Healthcare News
Why Aren t Artificial Discs the Standard Yet?
For many patients struggling with chronic neck or back pain, the question seems straightforward: if a damaged spinal disc can be replaced while preserving motion, why isn’t that the standard treatment?
Source: Spine Health Foundation
Spinal Stenosis: 6 Ways to Reduce Your Risk of Falling
Lumbar spinal stenosis increases the risk of injury from falling because the stenosis compresses the nerves that control leg strength, balance and coordination. Here are recommendations for fall prevention if you have lumbar spinal stenosis:
Source: Spine-health
Exercises to Avoid with Lumbar Spinal Stenosis
If you have lumbar spinal stenosis, the goal while exercising is to keep the spine in a "neutral" or slightly flexed (forward-leaning) position. However, many standard exercises do the exact opposite, forcing the lower back into an arch that can trigger a flare-up.
Source: Spine-health
Back pain tied to higher rates of common diseases
Back pain isn't just a debilitating condition; it may be a flag for other major health issues. New research shows the incidence of conditions such as heart disease, arthritis, diabetes and cancer is higher in people with back pain than in those without back pain.
How does obesity impact lower back pain?
Lower back pain can be a symptom of obesity. This is because excess weight can increase stress on the spine. This increased stress may cause lower back pain to occur.
How the curves in your spine could be causing you pain
The vertebrae are connected by multiple joints, including disks which allow the spine to move in multiple directions. Though we might think the spine should appear straight, it naturally curves forward and backward so it can perform all of its important functions. But many conditions can cause the spine to curve more than it should. This can not only lead to pain, but potentially a whole host of other health troubles too.
16 Exercises for Herniated Disc (Back or Neck) Pain
Exercise is often recommended as a first-line treatment for a herniated disc. A herniated disc can cause many symptoms including pain, numbness, burning, and arm or leg weakness, depending on the location of the spinal disc involved.
Neurosurgeon describes 8 common myths about back pain
Back pain is common, but several myths about it persist. Meghan Murphy, M.D., a neurosurgeon at the Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato, describes eight of them and provides the facts.
The future of spine surgery: healing backs without screws or metal implants
Metal rods, screws and bone grafts have long been the backbone of spinal fusion surgeries — a fix for fractured spines, worn-out discs or bones that refuse to heal on their own. The hardware works. But it’s also rigid and invasive, and often leaves patients with lingering pain, stiffness and the need for follow-up surgeries down the road. At the University of Missouri, a team of engineers is working on a new approach. In the Biomodulatory Materials Engineering Laboratory in the Roy Blunt NextGen Precision Health building, researchers led by Principal Investigator Bret Ulery are building a future where spines heal not through steel, but through biology — using tiny, bioactive materials made from therapeutic peptides to guide the body’s natural repair processes from the inside out.
Study supports acupuncture as a safe and effective treatment for chronic low back pain in older adults
According to a recent study, older Americans with chronic low back pain who received acupuncture had greater improvement in physical function and reduced pain than those who received usual medical care only, generally prescribed medications or physical therapy.
