Month: February 2020

Chiropractors commonly help patients with pain relief for sciatica.

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Whiplash Associated Disorders (WAD) is a term that describes injuries that can occur after a sports collision, motor vehicle accident or slip and fall. There can be a constellation of complaints including neck pain, upper back pain, headaches, dizziness and pain radiating into the arms. Most healthcare practitioners agree that a conservative, nonsurgical approach is the best method of treating WAD. Research studies show that chiropractic care tends to be very favorable for pain relief and function restoration in the treatment of Whiplash Associated Disorders.

It must be said that “whiplash” is more of a layman’s term than a medical term. It describes a neck injury due to forceful, rapid back and forth movement of the neck, like the cracking of a whip. Of course, this violent movement during an accident, can cause damage to tissues of the neck, especially soft tissues.

Soft tissues of the neck include muscles, ligaments and fascia. Damage can also occur to the small joints between the neck bones, which are called the cervical vertebrae. These joints, called the facet joints, can become misaligned and moving properly.

There has been much research into Whiplash Associated Disorders. Studies usually address the immediate period following injury which is called the acute phase (less than two weeks), the subacute phase (2-12 weeks) and the chronic phase (three months and longer).

It should be noted that a consensus of research studies showed that exercise, and cervical manipulation and mobilization were recommended for pain relief and restoration of function in every phase of recovery. Perhaps surprisingly, immobilization and lack of movement, as one would have when wearing a soft neck collar was ineffective and may even impede recovery.

Chiropractic care in the treatment of WAD involves manipulation and mobilization. These two forms of treatment focus on restoring normal alignment and proper motion to the facet joints of the cervical spine. This helps patients to gain pain relief and the ability to restore normal function to activities of daily living which occur at home, work, and recreational and social endeavors.

Exercises, which are commonly recommended by doctors of chiropractic, focus on stretching and strengthening soft tissues. These exercises speed healing and pain relief and help, long-term, to improve upper body posture to keep painful conditions from recurring.

It is best if chiropractic care is initiated in the acute and subacute phases. Damage to soft tissues and the facet joints of the cervical spine have the best chance to heal when treatment is initiated in the first three months following an accident to achieve pain relief. Deleterious permanent affects like scar tissue, degeneration and arthritis are more likely to occur if chiropractic treatment is not administered early in the restorative process.

Chiropractic care initiated soon after the onset of a Whiplash Associated Disorder could make the difference between health or disability, comfort or pain.

Visit here for Pittsburgh North Hills whiplash neck pain relief. For neck pain and whiplash treatment see Dr James Schofield

 

 

Over my 35 years of chiropractic practice I have treated numerous athletes of various ages for sports injuries. One specific injury that occurs is from kicking in soccer. This article will discuss the types of kicking injuries that can occur in soccer players. It will also discuss how chiropractic care can help with treatment and pain relief for soccer kicking injuries.

Recently a 15-year-old patient of mine named Sara was brought to my office by her parents. Sara was having trouble with pain of her left thigh muscle when she attempted to play soccer. She noted that any running, whether just forward or laterally affected her left upper leg to the point where she had to stop. Any attempt to kick the ball also re-created pain and she did not have the strength and power on her kicks that would normally be present. Sara played at a high level of competition with both her high school soccer team and a club team. Her parents, coaches and trainers thought she had strained her quadricep muscle. She was given stretching exercises and took some time off from playing and practicing with hope that her injury would heal. Unfortunately, this did not help and when she resumed practice her pain returned.

Sara and her parents wondered if chiropractic examination and care might help. Upon evaluation we found that her left thigh muscles, which are called the quadricep, were in a mild degree of spasm and tender to touch. Normally, if this muscle had been strained, rest and stretching should have helped it. However sometimes muscles contract, to varying degrees, to protect another area. When I examined Sara’s joints in the back of the pelvis, which are called the sacroiliac joints, we found that she had misalignment and improper movement of these joints. The muscles of her quadriceps and hip area were contracted and in spasm to protect her sacroiliac joints from being further injured. We don’t like muscle spasm but the body will do what it has to do to protect itself from further injury.

When there is abnormal alignment and movement of the sacroiliac joints, chiropractic care can be administered to correct the problem. Chiropractic treatment consists of gently adjusting these pelvic joints so that they have the proper alignment and movement. There are various forms and methods of adjusting chiropractors can use to help with realignment and movement. One technique that has been used for over 100 years is a hands-on approach where the patient feels a gentle click or pop associated with the chiropractic adjustment.

This is the method that we used with Sara. After several treatments she noticed very little pain in her thigh muscles and was able to start running gently. After a few more treatments Sara felt no pain in her upper leg and was able to run forward and laterally fully and was able to kick a soccer ball with full strength and power. She resumed normal practice and performing in games.

Sara and her parents wondered why this injury had occurred. We discussed that she put significant repetitive stress on her lower back when kicking soccer balls. She had been doing this for many years, during youth soccer and the higher levels of competition with which she was currently engaged. Most likely this accumulative, repetitive stress had caught up with her and caused her condition.

Now Sara returns for periodic maintenance and supportive chiropractic care during her soccer seasons to prevent returning. Chiropractic care should be considered for pain relief and performance for soccer players.

From the best back and neck pain relief UPMC chiropractic office. Visit here for best neck and back pain relief Pittsburgh North Hills chiropractor.

