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In short: Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a condition in which pain in a limb is far more severe and longer-lasting than expected after an injury such as a fracture, sprain or surgery. It is a real, physical condition, not “in your head”, and it is treatable. Most people who start early multidisciplinary treatment recover well. At Spectrum Healthcare in North Ryde, near Macquarie Park, we treat CRPS with pain education, graded movement, graded motor imagery and mirror therapy, desensitisation, swelling management, and emerging tools such as the Neubie (DC-current therapy).

If you’ve been told you might have Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), you probably have a lot of questions. It’s a condition most people have never heard of until they’re diagnosed, and the name itself can feel intimidating. The good news is that we understand CRPS far better today than we did even a few years ago, and there are clear, evidence-based treatments that help most people recover, especially when treatment begins early.

This guide explains what CRPS is, why it happens, how it’s diagnosed, and what treatment involves at our North Ryde clinic. No jargon, no scary lists, just the information you need to feel informed and in control.

What is CRPS?

CRPS is a condition in which pain in one area of the body — usually an arm, hand, leg or foot — is much more severe and long-lasting than you’d expect from the injury that started it. It often follows something quite ordinary, such as a wrist fracture, an ankle sprain, or surgery. The pain is often described as burning, deep, throbbing, or squeezing. But CRPS isn’t just pain. The affected limb may also:

• Change colour (red, blue, blotchy, or pale)
• Feel hotter or cooler than the other side
• Swell up or sweat differently
• Become extremely sensitive, even a bedsheet or a light breeze can hurt
• Feel stiff, weak, or hard to move
• Develop changes in the skin, nails or hair

People often say the limb feels “not like mine anymore”, and that’s a real, recognised part of the condition, not something you’re imagining.

Why does CRPS happen?

After an injury, the body’s pain and inflammation systems don’t switch off properly. Researchers have made significant progress in understanding why, and several things can go wrong at once:

• The nerves become oversensitive. Pain signals are amplified, so normal touch can feel painful, and painful stimuli feel unbearable.
• Inflammation doesn't settle. Chemicals that normally help healing stay switched on too long, causing swelling, redness and warmth.
• The nervous system "rewires". The brain and spinal cord adapt to persistent pain signals, and the affected limb can become harder to move or feel properly.
• Blood flow changes. Tiny blood vessels don't regulate properly, which is why the limb changes colour and temperature.
• The immune system may be involved. In some people, it appears to play a role, which is why CRPS is more common in women and is now being studied as a possible autoimmune-like condition.

None of this is your fault, and it doesn't mean the pain is "in your head". CRPS is a real, physical condition with real changes happening in your body and nervous system.

Who gets CRPS?

CRPS is uncommon but not rare. A few things to know:

• Women are affected 2–4 times more often than men
• The most common age range is 40s–60s, though it can happen at any age
• It's more common in the arm or hand than the leg or foot in adults
• The most common triggers are wrist fractures, ankle fractures, carpal tunnel or wrist surgery, crush injuries, or long periods in a cast
• Roughly 1 in 30 people develop some signs of CRPS in the 12 months after a significant injury or surgery, though many of these cases resolve on their own

How is CRPS diagnosed?

There is no single blood test or scan that can diagnose CRPS. Instead, your practitioner uses a set of internationally recognised clinical criteria called the Budapest Criteria. To make the diagnosis, we look for:

• Ongoing pain that’s much worse than expected from the injury
• A cluster of reported symptoms across categories like sensation, temperature/colour, swelling/sweating, and movement/skin changes
• Matching the signs we can observe at the assessment
• No other condition better explains what’s going on

Blood tests, X-rays, MRI scans, or bone scans may be used — not to confirm CRPS, but to rule out other possibilities such as infection, a missed fracture, a blood clot, or an inflammatory joint condition.

How we treat CRPS at Spectrum Healthcare

Treatment for CRPS works best when it combines several approaches, is started early, and is tailored to your situation. At Spectrum Healthcare in North Ryde (right next to Macquarie Park), we bring together physiotherapy, chiropractic, exercise physiology, massage, and — when needed — coordination with your GP, pain specialist and psychologist, all under one roof.

Here's what treatment usually looks like:

1. Understanding your pain

The first step is education. Learning how CRPS works reduces pain, and this is well established in research. When your nervous system recognises that the danger signal is a false alarm rather than a warning of further damage, the pain system begins to calm down.

2. Gentle, graded movement

One of the most important messages in modern CRPS care is: keep moving. Long periods of rest or immobilising the limb can make CRPS worse. We build a graded movement program that stays below the level that flares your symptoms and gradually expands what you can do.

For lower-limb CRPS, our AlterG anti-gravity treadmill is a great help — it lets you walk and run at reduced body weight, so you can start rebuilding strength and movement patterns without aggravating pain. Our hydrotherapy pool is another gentle way to get moving early.

An emerging tool we may use to support this stage is the Neubie. The Neubie is an FDA-cleared neuromuscular stimulation device that works differently from a standard TENS or e-stim machine: it delivers pulsed direct current (DC) rather than the alternating current used by most units. In practical terms, this lets you keep moving while the stimulation is running, which is exactly what we want in CRPS, where gentle active movement is far more useful than lying still. We use the current to coax muscles that have effectively "switched off" to re-engage, support range of motion and local blood flow, and help retrain normal movement patterns.

To be upfront: while the Neubie is FDA-cleared for neuromuscular re-education, improving range of motion, increasing circulation and managing pain, research on its use in CRPS is still emerging. We treat it as a helpful adjunct to the well-established treatments described here, not a replacement for them, and we'll only suggest it if it suits your situation. You can read more on our Neubie therapy page.

