Dr. Philip Kim, MD

Philip S. Kim, MD, specializes in pain medicine at the Center for Interventional Pain & Spine in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He is a founding member of the practice — one of the largest multidisciplinary pain and spine practices in the region — and serves as its chief executive officer.

Dr. Kim is known for his expertise in neuromodulation devices and intrathecal (spinal) drug-delivery systems — targeted therapies shown to reduce pain in many patients. Implanting the tiny state-of-the-art devices typically requires only a minor outpatient procedure, a very small incision, and local anesthesia.

Even though these minimally invasive surgical procedures take less than an hour, says Dr. Kim, they can improve the lives of many people living with conditions and illnesses that cause chronic pain. And for him, that’s what it’s all about.

Dr. Kim also treats patients by implanting spine spacers in a minimally invasive procedure; performing sacroiliac joint stabilization and basivertebral nerve ablation; and — for disc disease and herniations — using regenerative therapies. He is involved in further developing peripheral nerve stimulation, as well.

“Increasing people’s quality of life with interventional approaches to pain management is my passion,” he says. “I’m committed to educating patients about the pain-management approaches that are out there, giving them more options — especially people who think they’ve run out of options — and managing patients’ expectations about what we can and can’t do for them.”

Dr. Kim and his colleagues treat chronic pain that is caused by a wide variety of conditions and injuries. These include spinal pain; neuropathic pain (“neuropathy,” often caused by cancer chemotherapy and diabetes); post-laminectomy syndrome; trapped nerves and nerve damage; intractable headaches; and other types and causes of pain that so far haven’t been well managed.

They also take a truly comprehensive approach to managing pain, says Dr. Kim.

“We may integrate a combination of medical management (medications), psychological assessments and care, functional medicine, recommendations for lifestyle and biomechanics modifications, and non-invasive techniques that give patients alternatives to major operations,” he says.

“So in addition to offering a whole host of neuromodulation and other targeted pain-control therapies that come without major side effects, we might recommend to our patients things like an anti-inflammatory diet, medical cannabis, certain nutraceuticals, calcium channel blockers, topical capsaicin, ketamine, and hormone-replacement therapy, depending on the patient’s unique situation.”

Dr. Kim is board-certified in both pain management and anesthesiology. He is also certified in integrative medicine by the American Board of Physician Specialties®. He cares for patients age 14 and older.

Dr. Kim earned his medical degree at Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine in Maywood, Illinois. He completed both an anesthesiology residency and a fellowship in pain management at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds an MS degree in medical sciences (metabolic and nutritional medicine) from the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida.

With 17 ongoing clinical studies in the practice, Dr. Kim and his colleagues stay current on leading-edge pain therapies and can offer many patients access to those promising new technologies and treatments.

Dr. Kim is a member of professional organizations that include the American Academy of Pain Medicine, International Association for the Study of Pain, International Spine Injection Society, and North American Neuromodulation Society.