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Neck Pain
The most common causes of neck pain include:
- Stress
- Prolonged postures
- Minor injuries and falls
- Referred pain
- Over-use
- Whiplash
- Herniated disc
- Pinched nerve
Are you getting more headaches than you used to? Are you having neck cramps or back pain and can’t figure out why? The culprit could be your large, heavy purse. Trendy handbags and purses keep getting bigger and bigger – and you are filling them to the max.
Toting these bags around with us all day – which can easily weigh 15 pounds or more – can also lead to upper back problems. And since you might not notice the pain until later, when you’re working out or sitting at your desk at the office, the source of the pain often remains a mystery as the problem gets worse and worse.
The American Chiropractic Association recommends that handbags weigh no more than 10 percent of the owner’s body weight, but doctors point out that the rule was made assuming the weight would carried distributed evenly across your back, like when wearing a backpack.
Handbags that will be carried with the straps over only one shoulder should generally weigh less than 10 percent of your body weight to avoid injury. Also remember to switch the side you’re carrying it on often, and walk with correct posture, keeping your head and shoulders aligned and upright.
Leg Pain
The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the human body and one of the most common causes of leg pain. The term sciatica is used to describe the symptoms of pain occurring in the leg and lower back. Some use the term specifically to mean a nerve dysfunction caused by compression of one or more lumbar or sacral nerve roots from a spinal disc herniation.
When the liquid center of a disc bulges outwards, herniation occurs. The bulged disc can then tear against external ring fibers, contact the spinal canal, and compress a nerve root against the lamina or pedicle of a vertebra. This causes sciatica. The liquid extruded when this happens can cause inflammation and swelling of the surrounding tissue which can further compress the nerve root into the confined space of the spinal canal.
Sciatic pain typically runs through the lower back and down the sciatic nerve through the leg and can even run all the way down to the foot. Numbness, tingling, burning, and pricking sensations are all symptoms that may occur in cases of sciatic injury.
Sciatica is caused by compression of lumbar nerves, sacral nerves, and/or the sciatic nerve. Sciatic damage can be permanent, thus it is important that you seek medical attention if you are suffering from these symptoms.
Ice Therapy
The application of ice is an excellent way to reduce inflammation and temporary pain. Ice causes constriction in the veins of the affected tissue, limiting blood flow and acting as an anesthetic. Once the ice is removed, blood will rush back to the affected area providing nutrients that will help with the healing process.
Ice therapy is often used in the treatment of back and neck pain. It lessens the severity of muscle spasms, reduces pain by causing numbness, and aids in lessening soft tissue damage.
Ice or ice packs should be wrapped in a towel while being used for treatment. Ice therapy should be used on the affected area for 24 to 48 hours from the initial ache or injury. It is recommended to reapply it every 10 minutes for maximum affect and to not leave it on for more than 20 minutes at a time.
Patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, Raynaud’s Syndrome, colds or allergic conditions, paralysis, or areas of impaired sensation should not use ice therapy.
Heat Therapy
Most commonly used for rehabilitation purposes, heat therapy is the application of heat to the body for pain relief and health. It can be performed using something as simple as a heat to cloth to as advanced as ultrasound.
The therapeutic effects of heat include increasing the extensibility of collagen tissues; decreasing joint stiffness; reducing pain; relieving muscle spasms; reducing inflammation, edema, and aids in the post acute phase of healing; and increasing blood flow. The increased blood flow to the affected area provides proteins, nutrients, and oxygen for better healing.
Heat creates higher tissue temperatures, which produces vasodilation that increases the supply of oxygen, and nutrients and the elimination of carbon dioxide and metabolic waste. It is useful for muscle spasms, myalgia, fibromyalgia, contracture, and bursitis.Heat therapy can also be used for the treatment of headaches and migraines.
Heat therapy is only part of the therapeutic procedure that is chiropractic, and rarely provides a full extent of recovery without it.
Heat therapy should not be used on swollen or bruised tissues. It is advised that patients who have dermatitis, deep vein thrombosis, diabetes, peripheral vascular disease, open wounds, and cardiovascular conditions such as hypertension not use heat therapy.
