Physician Spotlight on Dr. Annette Lukose

How did you get interested in medicine and physiatry?

At a young age, I knew I wanted to have a positive impact on people’s lives through medicine. I was drawn to the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) and interventional pain because I wanted to help patients recover from injury, pain, and disability through a holistic approach. As a trained PM&R specialist, I am usually the first provider addressing a patient’s pain in the context of quality of life and social functioning.

What is your practice philosophy?

I believe in a personalized approach to pain management. My goal is to treat pain in the safest and least invasive way possible so that my patients can achieve pain relief and a better quality of life.

What are some of the conditions you treat, and how do you treat them?

I treat a variety of chronic musculoskeletal and neuropathic pain disorders. Conditions that I treat include chronic back pain, neck pain, sacroiliac and peripheral joint pain, as well as complex pain conditions including Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), painful neuropathies, and post-surgical pain syndrome.

I use a comprehensive and evidence-based approach to treating chronic pain conditions while avoiding addictive medications. When indicated, I perform a variety of minimally invasive procedures including image-guided epidural injections, nerve blocks, joint injections, radiofrequency ablation, spinal cord stimulation, and peripheral nerve stimulation, among others.

What trends are you seeing in physiatry? What are you currently excited about?

I am excited about newer interventions and opioid-sparing treatment options for pain management, such as:

• Spinal cord stimulation – Advances in technology have made it more accessible and effective
• Dorsal Root Ganglion Stimulation – Newer technology that is well-suited for neuropathic conditions like CRPS
• Basivertebral Nerve Ablation – Minimally invasive procedure with great outcomes for vertebrogenic pain

What’s your favorite part of your job?

It is an honor and privilege to treat each of my patients. My favorite part of my profession is making a meaningful impact by helping patients overcome their pain so that they may enjoy fuller lives. Being born and raised here on Long Island, it is a pleasure to serve this community.