Karl S. Hurst-Wicker, MD

Interventional Pain Doctor

Dr. Karl S. Hurst-Wicker is an Interventional Pain Doctor in Phoenix, AZ with special training and skill in relieving, reducing, or managing pain and improving a patient's overall quality of life through minimally invasive techniques. As an Interventional Pain Doctor, Karl S. Hurst-Wicker, MD performs physical exams and scans, assessments, and treatments for short and long term pain. Interventional Pain Medicine is the study, assessment, diagnosis and treatment or management of chronic pain. Significant diseases and conditions treated by Interventional Pain Doctors include sciatica, herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, and whiplash. Medical tests, procedures and therapies provided by Interventional Pain Doctors include discography, epidural injections, nerve, root, and medial branch blocks, facet joint injections, pulsed radiofrequency neurotomy (PRFN), rhizotomy, spinal cord stimulation, intrathecal pumps, and percutaneous discectomy/nucleoplasty.

Interventional Pain Medicine is the discipline of medicine devoted to the diagnosis and treatment of pain and related disorders principally with the application of interventional techniques in managing subacute, chronic, persistent, and intractable pain, independently or in conjunction with other modalities of treatment.

Anesthesiologist

Dr. Karl S. Hurst-Wicker is an Anesthesiologist in Phoenix, AZ with special training and skill in safely delivering acute and chronic pain relief through numbing and sedation. As an Anesthesiologist, Karl S. Hurst-Wicker, MD performs general anesthesia and regional anesthetics. Anesthesiology is the field of medicine that controls pain during invasive procedures. Significant diseases and conditions treated by Anesthesiologists include sports injuries, musculoskeletal pain, labor, and surgery. Medical tests, procedures and therapies provided by Anesthesiologists include pre-procedure evaluations, anesthesia delivery, patient monitoring, and recovery assistance.

An anesthesiologist is trained to provide pain relief and maintenance, or restoration, of a stable condition during and immediately following an operation or an obstetric or diagnostic procedure. The anesthesiologist assesses the risk of the patient undergoing surgery and optimizes the patient's condition prior to, during and after surgery. In addition to these management responsibilities, the anesthesiologist provides medical management and consultation in pain management and critical care medicine. Anesthesiologists diagnose and treat acute, long-standing and cancer pain problems; diagnose and treat patients with critical illnesses or severe injuries; direct resuscitation in the care of patients with cardiac or respiratory emergencies, including the need for artificial ventilation; and supervise post-anesthesia recovery.