If non-pharmacological measures are not effective, medications may be tried.

- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are typically tried first. NSAIDs have been shown to be more effective than placebo, and are usually more effective than paracetamol (acetaminophen).

- In severe back pain not relieved by NSAIDs or acetaminophen, opioids may be used. However, long-term use of opioids has not been proven to be effective at treating back pain. Opioids have not always been shown to be better than placebo for chronic back pain when the risks and benefits are considered.

- Skeletal muscle relaxers may also be used. Their short term use has been shown to be effective in the relief of acute back pain. However, the evidence of this effect has been disputed, and these medications do have negative side-effects.

- In people with nerve root pain and acute radiculopathy, there is evidence that a single dose of steroids, such as dexamethasone, may provide pain relief.

- Epidural corticosteroid injection (ESI) is a procedure in which steroid medications are injected into the epidural space. The steroid medications reduce inflammation and thus decrease pain and improve function. ESI has long been used to both diagnose and treat back pain, although recent studies have shown a lack of efficacy in treating low back pain.

The management of low back pain often includes medications for the duration that they are beneficial. With the first episode of low back pain the hope is a complete cure; however, if the problem becomes chronic, the goals may change to pain management and the recovery of as much function as possible. As pain medications are only somewhat effective, expectations regarding their benefit may differ from reality, and this can lead to decreased satisfaction.

The medication typically recommended first are NSAIDs (though not aspirin) or skeletal muscle relaxants and these are enough for most people. Benefits with NSAIDs; however, is often small. High-quality reviews have found acetaminophen (paracetamol) to be no more effective than placebo at improving pain, quality of life, or function. NSAIDs are more effective for acute episodes than acetaminophen; however, they carry a greater risk of side effects including: kidney failure, stomach ulcers and possibly heart problems. Thus, NSAIDs are a second choice to acetaminophen, recommended only when the pain is not handled by the latter. NSAIDs are available in several different classes; there is no evidence to support the use of COX-2 inhibitors over any other class of NSAIDs with respect to benefits. With respect to safety naproxen may be best. Muscle relaxants may be beneficial.

If the pain is still not managed adequately, short term use of opioids such as morphine may be useful. These medications carry a risk of addiction, may have negative interactions with other drugs, and have a greater risk of side effects, including dizziness, nausea, and constipation. The effect of long term use is unknown. Specialist groups advise against general long-term use of opioids for chronic low back pain.

For older people with chronic pain, opioids may be used in those for whom NSAIDs present too great a risk, including those with diabetes, stomach or heart problems. They may also be useful for a select group of people with neuropathic pain.

Antidepressants may be effective for treating chronic pain associated with symptoms of depression, but they have a risk of side effects. Although the antiseizure drugs gabapentin and carbamazepine are sometimes used for chronic low back pain and may relieve sciatic pain, there is insufficient evidence to support their use. Systemic oral steroids have not been shown to be useful in low back pain. Facet joint injections and steroid injections into the discs have not been found to be effective in those with persistent, non-radiating pain; however, they may be considered for those with persistent sciatic pain. Epidural corticosteroid injections provide a slight and questionable short-term improvement in those with sciatica but are of no long term benefit. There are also concerns of potential side effects.

Back pain is generally treated with non-pharmacological therapy first, as it typically resolves without the use of medication. Superficial heat and massage, acupuncture, and spinal manipulation therapy may be recommended.

- Heat therapy is useful for back spasms or other conditions. A review concluded that heat therapy can reduce symptoms of acute and sub-acute low-back pain.

- Regular activity and gentle stretching exercises is encouraged in uncomplicated back pain, and is associated with better long-term outcomes. Physical therapy to strengthen the muscles in the abdomen and around the spine may also be recommended. These exercises are associated with better patient satisfaction, although it has not been shown to provide functional improvement. However, one study found that exercise is effective for chronic back pain, but not for acute pain. If used, they should be performed under supervision of a licensed health professional.

- Massage therapy may give short-term pain relief, but not functional improvement, for those with acute lower back pain. It may also give short-term pain relief and functional improvement for those with long-term (chronic) and sub-acute lower pack pain, but this benefit does not appear to be sustained after 6 months of treatment. There does not appear to be any serious adverse effects associated with massage.

- Acupuncture may provide some relief for back pain. However, further research with stronger evidence needs to be done.

- Spinal manipulation is a widely-used method of treating back pain, although there is no evidence of long-term benefits.

- "Back school" is an intervention that consists of both education and physical exercises. A 2016 Cochrane review found the evidence concerning back school to be very low quality and was not able to make generalizations as to whether back school is effective or not.

