UC Davis Pain Medicine Patient Testimonials
Grateful patients describe relief from pain in their own words
No one does a better job of telling about successes in pain management than patients who have been treated effectively. In these testimonials, learn from patients themselves how innovative, attentive, advanced care by UC Davis Pain Medicine physicians changed their lives for the better.
Radio-frequency technology diminished Irving Gum’s pain when he was in his 90s
Well into his 90s, farmer Irving Gum wasn’t showing any signs of wanting to retire. Even though the 100-acre parcel on which he lived in Fair Oaks in eastern Sacramento County had become surrounded by encroaching suburban development, he continued to produce bumper crops of corn, strawberries and hay. And his pumpkin patch, called U-Pick Pumpkins, was a perpetually popular autumn destination. He had an old-school work ethic and an abundance of old-fashioned common sense.
His resilience was attributable in large part to UC Davis physician Scott Fishman, a pain medicine expert. Gum, who had suffered from lower back pain since he was a young man, had seen a lot of doctors. But until he started seeing Fishman, he didn’t get much relief. “I’ve been to every doctor on the West Coast,” Gum said. “Dr. Fishman is the only one who can do me any good.”
Fishman said Gum’s condition was somewhat unusual. “It’s not a traditional disk problem,” Fishman explained. “It’s arthritis in the very small joints in the back.” Known as facet joints, they are a bit like little knee joints: “They are what prevent you from leaning backward as far as you can lean forward,” Fishman explained, adding that they are often overlooked as the cause of back pain. “We recognized the problem,” Fishman said. “At the pain center, we’re committed to understanding the pain. Unfortunately, lots of doctors don’t do that.”
Fishman alleviated Gum’s pain by using high-tech procedure called radio-frequency ablation to suppress the pain signals emanating from the nerves in his lower back. Taking the tiny tip of a needle, Fishman used radio-frequency heat to first find the nerves and then deaden them. “We get on top of the nerve and melt it,” Fishman explained. Spread among five sessions, Fishman treated the entire area of Gum’s lower back that had been problematic. Gum’s wife, Claudia, praised the results.
“Dr. Fishman has given Irving relief every time he treats him,” she said.
George Mironenko
George Mironenko suffered progressively worsening back pain for 20 years after he fell while moving a large tree. Following two unsuccessful back surgeries, the self-employed engineer was forced to retire.
His retirement was only temporary, though, thanks to UC Davis pain medicine expert Scott Fishman. He brought Mironenko’s pain under control sufficiently for him to return to work. Fishman first treated Mironenko with medication injected during office visits, then with daily pain medication delivered through a patch worn on the skin.
“The results have been very good,” said Mironenko’s wife, Rimma. “He can walk. He can sit. He can drive. He is able to live life again.”
Fishman, who regards undertreated pain like that suffered by Mironenko as a health crisis in America, became prominent in helping to shape state and national health-care policy on the use of pain medicine. He ultimately served as president of the American Pain Foundation, the largest advocacy group for patients in pain.