Entries Tagged 'Chronic Pain' ↓

Study: Competitive Sports Linked to Teens Back Pain

It is seen in pain clinics that 18 year old that were in athletics and sports since there elementary schools had more chances of developing lower back pain.

Studies show that the more a child has been in games the more are the chances of having lower back pain. Study shows that out of these people 62 %of people were those who had spent a few years in games.

Reason of this may be wrong posture or motion in particular sports. This does not mean that a child should not play and just rest at home. It just means that a child should go through the right training of sports. Exercise is very important for a good health and weight control.

Not only in the game field but also at home it is see through detail study of patients suffering from back pain that the children watching too much TV also suffer from it.

Studies show that approximately 15 percent, versus 8.5 percent among moderately active athletes and 4 percent of non-athletes. Among these there is a higher rate of lower back pain in the volleyball players.

Researchers suggest that “excessive exposure” to competitive sports is a risk factor for lower back pain.

Future studies, they conclude, “should investigate factors that may cause (lower back pain), such as sports-specific postures and motions.”

In any case chronic pain treatment should be taken in time so that it is healed properly without leading you to have any complications.

Sunglasses Can Reduce Migraine Pain

For those who suffer from migraine, slipping on a pair of sunglasses may help ease the chronic pain without having to undergo any chronic pain treatment. This is what researchers say. Although it’s long been known that light makes migraines worse, the reason why has been unclear. A research team from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre has explained why light makes migraines worse.

They have identified a new visual pathway that underlies sensitivity to light during migraine in both blind individuals and in individuals with normal eyesight. Migraine pain is believed to develop when the meninges, the system of membranes surrounding the brain and central nervous system, becomes irritated, and nearly 85 percent of migraine patients become extremely sensitive to light, a condition known as photophobia.

“Migraine patients may wear sunglasses, even at night,” Nature Neuroscience quoted study’s senior author Dr Rami Burstein, Professor of Anesthesia and Critical Care Medicine at BIDMC and Harvard Medical School, as saying. He added that the dimmest of light could make migraine pain worse.

It was the observation that even blind individuals who suffer from migraines were experiencing photophobia that led Burstein and first author Rodrigo Noseda, PhD, to hypothesize that signals transmitted from the retina via the optic nerve were somehow triggering the intensification of pain.

The investigators studied two groups of blind individuals who suffer migraine headaches. Patients in the first group were totally blind due to eye diseases such as retinal cancer and glaucoma; they were unable to see images or to sense light and therefore could not maintain normal sleep-wake cycles. Patients in the second group were legally blind due to retinal degenerative diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa.

While they were unable to perceive images, they could detect the presence of light and maintain normal sleep-wake cycles. “While the patients in the first group did not experience any worsening of their headaches from light exposure, the patients in the second group clearly described intensified pain when they were exposed to light, in particular blue or gray wavelengths,” Burstein said.

“This suggested to us that the mechanism of photophobia must involve the optic nerve, because in totally blind individuals, the optic nerve does not carry light signals to the brain,” he added.

During the study, researchers performed a series of experiments in an animal model of migraine. After injecting dyes into the eye, they traced the path of the melanopsin retinal cells through the optic nerve to the brain, where they found a group of neurons that become electrically active during migraine.

“When small electrodes were inserted into these ‘migraine neurons,’ we discovered that light was triggering a flow of electrical signals that was converging on these very cells,” said Burstein. “This increased their activity within seconds.” “And even when the light was removed, these neurons remained activated.

This helps explain why patients say that their headache intensifies within seconds after exposure to light, and improves 20 to 30 minutes after being in the dark,” he added. (ANI)

Neck Care for Getting Rid of Chronic Pain

“Having pain in the neck? Oh shucks!” although not so life threatening a condition this may seem, but it surely want you to kill yourself when the pain arises.

Neck pain is a widespread epidemic, particularly in today’s hectic environment. According to the statistics, almost 15% of females and 10% of males experience chronic neck pain at a certain time. Its frequency of occurrence is second after the lower back pain.

