Back Surgery Site

Is a Trapped Nerve Causing My Sciatica?

admin — Sat, 19 May 2012 18:52:33 +0000

If you are suffering with sciatica, the nerve or nerve roots may not necessarily be trapped as such, but one thing is for certain, the Sciatic Nerve in some way, shape or form is being aggravated. The aim is to find out why it is being aggravated.

Firstly, what is Sciatica?
This term is used to describe pain which is felt anywhere from the lower back, through the buttock and down the back of the leg to the tips of the toes. Not only may pain be experienced, but signs & symptoms such as pins & needles and numbness can be felt as well.

So what is happening then?
Well, as I mentioned above, the nerve is not necessarily trapped. However, something is aggravating it enough to cause pain. This may be due to a number of reasons, for example:

1) A disc in the lower back may be protruding and placing pressure on the nerve roots which form the sciatic nerve.
2) Inflammation from the local facet joints of the lower back may be inflamed and this inflammation can aggravate the nerve roots which form the sciatic nerve.
3) Muscles, which the sciatic nerve passes either through or adjacent to, may be placing increased pressure upon the nerve, especially if they are tight.

I suppose, with regards to the 1st and 3rd bullet points above, it could be argued that the sciatic nerve, or the nerve roots which form it, are trapped and therefore pain is resulting. However, that is a little misleading, as it is unlikely that the nerve itself is trapped and cannot move.

Under these circumstances, the nerve will still be able to move, it is just that there will be increased pressure placed upon it as it does move, resulting in inflammation of the structures concerned and subsequently pain.

In the case of the 2nd bullet point, there may be no pressure upon the nerve at all, it is just that localised inflammation is now affecting the nerve roots of the sciatic nerve and therefore pain results. I often use the analogy here of hitting your thumb with a hammer. Although it is likely you would only have hit a small part of your thumb with the hammer, initially most of your thumb will be painful, regardless of whether or not it was hit!

As with any pain, the aim of treatment is to address the cause of the problem. Therefore, if it is the disc which is the problem, the aim is to reduce the disc back into its natural position. If it is inflammation from the local facet joints, the aggravating factor for the facet joints needs to be addressed, as if this is resolved, the inflammation will settle and therefore no irritation of the sciatic nerve will take place. Finally, if it is tight muscles which are causing the sciatic nerve to be painful, the muscles responsible need to be identified and gently stretched out.

The important thing to remember is that the cause of the problem must be addressed. If only the signs and symptoms are treated, you may gain temporary relief but it is likely the pain will return again at a later date.

About the Author:

Paul Boxcer – Bsc (Hons) Physiotherapist, has over 10 years experience of treating people in pain. During this time and especially over the last few years, he has concentrated his treatment on those suffering with Low Back Pain & Sciatica.

Following years of analysis of different treatment procedures http://expertbackcare.com/Sciatica.html his belief is that our own body has an innate desire to heal itself, no matter what the injury. When someone suffers from Sciatica it is no different. By ensuring the body is given the correct conditions to heal itself, conditions such as Sciatica can be resolved just as easily as a twisted ankle or pulled muscle…

Knowing what to and not to do, is the crucial element.

His book “Free Yourself of Back Pain & Sciatica” not only explains everything you need to know in order to allow the body to heal itself, but also ensures the risk of subsequent episodes is kept to an absolute minimum. Subscribe NOW to his Treat Your Sciatica course and begin curing your pain STRAIGHT AWAY!

The Original Post is Located Here: Is a Trapped Nerve Causing My Sciatica?

Back Surgery – Some Facts

admin — Sat, 19 May 2012 06:51:47 +0000

Many news articles are now in fact reporting that back surgery in not more effective than non-surgical methods. One of the major reasons that patients have surgery is that they are generally told that if they don’t have surgery they could get far worse and possibly become paralyzed. That would certainly put the fear of god into me too. However, a New York Times article recently stated, “many surgeons had long feared that waiting would cause severe harm, but those fears were proved unfounded.” The chairman of the department of orthopedic surgery at the University of California said in regards to this “I think this will have an impact. It says you don’t have to rush in for surgery.” Hmmm. Interesting. Very interesting.

The article in the times went on to say “no one who waited had serious consequences, and no one who had surgery had a disastrous result.” Let us just quantify what it means by “no one who had surgery had a disastrous result”. The thing is, in surgical terms it is not considered a “disastrous result” if you have lived in fear of having to have someone do surgery on your spine and you then are no better after surgery or perhaps even worse. It is not considered a ‘disastrous result’ if you are still living in pain after the surgery and now have other health problems due to the side effects of the drugs you are taking. It is not considered a “disastrous result” because you have lost your job due to the time you had to have off from work to have surgery and rehabilitation. It is not considered a “disastrous result” if you have gained weight after you surgery because you couldn’t exercise after and you are now suffering from other health problems because of it.

