Pinched Nerve:
Background:
A Pinched nerve can be a relatively common condition in the neck and can be created by a number of different situations. As the nerves exit the spinal column and spinal joint they have to travel a long and treacherous course down the neck, the shoulder and arm and they can be pinched at any number of locations. A nerve can be compressed by a disc herniation, a subluxation, a muscle spasm or spinal stenosis.
Signs andSymptoms:
Someone suffering from a pinched nerve will complain of pain, tingling, numbness or weakness into their neck shoulder and the arm on the affected side. The exact sensation experienced will depend on where the nerve in compressed and what portion of the nerve is compressed. A nerve being pinched will also often create muscular spasms and protective reactions from the muscles surrounding the nerve being pinched.
Treatment:
When someone is suffering from a pinched nerve the first thing they need to do is find out where it is being pinched and then a treatment protocol can be designed to alleviate the pinching. Pinched Nerves have been shown to respond fabulously to conservative Chiropractic treatment, after the exact location of the pinching is found. If you or someone you know is suffering needlessly from a pinched nerve come into Absolute Healthcare Chiropractic today and let Dr. Gerwig design a customized treatment protocol, without the use of drugs or surgery, that will have you on the road to living pain free today.
Arthritis/Degeneration:
Background:
Arthritis specifically Degenerative Joint Disease is a very common progressive disorder most commonly found in the elderly and primarily affects the weight bearing joints of the body. The neck is a common area to find degenerative changes and the most common cause of this degeneration is damage to the cartilaginous joint surfaces of the bones, and this damage is not allowed to properly heal. When this cartilage does not heal properly then the cartilage turns hard, or into a substance that more resembles the bone it covers. The body does this because it has tried to heal the cartilage, could not and decides that the surface needs to be stronger and harder to take the strain and stress that is put through it and the result is the hard, brittle joints seen in arthritic patients. The best treatment for Arthritis is prevention, because once the cartilage joint surfaces have “changed” into the arthritic joint there is no going back, However if you are suffering from Arthritis than you can decrease the progression of the disease and minimize if not eliminate your pain.
The other important aspect of Degenerative Arthritis is that these cartilage joint surfaces I have previously mentioned have no blood supply to them and the way they “feed” is by movement of the joint. This movement of the joint brings in nutrients to perform normal maintenance and repair any damage to the cartilage in that joint. This is an extremely important point because when I see someone in pain due to Arthritis it is the natural thing for them to stop moving the affected joint. This is the worst thing you can do because the damaged cartilage, which needs movement to heal, won’t be moved for a number of days which will lead to irreversible degenerative changes.
Signs and Symptoms:
Someone suffering from arthritis of the neck will experience a dull achy pain around the affected joint which is most significant when they first try to use the joint. As they “warm up” the affected area the pain will decrease and even go away, but after they rest the joint and then begin moving it again the same pain returns. At times the pain can be very intense and sharp and there is also often a decreased range of motion.
Treatment:
Conservative Chiropractic care has been found to be extremely effective in decreasing the levels of pain and increasing the functional ability of someone suffering from Arthritis. Additionally Chiropractic treatment will maintain the motion through a joint and will maintain proper nutrition to the joint so it can heal itself before the joint becomes arthritic. If you or someone you know is suffering from Arthritis have them call Absolute Healthcare Chiropractic and let Dr. Gerwig design a treatment protocol that will reduce and possibly eliminate your pain along with preventing progression of the disease.
Whiplash:
Background:
Whiplash, also know as Cervical Acceleration Deceleration injuries, most commonly occur during a read end automobile accident. The impact from the vehicle behind you colliding with your vehicle creates a rapid extension of the head and neck as far as the joints of the spine will allow it. This is followed by a rapid flexion of the head as it tries to “catch up” to the body that was pushed forward by the seat. These two motions combined can create any number of injuries within the cervical spine from simple muscle sprains/strains to ligament and tendon injuries to more significant injuries like a dislocated or a fractured vertebrae.
