PAIN MANAGEMENT
Relaxation / Pain Management
What is Neck Pain? What causes Neck Pain?
Pain located in the neck is a common medical condition. Neck pain can come from a number of disorders and diseases of any tissues in the neck, such as degenerative disc disease, neck strain, whiplash, a herniated disc, or a pinched nerve. Neck pain is also referred to as cervical pain.
How is Neck Pain treated?
The treatment of neck pain depends on its precise cause. Treatment options include rest, heat/ice applications, traction, soft collar, traction, physical therapy (ultrasound, massage, manipulation), local injections of cortisone or anesthetics, topical anesthetic creams, topical pain patches, muscle relaxants, analgesics, and surgical procedures.
What is Upper Back Pain?
Your upper back is also called your thoracic back, the part of the back where the ribs attach. Upper back pain is pain between your neck and your low back.
How is it treated?
The early stages of back pain with muscle spasms should be treated with ice packs for 20 to 30 minutes every 4 to 6 hours for the first 2 to 3 days. You may use a frozen gel pack, crushed ice, or a bag of frozen peas. After you have iced for 2 to 3 days, you may start to use moist heat to help loosen up stiff muscles.
Your provider may prescribe an anti-inflammatory medicine, muscle relaxants, or other medicine. Therapeutic Massage to the inflamed muscles will help. Your provider will recommend exercises to help your back.
What is Lower Back Pain ?
Most low back pain is triggered by some combination of overuse, muscle strain, and injury to the muscles, ligaments, and discs that support the spine. Many experts believe that over time muscle strain can lead to an overall imbalance in the spinal structure. This leads to a constant tension on the muscles, ligaments, bones, and discs, making the back more prone to injury or reinjury.
Complementary therapies and self-care
Therapeutic Massage may reduce acute and chronic low back pain, especially when combined with exercises and back care education.
What is Sciatica?
Sciatica is pain resulting from irritation of the sciatic nerve. Sciatica pain is typically felt from the low back to behind the thigh and radiating down below the knee. The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the body and begins from nerve roots in the lumbar spinal cord in the low back and extends through the buttock area to send nerve endings down the lower limb.
What treatments are available for Sciatica?
Treatment is initially aimed at addressing the inflammation associated with sciatica. Rest can be a very useful tool to start with.
Once the pain subsides, exercises and physical therapy are helpful. Many people find that heat packs and ice packs soothe the muscles that are painful in sciatica.