It is not considered a “disastrous result” if you now have marital or relationship problems or family problems because they think that you are a still whining after your surgery which should have ‘fixed your complaining’. It is not considered a “disastrous result” that you had to pay thousands of dollars to have surgery, have now had to use a large chunk of your savings to live and pay for your rehabilitation because your insurance refused to cover you and you still are unable to return to your old job because of persistent pain after surgery. And of course its not considered a “disastrous result” if you can no longer attend your physiotherapy sessions because your insurer has stopped your payments, you cant afford to pay for them, you are still in agony after surgery and are now in the post surgery/post rehab scrapheap. You are depressed because no one understands your pain. Your are depressed because you are on strong drugs that you never believed you would have to take in your lifetime and it seems no one understands your situation-not even your wife.

I implore you to seek your alternatives, get VERY GOOD advice on your back pain, your sciatica or your disc problem and don’t think that a surgeon’s opinion is the be-all and end-all. Don’t listen to the well meaning advice of your cousin, your neighbor or your best mate.

Over the years I have seen clients who were told by their surgeon or perhaps even two or three surgeons that they needed surgery for their backs and refused. They started getting conservative treatment, did specific exercises, assumed good postural and lifting techniques in their daily lives and are now pain free without the need for surgery.

Just one example:

One of my clients came to me 2 years ago with sciatica in both legs going down to his heels. He had seen three different surgeons who all said that he had to have surgery. They even told him if he didn’t have it now he would need it within six months (the fear of god-it will get worse if you don’t do anything about it scenario-as mentioned above).

His surgeon would even call him at his home to ask him when he could schedule a date for surgery. However, my client flatly refused to have surgery on his back. He was referred to me; he had to drive 3 hours from the Caribbean to see me to get his treatment. He did his exercises, he kept good posture at all times, he lifted properly and he is still pain free, sciatica free and surgery free.

About the Author:

Mark Perren-Jones

Neck pain exercises.com is a site dedicated to make you pain free by teaching you firstly why you are in pain and secondly how to fix it yourself.
Treat your own neck pain. Sounds easy? It is. Visit http://neckpainexercises.com/ for more information

The Original Post is Located Here: Back Surgery – Some Facts

I had lower back surgery for a slipped disc almost a year ago, is it bad to start running on a regular basis?

admin — Fri, 18 May 2012 18:55:17 +0000

i had lower back surgery almost a year ago for a slipped disc, i started running again and i feel ok besides some minor pains. My doctor says never to run again, but then he said not to try ... Read more

USSpineCare.com Launches Website Dedicated to Spinal Health and Spinal Decompression

admin — Fri, 18 May 2012 12:37:48 +0000

Miami, FL (PRWEB) July 9, 2008

We are pleased to announce the development of USSpineCare.com, a website dedicated to spinal health and spinal decompression therapy. USSpineCare.com is run by a network of doctors dedicated to helping patients become free from low back and neck pain . With 31 million Americans suffering from back pain, we focus on finding the right treatment for our patients.

USSpineCare.com utilizes more than 15 safe and effective therapies with a focus on spinal decompression. Spinal decompression is the latest treatment for lower back pain including herniated discs, bulging discs, degenerative disc disease and pain stemming from problems with the sciatic nerve. This non-invasive, FDA cleared treatment can bypass the need for spinal surgery allowing patients to experience relief without surgery allowing them to heal faster both physically and mentally. With spinal decompression therapy there is no lengthy recovery process or additional pain that can be caused from the treatment itself.

Decompression is the therapeutic elongation of a specific spinal area in a slow, gentle manner in order to relieve pressure on compressed vertebrae, discs and nerves. With spinal decompression therapy, a negative pressure is created within the disc to help draw in nutrients and fluids allowing the body to heal itself. Patients comfortably lie on the spinal decompression table while the device creates a negative pressure to injured areas. Many patients even report falling asleep during treatment.

A typical spinal decompression treatment regimen consists of 20 sessions over a four to six week period. Many patients report relief from their pain within the first week of treatment and 8 out of 10 patients report a substantial relief of symptoms at the end of the four to six week period.

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The Original Post is Located Here: USSpineCare.com Launches Website Dedicated to Spinal Health and Spinal Decompression

How long will recovery take for back surgery?

admin — Fri, 18 May 2012 06:54:27 +0000

I soon will be going into surgery because I have fat tissue in my back. This is my second time doing it, because the first time I did it, I was little and it has grown since then. I wanna know how long the recovery process will take. Does this count as liposuction? Please answer !

The Original Post is Located Here: How long will recovery take for back surgery?

Do You Need Lower Back Surgery?

admin — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:54:16 +0000

Surgery of the spine is administered as initial treatment for patients suffering from back pains in very rare circumstances. It is only in emergency cases that lower back surgery is undertaken to aid in the significant reduction of pain as fast as possible, in order to help the patient be able to continue with his or her daily routines and chores.