3. Graded Motor Imagery and mirror therapy

This is one of the most researched and most interesting treatments for CRPS. It works in three stages:

• Stage 1 — Left/right recognition: looking at images of hands or feet and identifying which side they are. This retrains the brain's map of the affected limb.

• Stage 2 — Imagined movements: picturing the affected limb moving, without actually moving it. This gently reactivates the movement pathways in the brain.

• Stage 3 — Mirror therapy: place your unaffected limb in front of a mirror so the reflection appears as if your affected limb is moving freely and normally. This trick helps the brain "unlearn" the pain patterns.

4. Desensitisation and sensory retraining

If touch, temperature or clothing has become painful, we use gentle textures and temperatures in graded doses to retrain the nervous system — starting with what you can tolerate and gradually building up.

5. Swelling and pain management

Compression garments, elevation, contrast baths and tools such as our Game Ready system can help manage swelling and settle the warm, inflamed phase of CRPS.

For a limb that is too sensitive to tolerate hands-on treatment or stick-on electrodes, we may also offer a “Neubie bath.” In this treatment, the affected hand or foot rests in a water bath, and a gentle direct current (DC) is delivered through the water rather than through pads pressed onto the sore skin. Because the current spreads evenly across the whole submerged area, it can be a comfortable way to stimulate a hypersensitive limb, supporting circulation, gentle desensitisation and pain relief, and pairing naturally with the sensory retraining described above.

As with Neubie more generally, the evidence for this approach in CRPS is still developing, so we use it as an optional add-on tailored to how you respond — and we always start well within your comfort level.

6. Medications (via your GP or pain specialist)

Medications aren't usually the first step, but they play an important role. The ones with the strongest evidence are:

• Bisphosphonates given as an infusion settle bone-level inflammation and pain. They work best when started within the first 6–12 months.

• A short course of oral steroids useful in the early, warm phase of CRPS.

• Nerve-pain medications (such as gabapentin, pregabalin, duloxetine, or amitriptyline) may help some people, particularly with sleep and allodynia.

• Taking 500 mg of vitamin C daily for about 50 days after a wrist fracture can reduce the risk of CRPS.

7. Support from psychology and pain specialists

CRPS is exhausting, and the mental load of living with chronic pain is real. Pain-focused psychology, including approaches such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), is a proven part of CRPS recovery, not an afterthought. For pain that isn't settling, a pain specialist can offer further options, such as nerve blocks or advanced nerve stimulation therapies.

What can you expect?

Everyone's CRPS journey is different, but here's what the research tells us:

• Around 80% of people who start treatment early make a significant recovery within 12--18 months
• Recovery is usually gradual a step-wise return of function, rather than a sudden switch
• Flare-ups are normal along the way, and don't mean you're going backwards
• Staying active, managing stress and sleep, and keeping regular appointments are the biggest predictors of recovery

What you can do right now

• Keep moving within your comfort zone. A little bit often is far better than a long rest.
• Protect your sleep. Pain disrupts sleep, and poor sleep amplifies pain, a good sleep routine is treatment.
• Pace your activity. Don't push through huge flares; build tolerance gradually.
• Tell us about your symptoms. Small changes, colour, swelling, and spreading sensitivity help us fine-tune treatment.
• Be patient with yourself. CRPS isn't laziness, weakness, or "in your head". It's a real condition with real recovery pathways.

Frequently asked questions about CRPS

What is Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS)?

CRPS is a chronic pain condition in which pain in a limb is far more severe and longer-lasting than expected after an injury such as a fracture, sprain or surgery. It often involves swelling, changes in colour and temperature, and extreme sensitivity in the affected hand, arm, foot, or leg.

Can CRPS be cured, and does it go away?

Many people with CRPS recover well, especially when treatment starts early. Around 80% of those who begin early multidisciplinary treatment make a significant recovery within 12--18 months. Recovery is usually gradual, and flare-ups along the way are normal and don't mean you're going backwards.

What is the best treatment for CRPS?

There is no single cure; the most effective approach combines several therapies started early. This typically includes pain education, gentle graded movement, graded motor imagery and mirror therapy, desensitisation, swelling management, and, where appropriate, medications and psychology. Emerging tools such as the Neubie may be used as an adjunct.

Can the Neubie or DC-current therapy help CRPS?

The Neubie is an FDA- and TGA-cleared device that delivers pulsed direct current (DC) and allows you to move while being stimulated. For very sensitive limbs, a "Neubie bath" delivers the current through water. We use it as a promising adjunct to standard CRPS care; evidence specific to CRPS is still emerging.

How is CRPS diagnosed?

CRPS is diagnosed clinically using the internationally recognised Budapest Criteria, and there is no single blood test or scan for it. Your practitioner looks for pain disproportionate to the injury, a cluster of reported symptoms and observed signs, and the absence of another condition that better explains them. Scans may be used only to rule out other causes.

Where can I get CRPS treatment near Macquarie Park or North Ryde?

Spectrum Healthcare provides multidisciplinary CRPS treatment in North Ryde, NSW, conveniently located near Macquarie Park, Ryde, Epping and Lane Cove. Our team combines physiotherapy, chiropractic, and exercise physiology with rehabilitation technology, including the AlterG treadmill, hydrotherapy, and the Neubie. Call (02) 9889 3344 or book online to arrange an assessment.

How long does CRPS recovery take?

Recovery varies from person to person. With early, consistent treatment, many people see meaningful improvement over 12–18 months. Staying active within comfortable limits, protecting sleep, managing stress, and keeping regular appointments are the strongest predictors of a good recovery.