Medical Documentary
Tiffany Dowell
HCA220
September 14, 2014
Dennis Matricardi

Introduction
 As a young lady I have seen the world go through a lot of changes that have only shown a great future for all. I have found such great passion in the career study of medical administration. I made that to be my life long goal; that would include: going to college and getting a degree in health care administrations. But until I could reach my life long goal, I had to keep myself busy by taking photographs of family and friend to help them secure their families beautiful smiles! I began my passion in helping others and it spread around to others and I had so many people wanting me to help them. I began this in 2012 and only not even a year helping others I was involved in an auto accident that has left me with: CRPS, complex regional pain syndrome, nerve damage, and skeletal structure shifted for the rest of my life. I had surgery in my lumbar region with placing a neurostimulator with sixteen electrodes along my spine perantmently. I would like to discussion upon my diagnostics to show others the chronic pain this causes on more Americans around then we know.

What is CRPS, Complex
Regional Pain
Syndrome?

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome is also known as reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome. That is chronic pain condition in high levels of your nerve being impulse that are send to an damaged or affected site. My
Neurologist has replied to myself that CRPS is not a curable treatment and that it will only decrease in showing any improvement. This has become an disease that has only caused chronic pain for many people around the world.

What are the causes of the CRPS disease?

 CRPS, is most known to not have a single cause. Instead it has results from multiple causes that produce similar symptoms. If the cases of injury are related to the CRPS, the syndrome may be caused by a simple immune response from the inflammation symptoms of redness, warmth and tight swelling that is being affected.
 This is a genetic disorder that can cause extreme pain and suffer on living out your daily lives. Having something so painful block you from completing your goals is no way to live. There are many test out there to help with the understanding of how to help keep the pain level at a minimum.

What are some symptoms that are caused by CRPS?
 There is a lot of pain and suffering people going through when dealing with CRPS, complex regional pain syndrome.
People have to deal with continuous intense pain that gets worse and rapidly continues to get worse over time then get better. With receiving CRPS from an auto accident is more out of control with severity of the injury.
 From just the tip of a finger to the foot the pain can spread all over including your arms and legs. I have CRPS in my legs and it is unbearable. I experience the symptoms of: burning chronic pain, standing or walking will cause extreme swelling and stiffness in my legs. I am unable to get around with my legs being so stiff. I have notice a change in my hair growth where it is not wanting to grow as fast as it did prior to receiving CRPS.
 Your skin changes for instances: my legs from swelling would make my legs feel like I had a fever in the affected area. My skin color will turn blue/ purplish that leave blotchy texture.

How is CRPS, Complex
Regional Pain
Syndrome diagnosed?

 From personal experience I had went through a process of test to finally have a Neurologist diagnosed myself with CRPS. I have experienced taking many MRI’s, and EMG test. There are triple-phase bone scans that can be used to identify changes in the bone and in the blood circulation.  Health care providers will sometimes apply a stimulus for instance heat, touch, and or cold to determine whether there is pain in a specific area of the body of not. Most of the time CRPS is diagnosed primarily with observations from your health care practitioner by a initial injury, higherthan expected amount of