Adjustments
Chiropractic adjustment can only be applied to joints in the spine and correction of misalignment or subluxation that may occur in that area. 95 percent of all spinal adjustments in the world are performed by chiropractors. Chiropractic adjustment frees the vertebrae to adjust to its natural position. The natural state of the body knows how to correct itself once it is free to do so with the help of chiropractic adjustment.
Chiropractic adjustments can help prevent and treat many conditions such as the following:
- Arthritis
- Bursitis
- Carpal tunnel syndrome and other repetitive strain disorders
- Chronic muscle pain and stiffness
- Headaches
- Most musculoskeletal and sports-related injuries
- Nerve disorders
- Pain and stiffness in the back, chest, abdomen, neck, hips and shoulders, as well as extremities, such as arms, legs, and feet
- Sciatica pain
- Scoliosis
- Tendonitis
- Whiplash and other traumatic injuries
Some common adjustment methods include:
- Toggle Drop: This is when the chiropractor, using crossed hands, presses down firmly on a particular area of the spine. Then, with a quick and precise thrust, the chiropractor adjusts the spine. This is done to improve mobility in the vertebral joints.
- Lumbar Roll (aka side posture): The chiropractor positions the patient on his or her side, then applies a quick and precise manipulative thrust to the misaligned vertebra, returning it to its proper position.
- Release Work: The chiropractor applies gentle pressure using his or her fingertips to separate the vertebrae.
- Table adjustments: The patient lies on a special table with sections that drop down. The chiropractor applies a quick thrust at the same time the section drops. The dropping of the table allows for a lighter adjustment without the twisting positions that can accompany other techniques.
- Instrument adjustments: Often the gentlest methods of adjusting the spine. The patient lies on the table face down while the chiropractor uses a spring-loaded activator instrument to perform the adjustment. This technique is often used to perform adjustments on animals as well.
- Manipulation under anesthesia (MUA): This is performed by a chiropractor certified in this technique in a hospital outpatient setting when the patient is unresponsive to traditional adjustments.Chiropractors take many factors—including size, weight, and muscle structure—into consideration when deciding on which adjustment to make. Sometimes, ice, electrical stimulation, or massage therapy (including traction massage) are used prior to a spinal manipulation in order to relax the muscles.
Patients with chronic pain my require anesthesia during their treatment. This procedure is safe and only reserved for patients with special circumstance. Chiropractic adjustments, when performed by a skillful professional, are significantly safe methods of spinal correction.
Craniosacral therapy (CST) is a form of bodywork that is focused primarily on the concept of primary respiration and regulating the flow of cerebrospinal fluid by using therapeutic touch to manipulate the synarthrodial joints of the cranium. This procedure is proven to often relieve symptoms of stress and tension.
The following are observed benefits from chiropractic adjustments:
- Increased blood flow
- Increased body secretion of melatonin and endorphins
- Increased pain tolerance levels
- Increased range of motion
- Reduced blood pressure
- Reduced tension
- Reduced muscle pain
Popping sounds heard during a chiropractic adjustments are usually caused by pockets of air being released from behind the joints. Mild aching or soreness may be present after a chiropractic visit, but is typically gone shortly after and easily relieved with the application of ice or heat.
Benefits of Chiropractic Care
The alignment of vertebrae in your spine can be the determining factor in a number of health symptoms that affect our overall body of health. This implied presence of an incomplete or partial dislocation of a joint is called a subluxation. Joint mobility can be restored through massage and carefully applied pressure which will allow your body reach homeostasis, its natural state of balance. Nerve energy is restored to its normal flow when the joints in your spine are allowed to return to their proper positions and your body is able to return to its natural healing process.
While Chiropractic care is mostly known for its assistance in relieving pain in your joints, patients of chiropractic care have also reported that their treatment resulted in significant relief from all of the following as well: headaches, respiratory problems, asthma, sleep disturbances, stress, depression, ear infections, allergies, sore throats, insomnia.
As time moves forward, the acceptance of chiropractic practice in the medical community as a valid for of treatment for neuro-musculoskeletal conditions continues to increase. Chiropractic care is often the first line of recommendation for functional disorders of the entire musculoskeletal system from medical doctors.