Extreme lower back pain

Patients do not need to worry in case they have lower back problems. Not all back problems require lower back surgery. There are other alternatives to lower back surgery, such as narcotics. Before one can be advised to undergo surgery, they are often advised by doctors to use narcotic medications to try to address their problem. If and only if the problem persists, and is severe, does the doctor then go ahead and perform a lower back surgery to correct the problem.

Narcotic drugs are mostly used to cure acute cases of lower back pains and in that, they are highly effective. Nevertheless, it is important for one to note that they are only effective for the short term. They can work on pain for like a fortnight. They can also be used after lower back surgery to reduce pain. Most of them are also strong and tend to be addictive and as a result, care should be taken when using them. They must be prescribed by a physician and not bought over the counter in drug stores. Massage therapy and heat therapy are alternatives to short-term relief of back pains.

This does not mean that there are no over the counter drugs that are meant to alleviate back pain. Stronger narcotics should be bought only if prescribed by a doctor but there are other ‘softer’ medications that can be bought to help manage the back pain problem. Most of these are for pain that is not very severe and is not caused by a major traumatic experience such as an accident.

For patients who undergo cervical spine surgery, the aim here is to try to correct degenerative disorders and even stability. Sometimes, the spine might move abnormally or the nerves may not function as expected, and thereby result in severe pain that cervical spine surgery tries to get rid of in order to help the patient continue with normal life and duties.

The symptoms for this serious ailment include very severe back pain that is almost always continuous and weakness of the lower body parts especially the legs, which is caused by some nerve roots branching from the spinal cord. The other common symptom is the dysfunction of the bowel, which happens suddenly in most cases.

Disc surgery

In case one experiences any of these symptoms, he or she should see a doctor for advice. Medications bought over the counter and prescribed by the doctor all have side effects and the patient should be thoroughly informed about them before they choose to take them. Surgery can also have complications and the patient should be aware of the possible complications that may arise in the surgical table before accepting to have the lower back surgery or cervical spine surgery undertaken.

About the Author:

My name is Ken H. I am an internet marketer and I love to spend time with my wife Susan and our two children, Jason and Emily. We love to go to the ocean and mountains to relax, and enjoy each others company.

http://backchronicpain.net
http://backchronicpain.net/lower-back-surgery/lower-back-surgery

The Original Post is Located Here: Do You Need Lower Back Surgery?

spinal surgery (plant removal)

admin — Thu, 17 May 2012 06:55:07 +0000

spinal abscess due to a migrating plant

The Original Post is Located Here: spinal surgery (plant removal)

What is the best way to be put back together after surgery stitches,staples, or Dermabond?

admin — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:52:35 +0000

After my back surgery they used Dermabond on me which is like superglue. I do not have any scars from my surgery.

What can i expect after having back surgery & a metal plate put in is causing

What can i expect after having back surgery & a metal plate put in is causing me severe pain still?

Spinal Surgery Written Simply by a Spinal Surgeon

admin — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:54:27 +0000

Product Description
Dr. Jarolem’s book explains in simple terms the complicated subject of spinal surgery. Various treatments are described as well as the risks and benefits of surgery. Over one hundred pictures are used to explain spinal anatomy and various spinal disorders. Case examples are also used to illustrate neck, upper and lower back problems, and their surgical treatment.

For more information: Spinal Surgery Written Simply by a Spinal Surgeon

The Original Post is Located Here: Spinal Surgery Written Simply by a Spinal Surgeon

Lumbar Puncture This Really Is Spinal Tap

admin — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:52:46 +0000

I couldn’t resist the title’s corny riff on the name of the rock band and their movie, but the kind of spinal tap featured in this article was a spinal tap before Spinal Tap was Spinal Tap. (Does that make any sense?)

Known more formally as a lumbar puncture, this kind of spinal tap is a valuable medical test with an interesting history. In 1891 Heinrich Quincke, of Kiel, Germany, introduced this procedure as we know it today. His original intent was to help babies suffering from hydrocephalus (water on the brain) by draining away excess fluid, but from the outset he was also interested in lumbar puncture’s use as a diagnostic tool.

To understand the usefulness of this test and why you might someday need to have one, a little background is helpful. The brain and spinal cord are wrapped in a membrane called the meninges. Within the meninges, a watery fluid called the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) bathes the inside and outside of the brain and the outside of the spinal cord. Within the brain’s fluid chambers (ventricles), the body perpetually manufactures new CSF from constituents of the bloodstream. Once the CSF has percolated through openings to get outside the brain, it is reabsorbed and recycled into the bloodstream. The entire volume of CSF–about 150 milliliters or five ounces–is made and reabsorbed several times per day.