Increasing general physical activity has been recommended, but no clear relationship to pain or disability has been found when used for the treatment of an acute episode of pain. For acute pain, low- to moderate-quality evidence supports walking. Treatment according to McKenzie method is somewhat effective for recurrent acute low back pain, but its benefit in the short term does not appear significant. There is tentative evidence to support the use of heat therapy for acute and sub-chronic low back pain but little evidence for the use of either heat or cold therapy in chronic pain. Weak evidence suggests that back belts might decrease the number of missed workdays, but there is nothing to suggest that they will help with the pain. Ultrasound and shock wave therapies do not appear effective and therefore are not recommended.

Exercise therapy is effective in decreasing pain and improving function for those with chronic low back pain. It also appears to reduce recurrence rates for as long as six months after the completion of program and improves long-term function. There is no evidence that one particular type of exercise therapy is more effective than another. The Alexander technique appears useful for chronic back pain, and there is tentative evidence to support the use of yoga. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) has not been found to be effective in chronic low back pain. Evidence for the use of shoe insoles as a treatment is inconclusive. Peripheral nerve stimulation, a minimally-invasive procedure, may be useful in cases of chronic low back pain that do not respond to other measures, although the evidence supporting it is not conclusive, and it is not effective for pain that radiates into the leg.

Acute pain is usually managed with medications such as analgesics and anesthetics. Caffeine when added to pain medications such as ibuprofen, may provide some additional benefit. Management of chronic pain, however, is more difficult, and may require the coordinated efforts of a pain management team, which typically includes medical practitioners, clinical pharmacists, clinical psychologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners.

Sugar (sucrose) when taken by mouth reduces pain in newborn babies undergoing some medical procedures (a lancing of the heel, venipuncture, and intramuscular injections). Sugar does not remove pain from circumcision, and it is unknown if sugar reduces pain for other procedures.

Sugar did not affect pain-related electrical activity in the brains of newborns one second after the heel lance procedure. Sweet liquid by mouth moderately reduces the rate and duration of crying caused by immunization injection in children between one and twelve months of age.

Individuals with more social support experience less cancer pain, take less pain medication, report less labor pain and are less likely to use epidural anesthesia during childbirth, or suffer from chest pain after coronary artery bypass surgery.

Suggestion can significantly affect pain intensity. About 35% of people report marked relief after receiving a saline injection they believed to be morphine. This placebo effect is more pronounced in people who are prone to anxiety, and so anxiety reduction may account for some of the effect, but it does not account for all of it. Placebos are more effective for intense pain than mild pain; and they produce progressively weaker effects with repeated administration. It is possible for many with chronic pain to become so absorbed in an activity or entertainment that the pain is no longer felt, or is greatly diminished.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been shown effective for improving quality of life in those with chronic pain but the reduction in suffering is modest, and the CBT method was not shown to have any effect on outcome. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) may also effective in the treatment of chronic pain.

A number of meta-analyses have found clinical hypnosis to be effective in controlling pain associated with diagnostic and surgical procedures in both adults and children, as well as pain associated with cancer and childbirth. A 2007 review of 13 studies found evidence for the efficacy of hypnosis in the reduction of chronic pain under some conditions, though the number of patients enrolled in the studies was low, raising issues related to the statistical power to detect group differences, and most lacked credible controls for placebo or expectation. The authors concluded that "although the findings provide support for the general applicability of hypnosis in the treatment of chronic pain, considerably more research will be needed to fully determine the effects of hypnosis for different chronic-pain conditions."

Chronic pain is treated with a variety of medications and non-pharmacological interventions. Opioid tolerance and withdrawal can be seen in the NICU and PICU. Other side effects with opioid use can be: cognition deficits, altered mood, and disturbances of endocrine development. Opioid misuse can occur in adolescents and is associated with the use of alcohol, cigarettes and marijuana.

Non-pharmacological treatment for children in helping to relieve periodic pain episodes and severity includes counselling and behavior modification therapy. The American Association of Pediatrics have suggested that parents be educated on providing round the clock medication administration after their children receive surgery.

For acute pain, multiple medications given at the same time is proven to be most effective. This results in lower pain scores, provides greater relief, allows lower dosing (and side effects), targets different nerve pathways, and can be tailored to the child.

Non specific thoracic spine pain is usually treated by one or a combination of the following:

- Exercise/Active and passive physical therapy

- Deep massage or massage therapy

- Ice and/or heat therapy

- Analgesics such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

- Joint manipulation, as commonly performed by physical therapists, chiropractors or osteopathic physicians (D.O.).

- If there is a specific tender spot, then trigger point massage or injections can be helpful.

A painful vertebral compression fracture may be treated with pain medication and rest, or with vertebroplasty or kyphoplasty surgery. If the cause is thought to be osteoporosis, oral or intravenous bisphosphonates may be administered to reduce further fracture risk.

Massage therapy using trigger-point release techniques may be effective in short-term pain relief. Physical therapy involving gentle stretching and exercise is useful for recovering full range of motion and motor coordination. Once the trigger points are gone, muscle strengthening exercise can begin, supporting long-term health of the local muscle system.