Signs and Symptoms:
Someone suffering from a classic case of whiplash will report being in a low velocity rear-end accident that didn’t create any initial neck pain, but over the period of the next few days an ache and sharp pains develop in the neck and can extend further down into the mid-back. Headaches and muscular spasms will often accompany the pain and in very significant cases muscular weakness can develop and require you to use your hands to hold your head up.
Treatment:
Whiplash responds very well to conservative Chiropractic care and, in most cases, it can restore your neck to how it felt before the accident. If you or someone you know is suffering from neck pain following an accident don’t let them continue to suffer needlessly, have them come into Absolute Healthcare Chiropractic and let Dr. Gerwig design a custom treatment protocol, without the use of drugs or surgery, that will have you on the road to living pain free today.
Subluxation:
Background:
A Subluxation is a joint in the body that is not moving properly, is “out of place” or is limited form its normal range of motion. These can occur anywhere in the body and can be created by any number of conditions. When a Subluxation occurs in the neck vertebrae, due to the relation of the vertebral joints to the nerves as they exit the spine, it is common to have a subluxation create an impingement on the nerve that exits that level. If a subluxation is allowed to remain for an extended period of time then the joint surfaces cannot “feed” themselves and will be much more likely to become arthritic if the subluxation is not corrected.
Signs and Symptoms:
Someone suffering from a Subluxation in the cervical spine can complain of pain in the neck, headaches, achiness and tightness through the neck, symptoms similar to a pinched nerve in the neck, or even complain of a feeling that they can’t move their neck like they feel they should be able to. Many other symptoms can be reported depending on where in the neck the subluxation occurs at, and subluxations can be present without clinical symptoms at all.
Treatment:
Conservative Chiropractic care is the best treatment available for subluxations and can restore normal motion to a joint to reduce the pain and increase the function of the involved area. If you or someone you know is suffering from or thinks they are suffering from a subluxation call Absolute Healthcare Chiropractic today and let Dr. Gerwig design a customized treatment protocol, without the use of drugs or surgery, to get out of pain today.
Postural Syndrome:
Background:
We all remember our parents telling us to sit up straight and to stop slouching, it turns out they weren’t just picking on us because they could; they were trying to keep us out of pain in the future. Postural abnormalities in the neck, specifically anterior head carriage (jutting out of the chin) and forward drawn shoulder (rounding forward of the shoulders) do more than just make us look tired. To understand why posture is so important in keeping us out of pain we have to understand “normal posture” and why it is so important. Normal posture refers to the position of the body that puts the least amount of stress and strain on the joints, muscles and other physical structures of the body. When you observe someone that has ideal posture from the side, if you dropped a line from their ear straight down to the ground, the line should pass through their anterior shoulder, the middle of their hip, the back of their knee and the front of their ankle. Any deviation from this creates abnormal strains on the associated physical structures.
Signs and Symptoms:
Someone who is suffering from postural syndrome will have the classic anterior head carriage, forward drawn shoulders and slumped lower back. Sitting for extended periods of time, especially while using computers or kids playing video games, has increased the incidence of ‘bad posture’ in today’s society. Someone suffering from pain in the neck due to postural syndrome will often describe a dull achy pain at the base of the skull and extending down into the mid-back. The pain will usually come on toward the end of the day and is the least first thing in the morning. Postural syndrome of the neck often times will be associated with tension headaches.
Treatment:
Conservative Chiropractic care has been shown to be extremely effective for relieving the pain created by postural syndrome and it will also help to change the abnormal posture to prevent future problems. If you or someone you know is needlessly suffering from pain in the neck due to postural syndrome come into Absolute Healthcare Chiropractic and have Dr. Gerwig design a customized treatment protocol, without the use of drugs or surgery, that can have you on the road to living pain free today!
DISCLAIMER: No individuals, including those under our active care, should use the information, resources or tools contained within to self-diagnose or self-treat any health-related condition. Diagnosis and treatment of all health conditions should only be performed by your doctor of chiropractic or other licensed health care professional. |
