Pain center for acute and chronic pain disorders

Professional expertise and range of treatments

Our doctors at the pain outpatient clinic are specialists in anaesthesiology FMH with many years of experience in the treatment of chronic pain and an interdisciplinary specialization in „Interventional Pain Therapy SSIPM“. We are a Pain Training Center Category A of the SSIPM. Discover our main areas of treatment and get to know our contact persons.

Pain syndromes

In our pain center and in our pain consultation hours, we treat acute and chronic pain that can be attributed to various causes. Here is an overview of some common pain syndromes that we treat successfully:

• Musculoskeletal pain: This pain affects muscles, bones, joints and tendons.
• Chronic post-operative pain: persistent pain that can occur after surgical procedures.
• Chronic post-traumatic pain: Long-term pain that can arise after injuries.
• Neuropathic pain: Affects the nervous system – this includes peripheral neuropathies, polyneuropathy and post-herpetic neuralgia.
• Tumor pain: For pain associated with cancer, we offer supportive therapies to improve quality of life.
• Headaches and facial pain: Headaches are one of the most common neurological disorders and can severely restrict the quality of life of those affected.
• Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS): In this syndrome, those affected suffer from pain, swelling, redness, hyperthermia and loss of function in the lower and upper limbs.

Pain diagnostics

The first priority is to clarify the origin of the pain. Is it a nociceptive (local cause of pain that is picked up by pain receptors), neuropathic (nerve pain) or combined pain problem? Highly selective nerve blocks make it possible to narrow down the „pain driver“ and differentiate between peripheral and central processes.

Interventional pain therapy

Interventional pain therapy is a highly specialized field of medicine that focuses on targeted interventions to diagnose and treat pain. Using precise techniques such as blockades, injections and neuromodulatory procedures, interventional pain therapy aims to identify and specifically alleviate the causes of pain. Our dedicated team of anesthesiology specialists at the University Hospital Zurich offers a comprehensive range of these innovative therapies. Our aim is to effectively address individual pain problems and improve our patients‘ quality of life in the long term.

Diagnostic interventions

The focus of our diagnostic interventions in the pain outpatient clinic is the precise identification of the causes of pain. Specific procedures or treatments in this area are as follows:

• Facet joint blocks for facettogenic pain (MBB, medial branch blockade)
• Epidural periradicular or transforaminal nerve root blocks for radiculopathy – pain
• Blockade of the sacral nerves of the sacroiliac joint (SIJ) (DR, dorsal root blockade)
• Anterior blockade of the obturator nerve (ABON) for hip joint pain
• Blockade of the rami geniculares for knee joint pain
• Ultrasound-guided peripheral nerve blocks for nerve pain, neuropathies (plexus, peripheral nerves in the extremities and trunk and head)
• Intravenous (IV) drug testing

Therapeutic interventions

In the pain outpatient clinic, we also focus on targeted therapeutic interventions to provide lasting pain relief and improve quality of life. The comprehensive treatment approaches include

• Trigger point treatments
• Pulsed radio frequency
• Radiofrequency denervation
• Cryoablation of peripheral nerves
• Infiltrations of the Nn. occipital maj. for headaches
• Ggl. sphenopalatinum (Sphenocath)
• Sympathetic blockades
• Intra-articular infiltrations of the spine
• Neuromodulation (SCS)

Multimodal pain therapy: an addition to our range of services

• TENS (transcutaneous nerve stimulation therapy)
• PENS (percutaneous nerve stimulation therapy)
• CEFALY
• Qutenza (capsaicin therapy)
• Trigger point treatments
• Pain education
• Medication optimization

FAQ pain center and pain therapy