Otis Brawley, MD, chief medical officer at the American Cancer Society, discussed potential treatments for tailbone pain in a CNN blog post.
Pain in the tailbone is a common problem, according to Dr. Brawley, and the condition is more prevalent in women than men. He said the pain can be caused from a fall backwards into a sitting position, repetitive minor trauma from sitting a long time or sitting on hard surfaces.
He said initial treatment is conservative; the physician will use non-steroidal pain medications such as ibuprofen or naproxen, recommend protection of the area with a donut or wedge pillow; and recommend alternating application of heat and cold packs.
Patients with pain after three months of conservative therapy may require X-rays of the pelvis and tailbone, and some patients will require injections of local anesthetic or local anesthetic and steroids.
Read the CNN blog post on tailbone pain.
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Pain in the tailbone is a common problem, according to Dr. Brawley, and the condition is more prevalent in women than men. He said the pain can be caused from a fall backwards into a sitting position, repetitive minor trauma from sitting a long time or sitting on hard surfaces.
He said initial treatment is conservative; the physician will use non-steroidal pain medications such as ibuprofen or naproxen, recommend protection of the area with a donut or wedge pillow; and recommend alternating application of heat and cold packs.
Patients with pain after three months of conservative therapy may require X-rays of the pelvis and tailbone, and some patients will require injections of local anesthetic or local anesthetic and steroids.
Read the CNN blog post on tailbone pain.
Related Articles on Pain:
Florida Radiologist Held for Illegally Distributing Painkillers in Georgia
Study: Minorities 50% More Likely to Have Untreated Pain
Study: Molecular Imaging Pinpoints Source of Chronic Back Pain