Frequent questions

Our FAQ are regularly updated with questions frequently asked by our patients and prescribers.

• What is the purpose of the first consultation?

During the first appointment, the pain physician identifies the various aspects of your pain using a questionnaire that has been filled out in advance. The exchange also allows for a history of your pain.

• Who pays for the first consultation?

The first consultation is taken care of by the pain physician.

• What are the different diagnostic and interventional approaches of the Swiss Pain Institute?

NEUROLOGICAL DIAGNOSTIC APPROACH TO PAIN

Our medical team is very committed to diagnostic accuracy and, in this context, neurophysiological examinations are performed to clarify the etiology and extent of neurological damage related to pain. A doctor and a nurse on the team have specialized in this discipline.

DIAGNOSTIC INTERVENTIONAL APPROACH

To define or specify the origin of a pain, the use of one or more anesthetic techniques is often necessary. Examples: tests (medicated, intravenous, oral, functional), anesthesia of nerve branches and roots, nerve plexuses, cranial nerves, cervical and lumbar epidurograms as well as discographies are among the most frequent.

INTERVENTIONAL THERAPEUTIC APPROACH

In order to treat pain in the short, medium and long term by an invasive or non-invasive, medicinal or non-medicinal approach. Examples: drug treatments (oral, systemic, topical, intrathecal); infiltrative treatments (epidural, intrathecal, peripheral nerve); neuromodulation by implanting spinal cord stimulators or subcutaneous pumps; neuroablation and other minimally invasive treatments are performed.

DIAGNOSIS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SUPPORT

Some life courses are severely disrupted by chronic pain. Patients sometimes need a psychological diagnostic and therapeutic approach, which allows us to measure the impact of pain in the patient’s life and to propose individual or group approaches. Our Institute uses these analytical and cognitive-behavioral approaches. The therapeutic approach is global. It also plays an important role in teaching the patient and in maintaining his or her health in general.

• What is the address of the Swiss Pain Institute?

The Swiss Pain Insitute is located at two sites:

1. Avenue de Savoie 10, 1003 Lausanne.
2. Aeschengraben 26, 4051 Basel.

• How do I get to the Swiss Pain Institute?

All information can be found on the Access page.