Anticonvulsant drugs are increasingly being used to treat low back pain, but a new study in the CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) finds they are ineffective and can have adverse effects.

Clinically, the prescription of anticonvulsants for back and neck pain, including radicular
pain in primary care, has increased by 535% in the last 10 years.

Brandon Drury plays baseball for the Toronto Blue Jays, having been traded in July 2018 from the New York Yankees. Prior to his stint with the Yankees, he had been afflicted for years with migraines and blurred vision. He finally told the Yankees and their medical team identified the issue—a nerve between the back of Drury’s head and neck—and established a plan to manage it.

The human neck is composed of 7 bones. These bones are coupled together by delicate joints. Injury to the neck can result in one or more of the neck joints locking out of position. This causes pressure on the delicate nerves that are situated close by these joints. The result is pain!

Pain spreading to your shoulders and arms is one of the most common types of neck pain and is usually caused by pressure on the joints and nerves at the bottom of the neck. Here are some tips to avoid neck and shoulder pain while using a tablet computer:

The answer is likely yes—especially if you’re a young adult or a woman. “iPad neck” persistent pain in the neck and upper shoulders caused by slouching or bending into extreme positions while using tablet computers—is a growing problem among Americans, according to a new UNLV study.

The American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society have issued a Joint Clinical Practice guideline. The key recommendation: “For patients who do not improve with self-care options, clinicians should consider the addition of nonpharmacologic therapy with proven benefits for acute low back pain, such as spinal manipulation; for chronic or subacute low back pain, intensive interdisciplinary rehabilitation, exercise therapy, acupuncture, massage therapy, spinal manipulation, yoga, cognitive behavioral therapy, or progressive relaxation.”

The goal of chiropractic care for degenerative disc disease (DDD) is to improve joint mechanics by improving spinal motion and reducing inflammation. The chiropractor may also work on improving the function of the intervertebral discs—but that’s only if you do not have advanced disc degeneration.

At your initial exam, you’ll go through your past medical history with the chiropractor, and he or she will determine areas of restricted joint motion, disc injury, muscle spasm, and ligament injury by performing a few simple tests.

Your chiropractor will also look at how you walk, as well as your overall posture. Those details will help him or her understand your body mechanics and how your spine moves.

Researchers have reported that one-third of people 40-59 years of age have image-based evidence of moderate to severe degenerative disc disease and more than half had moderate to severe spinal osteoarthritis. Beyond that, the prevalence of disc height narrowing and joint osteoarthritis increased 2- to 4-fold in those aged 60-69 and 70-89, respectively. Furthermore, scientists observed that progression of these conditions occurred 40 - 70% more frequently in women than in men.

Back pain, especially chronic back pain, can make life miserable; this condition is quite common in the military. Randomized trials have found that spinal manipulation can be effective for lower back pain. One 2013 study specifically compared chiropractic therapy to general medical care in military personnel, 18-35 years old. The results suggest reduced pain and improved physical wellbeing and function as compared to patients who only received the standard care.

Chiropractic adjustment, or manipulation, is a manual procedure that utilizes the highly refined skills developed during the doctor of chiropractic’s intensive years of chiropractic education. The chiropractic physician typically uses his or her hands—or sometimes an instrument—to manipulate the joints of the body, particularly the spine, in order to restore or enhance joint function. This often helps resolve joint inflammation and reduces the patient’s pain.

In general, chiropractors focus on the manipulation of the skeletal muscle systems to put the body back into natural alignment and relieve pain and tension. It isn’t so much an alternative treatment as it is considered complementary to many forms of traditional medicine. Chiropractors are highly trained doctors who have attended both undergraduate and chiropractic graduate school and have specialized in the way the body fits together. They have also been trained to use their hands to apply pressure to the body to help realign anything that has worked itself out of place.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018, has approved a plan to expand military veterans’ access to chiropractic’s non-drug approach to pain relief. Many veterans suffer from back pain and other musculoskeletal conditions resulting from their service. Supported by several veterans groups, the approved language calls for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to expand the availability of chiropractic services at no fewer than two medical centers or clinics in each Veterans Integrated Service Network (VLSN) by no later than Dec.

The very nature of their jobs puts soldiers at an increased risk for developing chronic pain. The regular demands and stress are often multiplied when the tough-it-out mentality causes them to avoid seeking medical attention until serious, chronic pain results—and it often does. Cumulative stress, single-event trauma, and surgery are all contributing factors. Although these will likely remain a constant of military service, chiropractic care may be a very helpful solution.

There aren’t many large studies on the value of chiropractic treatment in managing migraines. One study examined chiropractic treatment for different types of headaches, including migraines. The study combined the results of 22 previous studies, which had more than 2,600 patients total. The studies show that chiropractic treatment may serve as a good preventive treatment for migraines.

Kyphosis is the forward curvature or “hunch” of the upper spine that sometimes occurs in older adults. Your chiropractor may use a type of spinal manipulation—also called a spinal adjustment—to improve joint motion. Spinal manipulation is an active, hands-on treatment, and there are multiple variations of this technique.

The classic sign of kyphosis is a rounded (hump-like) middle back. Chiropractic care is a nonsurgical treatment option for kyphosis. It can help treat pain, stiffness, and other kyphosis symptoms. Generally, the initial step in chiropractic treatment for kyphosis is to determine the cause of the abnormal middle back appearance.

Researchers have found that poor back muscle quality is not associated with worsening kyphosis (forward curvature or “hunch” of the upper spine) in older adults.

The researchers used computed tomography (CT) scans to measure spinal curvature in 1,087 men and women aged 50-85 years to determine whether age-related decline in trunk muscle size and quality contributes to the worsening of kyphosis.

Are you experiencing these symptoms?
• low back pain
• buttock soreness
• radiating leg and thigh pain
• pain while sitting
• tightness, burning, or feeling of a knot
• gluteal pain while driving

Here are the risk factors for developing these recurring and chronic pains:
• poor fitness levels and spinal stability (core muscle strength)
• poor posture
• previous episodes of back pain
• pain for more than 8 days

The piriformis muscle is located deep in the buttock. It reaches from the pelvis (sacrum) to the upper part of the thigh-bone (femur).

There are times when this muscle goes into spasm. The cause is often related to the spine or sacroiliac joints, or from overuse. If the muscle is in spasm it can cause neurological symptoms such as pain, numbness, pins and needles, tingling and weakness due to compression of the sciatic nerve. This is called piriformis syndrome.

The piriformis muscle, located deep in the buttock, can cause a great deal of pain if it goes into spasm. The chiropractic approach to diagnosing this syndrome includes a full evaluation of your spine and pelvis and the related musculature. A functional, orthopedic and neurological examination is normally also performed.