Unfortunately, the most painful medical conditions can also be the most difficult to diagnose. When you become accustomed to a certain level of pain, seeking treatment may seem inconvenient. If you’re unsure whether you’re experiencing temporary pain, or the symptoms of a medical condition, the best option is always to seek out the advice of a physician.
Here are some of the most painful medical conditions and their symptoms.
Postherpetic Neuralgia
This condition occurs in about 10% of individuals with shingles. The disease, most commonly found in senior adults, may cause a residual pain after the physical symptoms (bumps, rashes) leave. Shingles develops from the chickenpox virus, which lays dormant in the brain and spinal cord after infection. The pain is often described as a burning nerve sensation.
Inflamed Bladder
An inflamed bladder, or Interstitial Cystitis, causes a constant burning pain in the groin and abdomen area. Those who suffer from the condition may urinate up to 60 times a day. Many patients find relief with a combination of physical therapy, nerve stimulation and anti-inflammatory medication.
• Some sufferers may be mistakenly diagnosed with a UTI because of similar symptoms, but an inflamed bladder often causes more widespread pain.
Post-Surgical Pain
While surgeries aim to correct a condition, there are also associated risks with every procedure, including nerve damage. Nerve damage can result in a variety of pain, from burning sensations to a throbbing discomfort.
• In more common procedures, like a mastectomy or cardiac surgery, patients who experience long-term post-surgical pain can be as high as 50%.
Post-surgical pain is often mild and lessens, or completely disappears, over time. For those who experience post-surgical pain chronically, you are likely to develop other related conditions. This can include tachycardia, hypertension, and poor wound healing. Seeking treatment for your pain as soon as possible is the best way to prevent these long-term effects.
Kidney Stones
Kidney stones are some of the most common conditions treated in ERs and one of the most painful. This is in part because most kidney stones go undetected until they move into the ureter, which causes severe pain as the muscles contract around the stone.
 
Kidney stones can cause intense, radiating lower back pain.
If you suddenly begin experiencing intense back, stomach and groin pain, frequent or painful urination, nausea and vomiting or blood in the urine, you could have a kidney stone that has moved into the ureter or bladder. Small stones may pass without notice, but larger ones are best passed under the supervision of a physician who can help manage your pain.
Sciatica
Sciatica results from one of your longest nerves, the sciatic nerve, becoming pinched or damaged. A slipped disc is often the cause and can radiate pain through the rest of your body, which makes diagnosis difficult. The nerve runs from your back to your feet, although the pain from the condition often manifests in the leg as a deep, throbbing sensation. This can make even simple tasks, like walking or lifting objects, incredibly painful.
Horton’s Syndrome
Also referred to as “cluster,” or “suicide headaches,” Horton’s Syndrome causes an intense shooting sensation usually localized to one side of the face or behind the eye. The pain is debilitating and comes on suddenly, lasting anywhere from 15 minutes to hours.
• Some experts and sufferers from the condition agree that cluster headaches are the worst pain you can possibly experience from a medical condition.
Because the pain can be difficult to describe, many of those suffering from the disease are misdiagnosed with migraines or severe sinus congestion. Physical symptoms can include drooping of the face on the affected side and teary eyes. Sufferers have found relief through oxygen therapy, steroids and injected medications.
If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, seek the treatment of a physician at STAT ER right away. The quicker a condition is diagnosed, the quicker you can find relief.
March 4, 2016
Written by Bailey Morgan
Content Writer at Nutex Health, Inc
Nutex Health, Inc supports you and your family’s healthy living. Let us know if you’ve experienced some of these symptoms and come see us at one of our convenient locations in Laredo! At STAT ER, we can treat you promptly with our expert team of nurses and experienced ER doctors.