What You Didn’t Know About The Cause and Effects of Degenerative Disc Disorder
Degenerative Disc disorder (DDD) is not a disorder at all. It is a common side effect of aging and usually gets worse as we age. It happens when the fluid-filled cushions between the bones in your back or neck begin to break down and dry out. Essentially, the cushions wear away, and the bones end up rubbing together. Several things could happen as a result of DDD. You could have a less stable spine, which could impact your movement. You could also experience an increased risk of having a herniated disc or experience bone spurs. If you suspect you have DDD,
Neuropathy vs Neuralgia 101: Symptoms and Treatments
By Clayton Adams, M.D. Neuropathy is a dysfunction usually occurring in the peripheral nervous system or the nerves that are located outside the brain and spinal cord. It can manifest itself as pain, weakness, and numbness. Whereas neuralgia is just nerve pain where the patient may feel a burning, tingling, pins and needles, and electric shock sensation that can occur with the lightest form of stimuli. Neuralgia is a type of neuropathy, but neuropathy tends to affect the motor components, such as causing slow digestion, nausea, or light-headedness. Both denote conditions that affect the nerves and may cause pain wherever the nerve
When All Other Treatments Fail, How APC Found A Solution for Severe Chronic Pain- Check Out Stormey’s Story
By Austin Horrocks, D.O. and contributions from Stormey Perritt Stormey had a hip replacement with a new ball and socket joint. Unfortunately, there was a complication and the bone cement came out of the confined hip area to the surrounding muscles and nerves. In her case, it was quite severe. The cement had been rubbing against nearby nerves, causing friction, significant pain, and nerve damage in the local area and in the lower spine. She said she was experiencing a significantly reduced quality of life due to the pain and could not live or complete daily tasks without thinking about the pain.
Types of Post-Surgical Pain and How To Manage Each
By Matthew Hellman, M.D. Post-surgical pain is pretty common and has a number of possible causes, including tissue damage. Tissue damage can happen at the point of incision, during the procedure itself, or at the closing of the wound. You may also experience other forms of pain like muscle and joint pain in the nearby extremities that results due to a loss in mobility or overworking, due to surgery in a central area of your body that is either making you not able to move those other extremities or rely more heavily on them. For example, if you had back surgery and
So You Broke Your Hip, Now What?
By Advanced Pain Care The hip is a common place for injury, and therefore a common place for fractures, especially in elderly patients. Women tend to experience more hip fractures than men post menopause, due to the loss in the female hormone progesterone, which supports bone formation. The hip is a ball and socket joint that connects the upper part of the leg and the pelvis together. It allows for a lot of movement. But due to aging in all patients, bone density and joint elasticity decrease, causing strain on the hip’s mobility. Restricted mobility in the lumbar spine can also contribute
How to Manage Your Chronic Pain at Home
By Advanced Pain Care There are many reasons for chronic back pain. Sometimes, because the pain has prolonged over time and has affected the area for so long, it is hard to properly address it without seeking medical attention. Usually, chronic pain comes as a response to an injury incurred or from a structural problem at birth, i.e. from a disease like scoliosis. If the pain derives from an injury, a simple sprain or strain from overexertion could run you the risk of chronic pain; or from something more distressing, like a fall or a motor vehicle accident. You could also develop
Compounding The Basics: Techniques, Benefits, and Pharmacy Support
By Nathalie Haggerty Compounding is a special technique that enables pharmacists to make a drug by combining or mixing ingredients, specifically for a patient, who may not be able to take a medication the way it was originally made by the manufacturer. The technique essentially customizes medications that would be otherwise unavailable via commercial manufacturing. At times, patients may not respond to the commercially available drug on the market, or they may only respond to a different form of medication. Or, patients could respond with an allergic reaction to the original medication because of its components, either because of its original
CBD: Benefits and Uses
By Matt Sage CBD is the abbreviation for Cannabidiol which derives from the hemp plant, along with medical marijuana. Unlike medical marijuana, which includes tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), CBD does not result in the “high” feeling. According to the World Health Organization, CBD exhibits no effects indicative of any abuse or dependency. Given there is no evidence of health related problems associated with using CBD, it tends to be a good alternative to use for a variety of diseases related to physical, emotional, and mental pain. Is CBD healthy and what can it be used for? It is hard to say categorically whether CBD is
TREATING CHRONIC PAIN CAN BE DONE COMPASSIONATELY – CHECK OUT SHARON’S STORY
By Sharon Black The majority of Americans live with some sort of pain, back pain being the most common. When I met Sharon, she was one of the many Americans that suffers daily with pain in her lower back and knees. It affected her mobility and her day-to-day activities significantly. Upon my first assessment, Sharon was suffering from pain due to her facet joints, the joints that run along the back of her spine. I confirmed my first assumption was correct after I did x-ray guided nerve block injections which demonstrated that her facet joints were, in fact, the source of her
Pain Management After Surgery: Do’s and Don’ts
You undertook surgery to manage pain effectively. While the reason for the pain may vary, one thing that’s crucial to your recovery now is post-surgical pain control. Pain control after surgery should be a primary focus for both you and your physician. At Advanced Pain Care, we want our patients to experience a better quality of life after a surgical procedure. So, we take post-surgery pain management seriously. The better your pain is controlled, the more you will be able to engage in daily activities effectively. So, before you head back home, we’ll provide you with all the necessary instructions about