Feeling pain in the neck area is agonizing – with neck pain you also feel pain while brushing teeth, working on a computer, lying down on bed etc. it culminates and decreases the sufferers work productivity and life quality.

Chronic Neck Pain Management

For computer users, proper usage of computer may be helpful to control pain. You can relieve your long sittings in front of the computer by taking posture breaks and a couple of stretches from time to time. Engaging in some physical activity outside of the office is good for people whose jobs are restricted in front of the computers.

If you visit a pain doctor to treat your hurting stiff neck, a number of steps are involved. The doctor will first conduct postural observation and the patient will asked to perform range of movement tests including head and neck movements.

After this initial test, certain muscles are tested for length, tone and trigger points, and then each vertebra is examined solely to know which one is causing the pain. In addition to this, shoulders and back limbs are also assysessed as part of the test. X-rays may also be helpful

The best care to manage your chronic neck pain involves helping the stiff and rigid joints move smoothly and help the soft muscle tissues to heal. Massage therapy and neck exercises can also work well in this respect.

Chronic Pain: Affecting Human Relationships

Chronic pain is the worst kind of pain that sticks with the patient and makes them whine and moan from time after time. Since this pain is not temporary and may be prolonged for months, even years, you can expect your family, friends, spouse and kids to remain sympathetic with you at times. This may not be because they don’t care about you and your misery, but because hearing about your painful condition all the time has irritated them to a great extent.

If you’re the person suffering chronic pain conditions, it’s recommended to consult some pain clinic and get rid of the pain. Don’t make the condition unbearable for yourself as well as for others around you. It’s natural for you to desire support from your loved ones, but always being the one requiring help instead of giving any may make people turn their back towards you.

Chronic Pain Affecting Relationships

Being in pain doesn’t mean you’re entitled to support from loved ones, but it means that you need an appropriate chronic pain treatment that deals with your pain effectively. So what exactly can you do to gain continued support from your loved ones with a smile and not a frown. Here are the things to consider:

  • Consult doctors who may prescribe you pain medication and other anti-inflammatory drugs to help relieve the pain and stop you from complaining all the time.
  • Divert your attention from the pain by involving yourself in some leisure activity that interests you. This will lessen the burden on your loved ones and also make you forget the pain.
  • Pain is mostly aggravated by sleep disturbances, and depression among patients. So try hard not to let these things happen to you.
  • Exercise and workout on a regular basis. This will help strengthen your body muscles and assist you in dealing with your pain yourself.
  • Try complaining and moaning from pain as little as you can and always wear your smile. You family and friends will love you for this!

Whether you’re suffering from chronic back pain, achy knees, throbbing hip, fibromyalgia, muscle pain, or migraines headaches that won’t just stop – following the above mentioned tips will save your relationship with people you never want to lose.

Natural Foods to Reduce Inflammation in Your Knees without Undergoing Any Surgery or Therapy

If you are among the millions suffering from stiff and painful knees caused by joint problems or osteoporosis, you may be consulting doctors for pain medication, injection or surgery to get rid of the daunting pain. But wait, there’s something else you can do quite naturally to get rid of the knee pain. According to various studies, making the following foods a part of your nutrition plan can help you a great deal:

Soy

Many studies showed reduced level of knee pains among people using soy protein daily for about three months. Soy, being affluent in isoflavones and consisting anti-inflammatory properties, can greatly reduce the swelling and inflammation in the painful area.

Soy Bean - Natural Food to Reduce Knee Pain

Fruits

Fruits, particularly the ones rich in vitamin C, like kiwi, grapefruit, mango, orange, papaya are known to have the ability to protect and strengthen knee joints. In addition, eating plenty of fruits can easily save you from knee osteoarthritis and pain. In many chronic pain treatment plans, individuals are advised to take these fruits frequently.

Fruits

Fish

In order to reduce the joint pain and hardness of rheumatoid arthritis, it’s recommended to intake fish or foods that contain fish oil. The omega-3 elements found in fish may not only prevent body from chemicals that cause inflammation in osteoarthritis but also prevents from the proteins that can damage the knee cartilage. To be more effective, take two meals of oily fish weekly or take one gram of omega-3s in capsule daily.

