San Diego Chiropractic Blog

Like many across the United States my Chiropractic Office in San Diego provides treatment for neck pain and back pain. Although chiropractic care helps many different conditions, it is often viewed as treatment for just back pain and neck pain.

When dealing with back pain and neck pain, it is important to have your pain evaluated by a healthcare professional. Dismissing back pain and neck pain as insignificant can lead to more significant health issues.

Many conditions can cause back pain and neck pain, ranging from injury and infection too twisting or turning “the wrong way”. Injuries such as those sustained in an automobile or other accident can damage muscles, joints, ligaments, and vertebrae.

Overuse or under use of the back muscles is by far the most common cause of back pain that manifests as tightening or spasm of the muscles that connect to the spine. Inflammation and swelling often occur in the joints and ligaments, especially in the cervical and lumbar regions, as people age.

A herniated disc occurs when the nuclear pulposus, the inner material of the disc, pushes through a tear in the annulus fibrosis, the outer material of the disc causing nerve root compression. The cervical and lumbar regions of the spine have the most mobility and the discs there are more likely to wear down or be injured. Ninety percent of disc herniations occur in the lower two lumbar vertebrae.

Spinal stenosis, the narrowing of the spinal canal, can cause spinal cord irritation and injury. Conditions that cause spinal stenosis include infection, tumors, trauma, herniated disc, arthritis, thickening of ligaments, growth of bone spurs, and disc degeneration. Spinal stenosis most commonly occurs in older individuals as a result of vertebral degeneration.

A pinched nerve, or radiculopathy, occurs when something rubs or presses against a nerve, creating irritation or inflammation. Radiculopathy can result from a herniated disc, bone spur, tumor growing into the nerves, and vertebral fracture, and many other conditions.

Sciatica is a certain type of radiculopathy that involves inflammation of the sciatic nerve. Pain is experienced along the large sciatic nerve, from the lower back down through the buttocks and along the back of the leg.

A spinal tumor that originates in the spine (primary tumor) or spreads to the spine from another part of the body (metastatic tumor) can compress the spine or nerve roots and cause significant pain.

Infections of the vertebrae (e.g., vertebral osteomyelitis), the discs, the meninges (e.g., spinal meningitis), or the cerebrospinal fluid can compress the spinal cord and result in serious neurological deterioration, if it is not diagnosed and treated immediately.

Arthritis often affects the facet joints which are formed by two adjacent vertebra and direct or guide movement of the spine. As the joints degenerate, they loose their normal alignment, and the cartilage and fluid that lubricates the joints may deteriorate. Bone then rubs against bone, which can be very painful.

These are just a few of the conditions that can cause back pain and neck pain. Most cases of back and neck pains are due to mechanical causes and can be readily addressed by a chiropractor. The point is, however, neck pain and back pain is a warning signal that should not be ignored.

Yours In Good Health

Dr. Jones

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“Hey Doc, is it OK if I crack my own neck?”

In my San Diego chiropractic clinic, I treat many patients for neck pain, back pain and other joint pains. A few of these patients ask me if it is OK if they crack their necks and backs by themselves. A few of them will tell me that they have their kids or the wife walk on their back. And a few of them are in my office because either they cracked their back or neck by themselves or they had someone else do it for them which resulted in an injury.

The funny thing about some of these people who were injured by a non-chiropractic adjustment is that they are nervous about me adjusting them for their neck pain or back pain.

The truth about cracking your own neck or back is that it is not very safe. Usually people develop pain or stiffness in the spine because of an injury or some ongoing condition. Chiropractors are trained to specifically diagnose and provide treatment for these conditions or injuries.

Through the course of my fifteen year career, I have seen patients who have broken vertebra by adjusting their own necks and backs. I have seen broken ribs as a result of having someone walk on their backs, I have seen two patients who suffered mild strokes from cracking their own necks and I had one patient whose brother suffered paralysis from the chest down because his partner walked on his back resulting in a crushed vertebra and a seriously damaged spinal cord.

Some people crack their own joints daily for years without suffering obvious serious consequences. Even these people are doing themselves a disservice. In no normal situation should you feel as though you have to crack a specific joint every day. Those who do crack the same joints everyday for years will develop arthritis in those joints resulting in pain, dysfunction and possibly disability.

In most cases cracking or as we chiropractors call it “adjusting” a joint is fairly easy once the skills are acquired. However, the one of the most important things regarding the delivery of any type of health care is when not to deliver it. In every case that I have seen when a patient was injured by a non-chiropractic adjustment, the injured patient “thought” that they knew what was wrong.

Don’t make the same mistakes. If you need to get adjusted, go to the chiropractor!

Your’s In Good Health

Dr. Jones

www.JonesPainRelief.com

Workstation Considerations

The study of workstation ergonomics tells us that the objects that we use most often should be located closest to your body and accessed easily, without awkward body positions or movements. Repeated reaching or prolonged fixed postures that involve leaning forward from your chair are stressful and fatiguing.