Dr. Quincke understood that analyzing the CSF’s makeup could be useful in diagnosing infections and other diseases affecting the central nervous system (brain plus spinal cord). Measuring the CSF’s protein and glucose (sugar) content along with inspecting a sample of CSF under a microscope to count red and white blood-corpuscles soon became standard practices.

The premier use of lumbar puncture in both Quincke’s time and ours has been to diagnose meningitis. The suffix “-itis” signifies inflammation, so meningitis means inflammation of the meninges. Most, but not all, instances of meningitis are due to infections, but the kinds of infections seen have evolved over the years. In Quincke’s lifetime tuberculosis and syphilis germs were common causes of meningitis, but presently, in developed countries these are uncommon. Nowadays, the usual causes of meningitis are other bacteria, viruses or even funguses. In cases of suspected infection, CSF protein, glucose and blood-corpuscle measurements are supplemented by other tests on the fluid that can track down the specific, infecting organisms.

Another important use of lumbar puncture is to diagnose subarachnoid hemorrhage, an abrupt, devastating, and potentially lethal bleed into the CSF space caused by rupture of an aneurysm or other abnormal blood vessel. In suspected cases–classically presenting with “the worst headache of my life”–a computed tomographic (CT) scan is usually performed first. While very sensitive in detecting subarachnoid hemorrhages, CT scans can still miss cases. So if the doctor is still suspicious that a bleed occurred, the next step is to do a lumbar puncture which is 100% sensitive in detecting this condition. That is, it never misses.

Lumbar puncture with CSF analysis can also help in the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, a disease in which the patient’s own immune system attacks the central nervous system. In this condition the immune reaction produces abnormal proteins that can be detected and measured in the CSF.

How is the test performed? Well, the first step, of course, is the informed consent process in which your doctor explains the risks and benefits of the test and you sign a permission form. In this author’s opinion, lumbar puncture is the most benign test for which written permission is traditionally required and is less risky than some other procedures–like drawing blood from a high-pressure artery–for which written permission is traditionally omitted.

The next step is to lie on your side on a bed or procedure table with your knees tucked up to your chest. The skin of your lower back is painted with an iodine-based solution to produce a sterile field. If you have an allergy to iodine, an alcohol-based solution is substituted. The surrounding area is then covered with sterile paper or cloth. The skin and the tissue beneath the skin are then numbed with local anesthetic, and then everything is ready to insert the spinal needle.

The reason the lower back (lumbar spine) is chosen is because here the sac of meninges can be entered without risk of poking a hole in the spinal cord. This is because the spinal cord ends several inches higher within the spinal canal. The composition of the CSF is nearly the same throughout its system. Thus, CSF from the lumbar region is as good for diagnosis as from anywhere else, yet safer to obtain.

Once the spinal needle enters the lumbar sac of fluid, correct positioning of the needle is confirmed by the emergence of clear, colorless drops of fluid from the back of the needle. (When a similar procedure is performed for the purpose of epidural anesthesia, the tip of the needle stops just short of entering the meninges, and the drug is infused outside the sac.) A thin plastic tube is then attached to the back of the needle so the CSF’s pressure can be measured. Subsequently, CSF is allowed to drip into each of several sealable test-tubes suitable for sending to the laboratory.

Once adequate fluid has been obtained, the needle is withdrawn and the small puncture site in the skin is covered with an adhesive bandage. Typically, there are no more than a few drops of blood-loss from this test.

How about risks? Fortunately, they are minimal. As with any other test in which a needle is inserted somewhere that Mother Nature never intended, bleeding is a possibility. Luckily, there are no major blood-vessels in the vicinity, so even an off-course needle is unlikely to cause trouble. Theoretically, a needle-insertion could also bring germs into the body and cause infection, but this almost never occurs because the needle is sterile and because the lumbar region had been surgically prepped.

About one-in-five patients experiences a headache from the procedure. When a spinal-tap headache occurs, it always has the following characteristics: it is present while the patient is sitting or standing, and is promptly relieved by lying down. Spinal-tap headaches are due to persistent leaking of CSF through the hole that the needle made in the meninges. (The leaking occurs within the spinal column and doesn’t leave the body.) Until the hole seals up again and the full volume of CSF is restored, the CSF cannot provide its usual cushioning effect with changes in head position, and a headache ensues. In such cases the patient remains horizontal until the leak has sealed over.

Reviewing a list of potential complications can have a discouraging effect on people who need a test. But it is reassuring to know that millions of people have had Dr. Quincke’s test since he devised it over a century ago. If the test caused unforeseen problems, they should have turned up by now.

by Gary Cordingley

Gary Cordingley, MD, PhD, is a clinical neurologist, teacher and researcher who works in Athens, Ohio. For more health-related articles, see his website at: http://www.cordingleyneurology.com

The Original Post is Located Here: Lumbar Puncture This Really Is Spinal Tap