Fish

Make these three foods a part of your diet and you’ll save yourself from visits to pain clinic for knee problems.

Chronic Back Pain Management

If you’re among those millions of Americans suffering from constant and consistent back pain, feeling difficult to concentrate on work or participating in your daily activities – you need to consider some lower back pain treatment straight away.

Lower Back pain causes are many. These may include the simple causes like wear and tear of muscles, lifting heavy objects, trauma or injury, to more serious and complex causes including arthritis, osteoporosis or a herniated disc.

At some point of life we all experience low back pain. The basic thing is to treat it correctly and not let it turn into chronic Lower back pain, which lingers with you all the time.Coping with low back pain is nothing easy, but you can do the following to help reduce the pain:

Chronic Back Pain Management

  • Rest a lot to relieve muscle tension and recover sore muscles.
  • Be regular in taking medications as prescribed by the doctor
  • Make exercise and workout a part of your daily routine, as this helps in strengthening your muscles.
  • If the pain is intense, consider taking massage therapy like physical therapy, acupuncture etc.
  • Stay away from stress, anxiety and depression as much as you can.

When suffering from back pain, it’s extremely important for you to consult a pain clinic, where the specialists can properly assess your pain condition and provide you with an appropriate pain treatment plan.

Is Vitamin D Deficiency Responsible For Your Winter Lower Back Pain?

Winters are known for “staying inside, tucked up in a blanket.” But this lack of outside involvement may deprive you from sun exposure, causing chronic backache!

Vitamin D is termed to be a pain relieving antidote for all your body aches and sores. A research conducted by a renowned Pain treatment specialist, Stewart Leavitt, shows that patients suffering from chornic back pain had insufficient levels of vitamin D in their bodies. And by giving the desired amount of vitamin D, their pain simply disappeared or improved a great deal.

Vitamin D and Lower Back Pain

Advice is: Get your body checked for vitamin D levels deficiency, particularly in winters. And Work with your doctor to know the amount of vitamin D your body needs (30 to 60 ng/ml of 25-hydroxyvitamin D is an ideal range).
Another study reflecting the importance of vitamin D to relieve pain included 360 participants suffering from chronic back pain. All these patients had vitamin D deficiency and after taking vitamin D supplements for 3 months, symptoms were improved in 95% of the patients.

Vitamin D is a vital mineral for calcium production in the body and for maintaining bone health. Therefore, the scarce intake of vitamin D can cause bone weakness, which in return causes the pain. The lower back seems to be particularly exposed in this regard.

This doesn’t mean that vitamin D alone can work as a substitute of exercises, or other physical therapies you are using to relieve chronic lower back pain. But if vitamin D deficiency is responsible for your chronic back pain, it’s certainly a natural and safe way to relieve pain and must not be ignored.

10 Reasons for Neck Pain and How to Avoid Them

There are many conditions responsible for causing pain in the neck. This pain can be acute (sudden and intense) or chronic (prolonged pain) in nature. Here are the 10 reasons listed that can trigger chronic neck pain:

Misplacement of Spine: Any kind of spinal disorders can put extreme pressure on the nerves, resulting in a severe neck pain. Consulting a chiropractor, some neck exercises and changing your pillow to a more comfortable one can ease the pain.

Poor Body Posture: Sometimes neck pain starts due to the poor posture of standing, sitting, working and particularly sleeping. To fix this problem, learn to maintain an appropriate posture.

Inappropriate Pillow: Temporary neck pains and morning neck pains are usually the result of using wrong pillow. For this matter, change your pillow to the one that can give your neck and back a good support while you sleep.

Muscle Strain: Any kind of muscle tension makes it hard to move the neck and also cause inflammation by enforcing pressure on the nerves, resulting in severe neck pain. Neck stretches can work nicely to loosen up the muscles and relieving pain.

Chronic Neck Pain Causes

Worry and stress: Many people experience neck pain during stressful moments. In order to relieve neck pain, you have to get rid of tensions and depressions. You can do this by not focusing much on the stressful situation, spending more time with family and friends and taking deep breaths.