Some people are aware of computer ergonomics and have purchased various ergonomic devices. These devices, such as keyboard trays, gel mouse pads, and ergonomic keyboards rarely provide solutions to the big picture of computer ergonomics. These items must work with each other in order to produce a significant reduction in postural stress. For example, an ergonomic mouse is of little use if it is positioned in an area that requires reaching and stretching in order to operate it. Limiting reaching and stretching for desk items is essential to maintaining a healthy ergonomic environment.

The most frequent complaint that I have seen in my office is due to computer work is the combination of mousing and reaching to the desk for the mouse.

Most computer stations are designed in a way that involves the worker operating the computer mouse on a pad on the desk. Reaching to the desk for the mouse places direct stress on the joints and soft tissues of the neck, shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand. Additionally, reaching forward for the mouse stresses the lower and middle back.

So How Does Reaching for the Mouse Set the Stage for Injury?

Reaching for the mouse causes you to lean forward in your chair, extend your arm and support the weight of your body through your extended arm.

The stresses placed on the human frame when reaching for the mouse are easily identified. Contrary to popular belief, sitting, which most people believe is relaxing, is hard on the back. Sitting for long periods of time can cause increased pressure on the discs of the spine.

In recent years, studies on postural stress have indicated that we should be sitting upright with our hips flexed at 90 degrees. As it turns out, the most up to date studies show that a slightly reclined sitting posture with the hips flexed at 100 to 115 degrees is ideal if you have to sit at a desk. If your mouse is not positioned close enough to your body, you will have to reach for it. Reaching for your mouse stresses your back by reducing the angle of your hips.

Next, we have to look at the effects of reaching on the neck and shoulder. When the mouse is being operated at a distance that makes the operator reach, the shoulder extends forward and the shoulder blade abducts (rotates forward). This position stretches the muscle groups that connect the medial portion of your shoulder blade to your spine and the superior portion of your shoulder blade to your neck. In the short term, this stretch aggravates the affected muscle groups causing spasm, fatigue, headaches and stiffness in the neck and shoulder. In the long term, this position creates a condition called a “stretch weakness” resulting in muscular imbalance, trigger points and chronic variations of the conditions listed in the prior sentence.

Lastly, placing the mouse too far away, too low, or too much on one side can cause shoulder, wrist, elbow, and forearm discomfort. When the operator is forced to reach for the mouse, his / her body weight shifts forward and ultimately results in weight bearing stress on the extended arm. Spending prolonged periods of time leaning on an extended arm is an unnatural and destructive posture that will eventually lead to the development of a repetitive stress syndrome; likely resulting disorders would include tendonitis of the wrist, elbow or shoulder.

Yours In Good Health

Dr. Jones

San Diego Chiropractic Care
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Does computer work seem much more difficult (physically) than it should be?

The patients in my San Diego chiropractic practice often seem perplexed by the fact that they can be injured doing such sedentary work as computer work. Most are of the opinion that it takes a forceful and traumatic incident to result in injury.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. National statistics point to the computer as a major contributor to lost days at work due to injury. I see the same thing in my San Diego Chiropractic office. Neck pain, shoulder pain, wrist pain, hand pain and back pain are common among those who don’t have the proper ergonomic set-up of their computer stations. That being said, some people get these symptoms regardless of their ergonomic set-up and must evaluate many other contributing factors in order to relieve the stress.

Computer ergonomics is the study and / or implementation of workstation design with the purpose of reducing or eliminating physical stress.

My interest in repetitive stress syndromes began approximately 10 years ago when my practice started seeing a much greater number of people suffering from the effects of computer / keyboard work. Despite all of my training and continuing education related to these types of injuries, I quickly realized that traditional treatment for this type of injury was marginally successful at best.

Any type of therapy was going to have to include the application of basic ergonomic principals to the patient’s work environment.

I am of the opinion that treatment alone or application of ergonomic principals by themselves is not going to resolve a repetitive stress injury.

Over the next several weeks I will write a series of articles that will address the implication of workstation ergonomics and injury resulting from postural stress secondary to use of the computer mouse.

Specifically, the following will be addressed:

1) What repetitive stress injuries are

2) What role do work station ergonomics play in injury

3) How reaching for the mouse sets the stage for injury

4) What are the symptoms of repetitive stress injury

5) How you can avoid mouse reaching injuries

Yours In Good Health

More Coming Soon Here’s To Your Health Yours In Good Health
Dr. Jones

San Diego Chiropractic Care
Chiropractor San Diego Blog
Pain Relief San Diego Chiropractor
Car Accident Whiplash Injuries Pain Relief
Back Pain Relief & Treatment
Work Injury & Workplace Safety Advice
Web Design Hillcrest - San Diego - California
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