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” — Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of The United States.

Happy Presidents Day from the North Hills Pittsburgh chiropractic neck and back pain relief office of Dr James Schofield.

Wishing you chocolates, flowers and lot’s of love on St. Valentine’s Day!!

From Dr James Schofield’s North Hills Pittsburgh chiropractic office.

Many adults may be unaware that kids, teens and young adults frequently experience painful conditions on a frequent basis. An adult used to having pain from injuries, repetitive stress and old age may find it inconceivable that youngsters can suffer similar maladies. This article will discuss pain syndromes common in young people, recent research detailing this problem and a natural approach to help alleviate this predicament.

While we may think of young people as being less active than previous generations, a brief assessment of their activities will show otherwise. How many of the boomer generation participated in extreme sports like half pipe snowboarding, extreme skateboarding or acrobatic bicycle riding? While sports like football, cheerleading, hockey and lacrosse have existed for generations, recent participants are practicing and competing at a much more demanding level than ever before. Athletes are bigger, stronger and faster. Cheerleaders perform much more acrobatic and dangerous routines than previously. Obviously, youngsters of all levels are at significant risk to suffer injury and consequently painful conditions.

A recent research study in European Journal Of Pain, December 2019 detailed this very subject. Researchers reviewed the healthcare usage of over 300,000 Swedes under the age of 24 and found that 15.8% sought treatment for at least one painful condition and 2017, with abdominal pain, joint pain, headache and back and neck pain being the most common. Of these individuals, one in seven consulted with their healthcare provider at least four times during the year. These findings suggest that pain is a common complaint among children and young adults.

When dealing with musculoskeletal complaints of joint pain, headaches, neck and lower back pain affecting young people there are a variety of healthcare providers that can be consulted. One particular health care specialist to be considered is a chiropractor. Chiropractors provide safe, natural, drug-free, nonsurgical relief of musculoskeletal pain. The chiropractic profession has a 124-year history of helping people of all ages with these types of problems.

Doctors of chiropractic are experts in treating low back pain, neck pain and headaches. Many of these disorders come from problems of the spine. If spinal bones, called vertebrae, are misaligned or moving improperly, pain can result from irritated nerves and spinal joints. Chiropractors are trained to examine not only adults, but also young children, teens and young adults for common painful conditions related to the spine.

Painful conditions are frequent in children and young adults. These problems should not be ignored. If they are, even more deleterious consequences may occur later in life. A chiropractic healthcare provider  should be considered for pain relief for young people suffering from musculoskeletal conditions like headache, neck pain and back ache.

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Many in the United States suffer from musculoskeletal problems like neck pain, low back pain and osteoarthritis of the hip, knee and hand. One path of the treatment is for physicians to prescribe opioids for these types of conditions. However, there is a natural, safe alternative to taking possible dangerous drugs. Recent research has shown that chiropractic care for musculoskeletal pain is a viable substitute for opioid medications. This article will discuss the dangers of opioids, research detailing chiropractic care is an alternative and how chiropractic treatment can be utilized for musculoskeletal disorders.

Nearly everyone in the United States is aware that we have in opioid addiction problem. Opioid medications are numerous. Percocet, OxyContin and Vicodin are several of the most common prescribed. When these drugs were developed, they were solely meant to be given for the most grievous cases of pain management. Intractable pain after surgery and those suffering from pain from incurable cancer were thought to be the only times these pharmaceuticals would be prescribed. However, some nefarious drugmakers and distributors of opioids put out a false narrative to the medical community stating that opioids were safe for lesser types of pain. These pharmaceutical companies are now being sued by states across the US, producing thousands of lawsuits and resulting in opioid producers considering bankruptcy under the weight of court cases.

The misinformation produced by these illicit drug makers has led to many patients becoming addicted to the narcotic effects of opioid medications. Unfortunately, many others have died from overdose due to addiction. Almost all of us know of someone or some family who is suffering from deleterious effects of opioid medications.

As stated earlier, a promising alternative to opioids has been recognized. Medscape Medical News has reported research revealing that “patients who visited a chiropractor for a musculoskeletal pain condition were 49% less likely to receive opioid prescriptions than their counterparts who went to other healthcare providers.” These findings were presented at the American Academy of Pain Medicine 2019 annual meeting. After reviewing the available literature on chiropractic care vs. opioid prescribing, researchers selected studies with a total of 62,000 patients to include in the analysis. Lead author, Kelsey Corcoran, DC, VA Connecticut Healthcare System and Yale Center for Medical Informatics, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven noted: “chiropractors provide many treatments included in the clinical guidelines for the initial treatment of low back pain, neck pain, and osteoarthritis of the hip, knee and hand.” He further stated: “preventing opioid addiction and overdose continues to be a significant public health priority; and as part of a strategy to lessen opioid use, clinical guidelines now recommend many nonpharmacological options to be considered as frontline treatment ahead of any medication.”

Chiropractic care focuses on establishing normal alignment and movement of the joints of the body, especially the spinal bones. The majority of people suffering from neck and back pain have misalignments and improper movement of the vertebrae. Chiropractic care focuses on correcting improper alignment and movement in the spine. This helps the majority of people suffering from neck and back pain conditions. Chiropractic care is safe, gentle and extremely viable option to the prescription dangerous opioid medications.

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No Matter How Long The Winter Is Spring Is Sure To Follow!

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