The complex inherited connective tissue disorder Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) comes with unique challenges. Once you receive your diagnosis, you can better understand your symptoms, such as chronic musculoskeletal pain or joint hypermobility. With that understanding, you can do more to protect your body and manage your condition in the future.
You’re not alone in coping with a new hEDS diagnosis. You receive expert support and treatment from the interventional pain management physicians at Alpenglow Pain & Wellness of Anchorage, Alaska, including Dr. Nichelle Renk, Dr. Gavin Nixon, Cynthia Dunleavy, PA-C, and April Hinsberger, APRN. Dr. Renk is the leading hEDS specialist in Alaska, with extensive experience in caring for patients with this condition.
When you get an hEDS diagnosis, you may feel that you have more questions than answers. In this blog, Dr. Renk and the Alpenglow team help you to understand your diagnosis and condition, supplying you with some of the key answers to your questions and concerns.
HEDS is a complex condition that affects your body in many ways. With the right diagnosis, your symptoms become easier to identify and understand.
HEDS affects the connective tissues in your body. That means that this disorder affects your skin, your joints, and even the walls of your blood vessels. Issues with your collagen and connective tissue may mean that your skin is very fragile or that your joints bend further than the typical range of motion.
Living with hEDS may mean taking extra care with wounds or watching out for joint overextension or dislocation. It’s also fairly common for people with this condition to experience early-onset arthritis and chronic musculoskeletal pain.
We’re still learning more about all of the factors that cause hypermobile EDS, but heredity is at least part of the puzzle. The genes that cause your condition may have been passed to your parents, and, in turn, you may risk passing the condition on to your own children.
Other conditions that frequently co-occur with hEDS include degenerative joint disease, chronic fatigue, bowel functionality issues, cardiovascular abnormalities, including POTS, and even depression.
At Alpenglow Pain & Wellness, we arrive at your diagnosis by examining your physical condition, your medical history, and your family history. It’s not currently possible to perform genetic testing for hypermobile EDS.
Dr. Renk and the Alpenglow Pain & Wellness fully support you as you adjust to your hEDS diagnosis. We can suggest treatments and therapies to strengthen your body and alleviate your symptoms.
Your hEDS treatment plan may involve assistive devices like braces or even specialized rings to support your joints. Physical therapy strengthens your muscles, reducing your risk of joint problems, and can also help with chronic pain. You may also need to modify your lifestyle in other ways, including taking vitamins or nutritional supplements, and adopting frequent, but not overly strenuous, forms of physical activity like strength training, swimming, or yoga.
Dr. Renk often recommends pain psychology to EDS patients, tapping into your mind’s ability to self-regulate. Since hEDS is a lifelong condition, you don’t want to become overly reliant on medications for pain management.
People living in Alaska with hEDS need the experience and expertise that Dr. Renk and her colleagues bring to hEDS management. Contact Alpenglow Pain & Wellness online or over the phone to schedule an appointment today.