Increasingly over the past few decades, the medical community has come to accept and recognize chiropractic care as a valid form of treatment for a variety of neuro-musculoskeletal conditions, and as a conservative treatment option for patients with lower back pain. Moreover, many medical doctors recognize a chiropractic diagnosis and accept it as the first line of treatment for functional disorders of the entire musculoskeletal system.
Articles on Chiropractic studies proving benefits of chiropractic care:
Your First Visit
Medical History
First things first, we will need some perspective.
Your history tells us where we should go with your treatment. The more information we have the better our diagnosis and in turn your outcome will be. All prior medical examinations, along with your vital signs, help us build a more complete picture of your health. We will ask you among other things:
- What are your pre-existing conditions?
- What drugs are you taking?
- What diagnoses, or examinations have you already had?
- Imaging or diagnostics
- X-rays
- MRIs
- CT scans
- What is your blood pressure?
- Weight?
- Imaging or diagnostics
- Do you have any allergies?
- Have you had any surgeries?
- What have you been up to in your daily life?
- Do you have an active lifestyle?
- What are you eating?
- What are your sleeping habits?
- What are the recent changes with your body?
Be ready to provide your medical history, which will be essential for preparing a course of treatment for you. Medical records, such as diagnostic test results, or imaging results, such as X-rays and MRIs, also will provide important information about your condition.
The Examination
We will inspect your body in a respectful, noninvasive manner consistent with the best practices of our industry.
The diagnostic procedures performed during your visit will vary from individual to individual based on your specific case but may include:
- Flexibility testing. Determining range of motion based on your ability to bend and stretch.
- Posture testing. The curvature of your spine while standing, sitting, and laying down.
- Strength testing – Looking for sign of muscle tension, pain, spasms and nerve damage by extension and contraction of muscular systems.
- Balance testing – Find the distance beyond the patients arm length that can be reached while keeping their feet planted.
- Reaction testing – Reflex hammer on the knee, biceps reflex, Achilles tendon reflex, triceps reflex, or brachioradialis reflex.
- Palpation – used to assess swelling or muscle tone, and assess tenderness through tissue deformation using pressure or stretching. Useful in determine painful areas and to qualify pain felt by patients, or to locate three-dimensional coordinates of anatomical landmarks to quantify some aspects of the palpated subject.
Depending on your outcomes more complex diagnostic tests may follow. These laboratory tests may include advanced imaging tools such as Magnetic resonance imaging, and X-ray computed tomography, in addition to blood work.
Post Examination Consultation
The consultation caters to your specific goals and needs as your situation dictates. You may be referred to other specialists or a plan for continued treatments may be necessary. Lifestyle choices will be discussed considering your nutrition, exercise, and health goals.
Back Pain
While lower back injuries are the most common, pain in the thoracic pain (middle of the spine) and cervical pain (neck region) of the spinal cord also often occurs. These injuries affect the vertebrae, discs, soft tissues, muscles, and joints of your body. Other parts of your entire body can be affected due to these injuries.
Muscle strain often contributes to lower back pain. The erector spinae, which help keep the spine erect, can become enflamed and spasm. Discs that are not in their proper place due to malformation can cause damage to surrounding discs, joints, nerves, muscles, ligaments, and tendons.
Herniated or degenerative discs are often a cause for upper back pain. Typically rest, ice/heat packs, over-the-counter inflammatory medicine, and pain medicine such as aspirin treat back pain until the muscles are able to return to their lower positions. However, if pain persists after more than a couple weeks, the back may begin to atrophy and become significantly weak. This can leave you open to further injury.
Most cases of back pain are mechanical, meaning they are typically not caused by any serious conditions.
Back pain is experienced by 31 million Americans at any given time and the single leading cause of disability worldwide. According to the US Department of Labor, workers in the health care industry sustain back injury more than any other profession. The number one reported injury in health care is patient handling. 40 to 50 percent of nurses sustain back injury. Workplace injuries cost a total of nearly $50,000 per injury on average for medical treatment and indemnity cost.
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