I’M EXPERIENCING SCIATICA DURING PREGNANCY: WHAT ARE MY TREATMENT OPTIONS?
BY DR. JENNA LANE, M.D. Back pain during pregnancy is common. In fact, nearly 50% to 80% of women experience back pain during pregnancy. You may experience back pain because your baby's weight is adding more pressure to your pelvic region and changing your posture. Progesterone is a hormone that maintains pregnancy. Progesterone in combination with the hormone relaxin, relaxes the ligaments around the pelvis, which makes pregnant women more susceptible to back pain. You may have just entered your third trimester, and the weight of the baby adds stress to your lower back. Because of your growing belly and breasts causing a shift in
7 SIGNS YOUR HEADACHE IS A MIGRAINE
A large number of people experience migraines. However, many still don’t fully understand the condition. Most think they have a migraine but are actually only experiencing a severe headache. On the flip side, many suffering from migraines aren’t aware that migraines are the reason for the pain they feel. Migraine sufferers often think they are dealing with sinus headaches and wonder why allergy medications don’t yield the desired results. A migraine is a kind of headache that strikes an individual repeatedly. Patients report moderate to severe throbbing or pulsing pain when having a migraine episode. Often these symptoms are also accompanied
HOME REMEDY TREATMENTS THAT CAN SUPPORT YOUR POSTOPERATIVE PAIN MANAGEMENT
BY PAUL LE, M.D. Most patients are going to experience some degree of postoperative pain, which can vary based on individual pain thresholds and the type of surgery.. However, postoperative pain can be measured at home with remedies that can support a return to normal functioning levels. Even with home remedies and self-care, proper consultation and guidance from a medical professional is necessary. Consult with the specialists at Advanced Pain Care clinics - in Austin, Texas, and nearby areas for chronic postoperative pain. With 20 years of pain management expertise, we provide compassionate care and personalized treatment options for various pain conditions.
CAN I TAKE TYLENOL AND IBUPROFEN EVERY DAY FOR MY PAIN?
BY MATT SAGE, PHARMD As with most medications, you can take too much acetaminophen (Tylenol) or NSAIDs, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as Aspirin or Ibuprofen. Taking extra dosage does not actually make the drug more effective and may result in severe side effects on your body or may result in death, too. Even if they are both over-the-counter drugs, you should still consult your doctor or pharmacist to understand the recommended dosage for each drug. The dosage may vary based on your age, weight, and how much you have already taken throughout the day. You also want to ensure you are consulting
HOW TO TREAT MULTILEVEL DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE
Approximately 40% of adults over the age of 40 have experienced degeneration of at least one disc in the spine[1]. Degenerative disc disease is a condition that is part of age-related “wear and tear” for many. It occurs due to the thinning of the shock-absorbing intervertebral discs in the spine and is usually gradual in its deterioration. In many cases, degenerative disc disease may occur in one of the spinal discs as a result of stress and damage. However, quite often, the stress can happen simultaneously on multiple levels throughout the spine. In such cases, degenerative disc disease is classified as
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCING NERVE PAIN AFTER SURGERY
By Jefferey Higginbotham, M.D. There are so many unknowns when it comes to postoperative nerve pain. It is difficult to determine why some people may get nerve pain after surgery and others don’t. For most, when nerve pain occurs, it usually recovers spontaneously. For others, permanent damage may happen, and no recovery is possible. Mostly, nerve pain after surgery can last anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. Unfortunately, at the moment, no effective treatment can ensure the prevention of postoperative nerve pain preoperation. The available solutions are not great, and doctors will likely not recommend anything. However, once a patient
All About Spinal Stenosis: Causes, Treatments and Preventions
Interview with Dr. Adam W. Spjute, M.D. Dr. Adam Spjute is a Double-Board-Certified Anesthesiologist and Pain Management Specialist at Advanced Pain Care in Waco. Trained in anesthesiology, Dr. Spjute then did a fellowship training in pain management. Since then, he’s been practicing pain management for 5 years, treating chronic pain ranging from headaches and foot pain and everything in between. He’s published studies in Anesthesia and Pain Management, was granted membership into the American Society of Anesthesiologists and the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Management, and helps patients in Advanced Pain Care’s Waco branch with their pain care needs. So, Let’s Talk
Eastern Medicine vs. Western Medicine: What’s the Difference?
It’s easy to directly compare Eastern and Western medicine together— but is it fully accurate? We spoke with Dr. Rey Ximenes, Consulting Physician at APC, Medical Director of Driftwood Recovery, and rated the Top Doctor 2023 in Austin Monthly, about the differences between Eastern and Western Medicine. “It’s a little bit unfair to just narrow it down to Eastern and Western Medicine,” he explained. “Because it doesn’t really tell the whole story.” Instead, he better refers to what we’d consider Eastern medicine as Traditional Medicine and Western medicine being Allopathic Medicine, explaining that while we’d assume that healing herbs like echinacea and mullein
Chris’ Hip Replacement Success and Freedom from Surgery Fears
“I’ve been in a couple of wars, I’ve taken a lot of bullets. I’ve got some holes in me… and I was afraid of this hip replacement,” Chris tells us, an APC hip replacement patient. “I was a real weenie on this because of the fear of anesthesia!” As the owner of JP Mortgage Services, Chris has another passion on top of his professional work: drag racing at the Little River Dragway. But during one race in a 52-year-old car, he forgot to change his steering wheel column, and when the lights changed, his steering column snapped. He had no control
Johnny’s Journey: Spinal Cord Stimulator Success
The Injury In August of 2019, Johnny fell into his fireplace and developed extreme pain like he’d never felt before. Though he went to one of his own doctors, they’d told him nothing was wrong, but he insisted that he try another primary care doctor to get some answers. Finally, after finding a doctor who encouraged him to get an x-ray and learning that his 3 fractured bones were not normal for a 40-year-old to have after a fall, he was diagnosed with severe bone loss, which was something he’d had but never found out about until that very moment. Meanwhile, his uncle