Myofascial release, which involves gentle fascia manipulation and massage, may improve or remediate the condition.

A systematic review concluded that dry needling for the treatment of myofascial pain syndrome in the lower back appeared to be a useful adjunct to standard therapies, but that clear recommendations could not be made because the published studies were small and of low quality.

Posture evaluation and ergonomics may provide significant relief in the early stages of treatment. Movement therapies such as Alexander Technique and Feldenkrais Method may also be helpful.

Gentle, sustained stretching exercises within a comfortable range of motion have been shown to decrease pain thresholds. Regular, non-intense activity is also encouraged.

Since sitting on the affected area may aggravate the condition, a cushion with a cutout at the back under the coccyx is recommended. If there is tailbone pain with bowel movements, then stool softeners and increased fiber in the diet may help. Anti-inflammatory medications such as NSAIDS may be prescribed.

If the pain persists, other treatments may be applied. Manual treatment is carried out by repeated massage of the muscles attached to the coccyx, via the anus. Such treatment is usually given by a chiropractor, osteopath or physical therapist. Thiele applied this treatment to a series of 169 coccydynia patients, and reported 63% cured.

Orthopaedic surgeons commonly inject corticosteroids into the painful joint. Maigne and Tamalet applied this treatment to 86 patients under fluoroscopic guidance. Two months after the injection, 50% of the patients with luxation or hypermobility were improved or healed, but only 27% of the patients with no visible abnormality improved. Where an abnormality had been found, and injection relieved the pain, the abnormality remained but ceased to be painful.

Temporary or permanent nerve blocks are sometimes applied in cases of coccydynia. Foye et al reported that repeated temporary nerve blocks by injection at the ganglion impar could give relief in a number of cases, and occasionally a single injection was sufficient.

If non-surgical treatments fail to relieve the pain, or in cases of cancer, surgery to remove the coccyx (coccygectomy) may be required. In cases where pain persists after surgery, standard drugs for chronic pain, such as tri-cyclic anti-depressants, may help alleviate the pain.

Treatment of people believed to have ATN or TN is usually begun with medication. The long-time first drug of choice for facial neuralgia has been carbamazepine, an anti-seizure agent. Due to the significant side-effects and hazards of this drug, others have recently come into common use as alternatives. These include oxcarbazepine, lamotrigine, and gabapentin. A positive patient response to one of these medications might be considered as supporting evidence for the diagnosis, which is otherwise made from medical history and pain presentation. There are no present medical tests to conclusively confirm TN or ATN.

If the anti-seizure drugs are found ineffective, one of the tricyclic antidepressant medications such as amitriptyline or nortriptyline, may be used. The tricyclic antidepressants are known to have dual action against both depression and neuropathic pain. Other drugs which may also be tried, either individually or in combination with an anti-seizure agent, include baclofen, pregabalin, anti-seizure drugs (to calm nerve endings), muscle relaxants, and opioid drugs such as oxycodone or an oxycodone/paracetamol combination.

For some people with ATN opioids may represent the only viable medical option which preserves quality of life and personal functioning. Although there is considerable controversy in public policy and practice in this branch of medicine, practice guidelines have long been available and published.

Pharmacological techniques are often continued in conjunction with other treatment options. Doses of pain medications needed often drop substantially when combined with other techniques, but rarely are discontinued completely. Tricyclic antidepressants, such as amitriptyline, and sodium channel blockers, mainly carbamazepine, are often used to relieve chronic pain, and recently have been used in an attempt to reduce phantom pains. Pain relief may also be achieved through use of opioids, ketamine, calcitonin, and lidocaine.

Ideally, effective treatment aims to resolve the underlying cause and restores the nerve root to normal function. Common conservative treatment approaches include physical therapy and chiropractic. A systematic review found moderate quality evidence that spinal manipulation is effective for the treatment of acute lumbar radiculopathy and cervical radiculopathy. Only low level evidence was found to support spinal manipulation for the treatment of chronic lumbar radiculopathies, and no evidence was found to exist for treatment of thoracic radiculopathy.

Therapeutic exercises are frequently used in combination with many of the previously mentioned modalities and with great results. A variety of exercise regimens are available in patient treatment. An exercise regimen should be modified according to the abilities and weaknesses of the patient. Stabilization of the cervicothoracic region is helpful in limiting pain and preventing re-injury. Cervical and lumbar support braces typically are not indicated for radiculopathy, and may lead to weakness of support musculature. The first part of the stabilization procedure is achieving a pain free full range of motion which can be accomplished through stretching exercises. Subsequently a strengthening exercise program should be designed to restore the deconditioned cervical, shoulder girdle, and upper trunk musculature. As reliance on the neck brace diminishes, an isometric exercise regimen should be introduced. This is a preferred method of exercise during the sub-acute phase because it resists atrophy and is least likely to exacerbate the condition. Single plane resistance exercises against cervical flexion, extension, bending, and rotation are used.