Work: Working individuals, particularly computer workers usually feel neck pain because of the continuous typing and uncomfortably long sitting hours in front of the computer. To avoid this, take a 2 minutes break from work and move around for a bit. Also maintain a proper posture while you’re sitting in front of the computer.

Exercises: Extensive workout, lifting heavy weights and irrelevant exercises that don’t suit your body can also strain the neck and cause pain. To avoid this, don’t involve in a self-exercise program and consult trained instructors for proper exercise guidelines.

Injuries: The most common cause of neck pain is injury to the soft tissues including the bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments within these structures. Injury may occur from whiplash, broken collarbone, or a broken shoulder blade. In case of injuries, seek medical care immediately.

No Warm Up Before Exercise: Starting any physical activity without warming up your body can cause a pull in neck muscles and end up with pain. So before engaging in any kind of physical workout, make sure you’ve warmed your body enough.

Neck Osteoarthritis: Just like your body, your neck joints may also wear out with age, leading to osteoarthritis in your neck. Osteoarthritis can cause pain and stiffness in your neck and its better if you get the problem treated by health doctors and specialists.

How to Deal with Chronic Low Back Pain

Chronic lower back pain can culminate a person’s personal, social and working life to quite an extent. Many people suffering from low back pain have been reported absent from jobs and study institutions, while several end up in physical disabilities due to this suffering.

How to get rid of chronic low back pain?

In order to deal with chronic low back pain, here are some important points to keep in mind to prevent or quickly heal the pain:

Dealing with Lower Back Pain

  • Don’t Hesitate Seeing A Doctor: if you feel any kind of pain in your lower back area, making it difficult for you to move around and pursue your daily activities, immediately ring up your Pain doctor. Don’t even think about self-diagnosing!
  • Follow Instructions: once you’ve consulted a doctor and diagnosed for chronic low back pain treatment, strictly follow the treatment plan you’ve been prescribed to.
  • Give Feedback: getting treatment from the doctor can only be effective if you keep the doctor updated about your pain condition. Never settle for a simple treatment, and always tell the doctor what’s working and what’s not.
  • Exercises Can Work: Some people falsely believe that they have to deal with the back pain throughout their lifetime, which is so untrue! There are many therapies, exercises and massages that can relieve the low back pain and let you live a better quality life. Ask your doctor for exercises that may help relieve back pain. Your doctor may also suggest a physical therapist who can instruct you about certain exercises to strengthen your back muscles and help relieve pain.
  • The Right Posture Matters: It’s important to learn the correct posture for sitting, standing, working and bending without putting pressure on your back. By learning these simple techniques you can relieve your back pain and avoid further injuries to a great deal.
  • Don’t Stress: Anxiety can also worsen the low back pain. So avoid any stressing, depressing and angry situation as much as you can.

Drug-free Oxygen Treatment for Cluster Headaches

Nicknamed as “suicide headache”, a cluster headache is an unusual type of headache that normally occurs at the same time each day for up to 3 months weeks, and can last up to a few minutes or several hours.

A typical cluster headache may start quite suddenly and strong bolts of pain may be felt by the sufferer around the eye area. Many people facing this problem say that very little can be done to relieve this agonizing pain, but recent studies have dug down its cure in the form of pure oxygen flow.

Cluster Headaches

The analysis of a new research published in “The Journal of the American Medical Association” verifies that high flow of oxygen can reduce cluster headaches rapidly. Similarly, another study suggesting the quick relief of oxygen treatment confirms that a lot of patients given the oxygen treatment showed no pain within just minutes after the treatment.

How does drug free oxygen flow actually treat cluster headaches? We’ll examine the findings of a study conducted by some researchers of London in this regard.

The study depicted 76 adults with cluster headaches. Some participants were given high-flow oxygen through a face mask for 15 minutes while others were given regular air by the same method. By the end of the study, 78% who were given high-flow oxygen were pain free after the 15-minutes treatment, while only a 20% people showed improvement on the other end.

This study showed no viable side effects and opened new doors for utilizing oxygen to cure headaches, particularly cluster pains.