Special Needs Plan
• Military (TRICARE South Region Military Health Plan)
• POS - including Choice POS, National POS Open Access/Plus and Preferred POS Open Access.
• PPO

*Some providers may not accept United Healthcare, please call to confirm

• Commercial, HMO, POS, EPO and PPO Plans (Charter, Choice,Core, Doctors Plan, Freedon, Heritage, Navigate, Nexus ACO, Options PPO, Passport Connect, Select)
• Indemnity
• Medicare Advantage (AARP, Care Improvement Plus, C-SNP, D-SNP, I-SNP, Erickson Advantage, ERS Medicare Advantage, TRS-Care Medicare Advantage, UnitedHealthcare Chronic Complete, UnitedHealthcare Connected (Medicare-Medicaid Plan), UnitedHealthcare Dual Complete, UnitedHealthcare Group Medicare Advantage PPO, United Healthcare Medicare Complete)
• Community Plans* (CHIP, CHIP Perinate, Star, Star Kids, Star Plus, MMP)
• Wellmed (Wellmed Dual SNP Focus, Wellmed Medicare Advantage Focus)

*Some providers may not accept Wellpoint, please call to confirm

• Medicaid (All Texas Plans Including the Below)*
• CHIP
• CHIP Perinate
• STAR
• STAR+PLUS
• STAR Kids
• Medicare Advantage
• C-SNP
• D-SNP
• I-SNP
• Medicare Advantage HMO
• Medicare-Medicaid (MMP)
• Medicare-Medicaid Program (MMP)
• STAR+PLUS MMP

*Some providers may not accept insurance, please call to confirm

PPO Networks

• Beechstreet PPO
• Carnival Cruise Lines PPO
• Envolve Benefit Options Vision-PPO, HMO
• First Health
• Curative/First Health
• Galaxy Health Network
• HealthSmart Preferred Care
• Accel
• Healthsmart Payors Organization
• Multiplan PPO
• Tricare (Humana) PPO/Prime

Employer-Specific Plans

• Brazoria County Employees – Aetna TPA Brazoria County Employees

Workers’ Compensation Plans

• Workers’ Comp
• Auto & Workers’ Comp

Medicare and Medicare Advantage

• Medicare Traditional
• Medicare Advantage
• Memorial Hermann Health Solutions Commercial and Medicare
• Molina Medicare Complete Care HMO SNP
• Medicare-Medicaid Program (MMP)
• STAR+PLUS MMP
• Alignment Health Plan
• AllyAlign Health
• American Health Plans
• Florida Complete Care
• Gold Kidney Health Plan
• Imperial Health
• Independent Health
• Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington
• Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado
• Mass Advantage
• Presbyterian Health Plan
• PriorityHealth
• Provider Partners
• SCAN
• UCare
• Vantage Health Plan
• Verda Healthcare
• Zing Health

Medicaid and CHIP Programs

• Molina Healthcare* (Marketplace, Medicaid, CHIP, CHIP Perinate, STAR, STAR Kids, STAR+PLUS)
• Texas Children's Health Plans*
• TMHP (Traditional Medicaid) Traditional Medicaid

Specialty Plans

• VA Community Cares Network CCN

To relieve lower back pain, try: 

• Gentle stretching and low-impact exercises like yoga or walking. 
• Hot or cold therapy (ice for inflammation, heat for muscle relaxation). 
• Over-the-counter pain relievers (ibuprofen or acetaminophen). 
• Proper posture and ergonomic adjustments when sitting or sleeping. 

If pain persists for more than a few weeks, consult a pain management specialist. 

For quick knee pain relief, you can: 

• Rest and elevate the knee to reduce swelling. 
• Apply ice packs for 15-20 minutes every few hours. 
• Use compression wraps to support the joint. 
• Take anti-inflammatory medications like ibuprofen. 
• Consider joint injections or physical therapy if pain persists. 

To ease neck pain, try: 

• Gentle neck stretches and exercises to improve mobility. 
• Apply heat or cold packs to reduce stiffness and inflammation. 
• Use an ergonomic pillow and maintain good posture. 
• Avoid prolonged screen time and take frequent breaks. 

For chronic or severe neck pain, a pain specialist may recommend nerve blocks, trigger point injections, or physical therapy. 

Chronic pain is pain that lasts more than 3-6 months, often persisting beyond normal healing time. It can result from: 

• Arthritis, nerve damage, or spine conditions. 
• Injuries or post-surgical pain. 
• Fibromyalgia, migraines, or complex regional pain syndrome (CR

Pain management specialists help diagnose and treat chronic pain using medications, injections, and interventional therapies. 

• Pain management doctors diagnose and treat chronic and acute pain through: 
• Medication management (anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxers, nerve pain medications). 
• Interventional procedures like epidural steroid injections, nerve blocks, and radiofrequency ablation. 
• Physical therapy referrals to improve mobility and function. 
• Lifestyle modifications and pain coping strategies. 

During your first visit, a pain management specialist will: 

1. Review your medical history and symptoms. 
2. Perform a physical examination and possibly imaging tests. 
3. Discuss treatment options, including medications, therapy, and procedures. 
4. Develop a personalized pain management plan. 

• Anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) – Ibuprofen, naproxen. 
• Muscle relaxants – Used for muscle spasms. 
• Nerve pain medications – Gabapentin, pregabalin. 
• Corticosteroid injections – Reduce inflammation in joints and spine. 
• Opioids (reserved for severe cases) – Only used under strict guidelines. 

Spinal conditions that may require pain management include: 

• Herniated discs – Pressing on nerves, causing back and leg pain. 
• Sciatica – Nerve pain radiating from the lower back to the legs. 
• Spinal stenosis – Narrowing of the spinal canal, leading to nerve compression. 
• Facet joint arthritis – Inflammation in the small joints of the spine. 

When visiting a pain specialist, ask: 

• What is causing my pain? 
• What are my treatment options? 
• Are there minimally invasive procedures that could help? 
• What are the risks and benefits of each treatment? 
• How can I improve pain through lifestyle changes? 

Yes, pain management injections like epidural steroid injections, nerve blocks, and joint injections are: 

• Minimally invasive and performed under imaging guidance. 
• Designed to provide targeted pain relief. 
• Generally safe with a low risk of complications when performed by an experienced specialist. 

These injections help reduce inflammation and improve mobility, allowing patients to participate in physical therapy and long-term pain relief strategies.