The evidence for surgical therapy is poor. Surgery is normally recommended only after medication has proved ineffective, or if side effects of medication are intolerable. While there may be pain relief after surgery, there is also a considerable risk of side effects, such as facial numbness after the procedure. Microvascular decompression appears to result in the longest pain relief. Percutaneous radiofrequency thermorhizotomy may also be effective as may stereotactic radiosurgery; however the effectiveness decreases with time.

Surgical procedures can be separated into non-destructive and destructive:

Inhaled analgesia can help to manage pain. This type of pain management is effective but may have some side effects. Some possible adverse side effects of inhaled analgesics include vomiting, nausea and dizziness. Nitrous oxide is one gas used.

Some have suggested that surgery is not an appropriate for treatment for AFP, however the frequent failure medical treatment to relieve pain has occasionally lead surgeons to attempt surgical treatments. Surgery may give a temporary remission from pain, but rarely is there a long term cure achieved via these measures. Sometimes the pain may be increased or simply migrate to an adjacent area following a surgical procedure. Descriptions of procedures such as removal of a portion of the affected branch of the trigeminal nerve, or direct injections of a caustic substance (e.g. phenol, glycerol, alcohol) into the nerve have been reported. Proponents of the so-called "Neuralgia inducing cavitational necrosis" suggest surgical exploration of the bone marrow surrounding the intra-bony course of the affected nerve to discover diseased marrow.

No studies demonstrate the effectiveness of hypnosis, biofeedback, sterile water injection, aromatherapy, and TENS in reducing pain during labor and delivery.

Various methods have been used to treat phantom limb pain. Doctors may prescribe medications to reduce the pain. Some antidepressants or antiepileptics have been shown to have a beneficial effect on reducing phantom limb pain. Often physical methods such as light massage, electrical stimulation, and hot and cold therapy have been used with variable results.

There are many different treatment options for phantom limb pain that are actively being researched. Most treatments do not take into account the mechanisms underlying phantom pains, and are therefore ineffective. However, there are a few treatment options that have been shown to alleviate pain in some patients, but these treatment options usually have a success rate less than 30%. It is important to note that this rate of success does not exceed the placebo effect. It is also important to note that because the degree of cortical reorganization is proportional to phantom limb pains, any perturbations to the amputated regions may increase pain perception.

Psychosocial interventions for AFP include cognitive behavioral therapy and biofeedback. A systematic review reported that there was weak evidence to support the use of these treatments to improve long-term outcomes in chronic orofacial pain, however these results were based primarily upon temporomandibular joint dysfunction and burning mouth syndrome rather than ATP and AO.

Psychosocial interventions assume 2 models of chronic facial pain, namely "inactivity" and "over activity". The former is where people with pain become conditioned to avoid physical activity as a result of exacerbating their pain. These negative thoughts and behaviors in fact prolong and intensify their symptoms. Some psychosocial interventions work on this fear-avoidance behaviour to improve functioning and thereby alleviate symptoms. The over activity model involves factors such as anxiety, depression or anger acting to increase pain by triggering autonomic, visceral and skeletal activity.

Medication is not the primary treatment for hypermobility, but can be used as an adjuct treatment for related joint pain. NSAIDS are the primary medications of choice. Narcotics are not recommended for primary or long term treatment and are reserved for short term use after acute injury.

H-wave therapy (HWT) is a form of electrical stimulation that produces a direct, localized effect on the conduction of underlying nerves. The electrical stimulation used in HWT differs from other forms of electrical stimulation such as TENS in terms of its waveform; it is intended to emulate the H waveform found in nerve signals, thus permitting the machine to use less power while attaining greater and deeper penetration of its low-frequency current. The waves used in HWT are distinct from the H-waves that are part of electromyography. It has been used in the treatment of pain related to diabetic neuropathy, muscle sprains, temporomandibular joint disorders, type I complex regional pain syndrome as well as the healing of wounds such as diabetic ulcers. This electroanalgesic modality was originally recommended as an alternative to TENS for dental analgesia. In a 1999 randomized controlled trial involving a mechanical pain model, the analgesic effects of HWT were found to be short-lasting and identical to those provided by TENS therapy. HWT has not been shown effective in reducing pain in cases other than diabetic neuropathy, nor has it been shown effective in reducing edema or swelling, and it has specifically not been shown effective in treating chronic pain due to ischemia.

Transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation, or TAES, is a variant of TENS therapy that involves applying cutaneous electrodes at classical Chinese acupoints and stimulating with alternating high- and low-frequency electric current ("dense-disperse"). Acupoint stimulation is as effective as dermatomal stimulation in producing an analgesic-sparing effect after lower abdominal surgery