Spine Universe Editorial Board

Doctor Steven Richeimer holds the academic position of Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and Psychiatry at the University of Southern California at Davis. Dr. Richeimer is the Chief, Division of Pain Medicine, Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, and Director, Norris Cancer Hospital Pain Management. He is Board Certified in the fields of anesthesiology and psychiatry, and in the sub-specialty of pain management.

From the University of California San Francisco, School of Medicine, Dr. Richeimer earned a Medical Degree. After finishing medical residencies at UCLA in psychiatry and anesthesiology, Dr. Richeimer completed his pain management training at Harvard's Beth Israel Hospital in Boston. Dr. Richeimer then went on to become the Director of Pain Management at the UC Davis Medical Center where he established a national reputation for his comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach.

Dr. Richeimer is a member of the American Pain Society, American Society of Regional Anesthesia, American Society of Anesthesiologists, International Association for the Study of Pain, and the American Medical Association.

Dr. Richeimer has published two books and over twenty-five articles for peer-reviewed journals. This doctor is dedicated to using the full scope of medical science to provide personalized, effective care.
Steven Richeimer, MD is on the Spine Universe Editorial Board.

Spinal Case Studies From Steven Richeimer, MD

• Severe Low Back Pain in a 90-Year Old Male
  The patient is a 90-year-old male with a long history of intermittent low back pain that was well-controlled for years after a L3-L5 laminectomy. During the past 9-months, the patient’s low...

SpineUniverse articles from Steven Richeimer, MD

• Acute and Post Operative Pain Management For Children
  Traditionally pain in children has received only minimal attention and understanding. This journal explains and describes pain treatments for children.
• Are Epidural Steroids Useful?
  Do injections of steroids into the lumbar epidural space work for back pain? The Richeimer Pain Institute Answers....
• Cervical (Neck) Facet Joint Pain: Pulsed Radiofrequency Neurotomy (PRFN) Provides Many Patients Relief
  Pulsed Radiofrequency Neurotomy is a minimally invasive procedure pain specialists use to treat painful cervical (neck) joints.
• Chronic Pain Prevention
  There are many factors that affect the development of chronic pain such as age, level of disability, depression, or the presence of nerve damage.
• Drugs Used to Treat Pain: Opioids - Narcotics
  Although the terminology is not precisely correct, pain-relieving opioids are often called narcotics, and they may be prescribed to treat acute pain (severe, short-lived pain), post-operative pain and certain types of chronic pain.
• Epidural Steroid Injections: Are They Useful?
  Steroid injections into the lumbar epidural space are frequently used for low back and related radicular leg pains. The question is do they work? A prominent pain management specialist answers that question.
• Facet Rhizotomy
  The goal of a facet rhizotomy is to relieve pain by "shutting off" the pain signals.
• Facet Rhizotomy: Procedure Preparation and Aftercare
  Information to help patients prepare for a facet rhizotomy and what to expect after the procedure.
• Fibromyalgia
  A variety of factors seem to trigger the illness in susceptible individuals. These triggers include viral illnesses, trauma, chronic sleep disturbance, and emotional distress.
• Low Back and Pelvic Pain: Treating Sacroiliac Joint Pain Using Bipolar Radiofrequency Neurotomy
  Bipolar Radiofrequency Neurotomy is a minimally invasive procedure that disables and prevents specific spinal nerve branches from transmitting pain signals.
• Nerve Blocks: Medication Injections
  Nerve blocks are injections of medication onto or near nerves. A lumbar epidural steroid injection is most common and helps to control lower back and leg pain.
• Nerve Blocks: Part 1
  Are nerve blocks useful?
• Nerve Blocks: Part 2
  Part 2 is a discussion of different types of blocks including peripheral and sympathetic nerve blocks.
• New Technologies for Treating Sciatica and Back Pain
  IDET and Coblation Nucleoplasty are new technologies used to ease back pain and sciatica that is caused by disc problems.
• Opioid Pain Relievers
  An in-depth description of opioid pain relievers with a view towards new technology.
• Pain Dictionary for Patients
  A dictionary of terms associated with back pain for patients.
• Pain Management Techniques to Help Conquer Back and Neck Pain
  The purpose of this article is to help you understand pain management. Included is an explanation of the different types of pain and treatments pain management specialists use to fight pain.
• Pain Management Techniques to Help Conquer Back and Neck Pain
  Spine specialists help patients who suffer acute and chronic pain to find relief using new procedures and devices that include intradiscal electrothermoplasty (IDET), radiofrequency discal nucleoplasty, and spinal pumps and stimulators.
• Pain Medicine (or Pain Management) Specialist Education and Training
  Pain management specialists must complete years of advanced education and training to become cerfified in pain medicine.
• Patient-Controlled Analgesia (PCA)
  Pain management after spine surgery is as easy as pushing a button.
• Percutaneous Neuromodulation Therapy (PNT)
  Percutaneous neuromodulation therapy (PNT) is a non-invasive, low-risk procedure that can help treat pain.
• Peripheral and Sympathetic Nerve Blocks
  Injecting medication near the peripheral nerves (transmit sensation and control movement) or the sympathetic nerves (regulate normal body functions) may help control acute or chronic pain.
• Questions to Ask Your Pain Medicine (or Pain Management) Specialist
  This simple guideline will help you prepare for your visit with a pain management specialist. Plus, questions you should ask the doctor.
• References 1-50: Understanding Neuropathic Pain
  References 1 through 50 to Dr. Steven Richeimer's article "Understanding Neuropathic Pain".
• References 1-50: Understanding Neuropathic Pain
  References 1 through 50 to Steven Richeimer, MD's article about neuropathic pain.
• References 51-103: Understanding Neuropathic Pain
  References 51 through 103 to Dr. Steven Richeimer's article about neuropathic pain.
• References: 51-103: Understanding Neuropathic Pain
  References 51-103 to Dr. Steven Richeimer's article about neuropathic pain.
• Spinal Pumps and Stimulators
  Although far from panaceas, pumps and stimulators have proven to be very effective with carefully selected patients whose severe pain persists despite prior treatment efforts.
• The Assessment of the Patient with Pain
  The methodology of pain assessment includes the patient's past and current medical history, medications, physical examination, special tests, psychological evaluation, and differential diagnosis.
• Understanding Neuropathic Pain
  Some individuals suffer from pain without obvious injury or protracted pain that persists for months or years after the initial insult. This type of pain is usually neuropathic in nature.
• Understanding Neuropathic Pain
  Rather than the nervous system functioning properly to sound an alarm regarding tissue injury, in neuropathic pain the peripheral or central nervous systems malfunction and cause pain.
• What Disorders Do Pain Medicine (or Pain Management) Specialists Treat?
  Whether pain is acute or chronic, your primary care or other treating physician may refer you to a pain management specialist to treat spine-related pain.
• What is a Pain Medicine (or Pain Management) Specialist?
  The goal of pain management is to manage acute or chronic pain by reducing pain frequency and intensity.
• What Treatments Do Pain Medicine (or Pain Management) Specialists Provide?
  The treatments offered by pain management specialists are almost as diverse as the spine pain problems treatment aims to manage!
• Your First Appointment with a Pain Medicine (or Pain Management) Specialist: What to Expect
  During your first appointment with a pain management specialist, he will perform an examination and ask you many questions about your pain. Listed here are 10 common questions.