Notalgia paresthetica is a peripheral nerve problem resulting in intense and sometimes painful itching in the mid to upper back and between the shoulder blades. Dr. Demetrio Aguila has a simple way to diagnose and effectively treat Notalgia Paresthetica. In this video he explains how.

Dr. Demetrio Aguila MD explains.

“Notalgia Paresthetica is a problem that occurs in the back. Patients will say I have got itching or a burning sensation. Sometimes they will say I have a stabbing sensation or sometimes they will say I have an aching sensation or electrical sensation. Other patients will come in and just say it hurts doc, can you please take away the pain.

The pain arises from some small sensory nerves that come out of the spinal cord. They branch off from the spinal nerves and they go to the skin and the muscle in that area the patient describes the exact spot right between the shoulder blades where they are having the pain sometimes above that level. sometimes below and then I am pretty sure I know what is going on.

In that case what we will do is a diagnostic block. We will inject that local anesthetic around the nerves that I think might be causing the patient’s

Pain. If we turn those nerves off and we turn off the pain and the patient say doc this feels great, I tell them well we can treat that.

There is a surgical procedure which is relatively straightforward in which we turn those nerves off permanently so that the patients do not end up with chronic pain.