A Missouri-based anesthesiologist, Dr. Ramis Gheith possesses more than a decade of experience in the field of interventional pain management. As the medical director of the Interventional Pain Institute, Dr. Ramis Gheith treats issues such as complex neurological pain syndromes using advanced interventional therapies and sophisticated technology.

1. EFFECTS OF
COMPLEX
REGIONAL PAIN
SYNDROMERamis Gheith

2. Introduction
■ A Missouri-based anesthesiologist, Dr. Ramis Gheith possesses
more than a decade of experience in the field of interventional pain
management. As the medical director of the Interventional Pain
Institute, Dr. Ramis Gheith treats issues such as complex
neurological pain syndromes using advanced interventional
therapies and sophisticated technology.
One of these pain syndromes includes complex regional pain
syndrome (CRPS), a type of chronic pain that lasts for more than
three months and affects a limb--an arm, a leg, a hand, or a foot--
following an injury, surgery, or a medical event such as heart attack
or stroke. Symptoms surrounding CRPS vary in terms of severity
and duration.While some cases of CRPS appear to be mild and
cease on their own, other cases are severe and may have lasting
effects leading to long-term, if not permanent, disability.

3. Complex Regional Pain
Syndrome
■ Due to the pain or stiffness caused by CRPS, a patient may
have trouble moving the affected limb. As a result, the body
tissue, bones, and muscles may begin to deteriorate and
weaken.This condition is known as atrophy.
Another complication of CRPS is contracture, in which the limb
contracts into a specific position due to muscles, tendons, and
other tissues shortening and hardening.
Today, advanced treatments are offered to treat this
debilitating chronic pain condition at the Interventional Pain
Institute in St. Louis, Missouri.