Healthy News January 2024 Disc Size Doesnt Necessarily Matter & 4 Ways To Ease Chronic Pain

Now there’s a twist on new year’s resolutions of dieting to downsize! In the world of back pain and neck pain, a little disc is not really pain-free. Surprised? If you have a small disc and pain, you aren’t! What does matter is (1) the amount of pressure the disc protrusion is putting on the nerve root and/or (2) the amount of chemical irritation is present if a disc extrusion’s inner gel-like material has escaped the outer annular fibers and now surrounds the spinal nerve(s) which has (have) never come in contact with each other before. Nerves hurt when this new chemical irritant comes in! A tiny extruded disc can generate lots of pain if chemical irritation is part of the problem. A huge protruded may not trigger pain at all if it doesn’t contact a spinal nerve. (1-7) A 2023 published study just ended their report with the conclusion that the size of a disc protrusion did not demonstrate a noteworthy relationship to pain and function. (8) If you or a loved one or friend is beginning 2024 with Manchester back pain with or without sciatic leg pain or neck pain with or without arm pain radiculopathy, come visit Manchester Chiropractic & Sports Injuries for some Manchester pain relief with gentle, safe chiropractic Cox® Technic care!

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Timothy Gagan on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson about use of The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management for a patient experiencing back and leg pain due to a disc herniation.              

 

Manchester CHIROPRACTIC TIP OF THE MONTH: 4 Ways to Reduce Chronic Pain In 2024

As researchers and healthcare professionals work toward establishing practice guidelines (ex: WHO) to manage chronic pain (back, neck, etc.), they’re analyzing influencing factors that chronic pain sufferers and their caregivers ought to address for optimal clinical outcomes:

1. Understand the condition. A clear understanding of the chronic primary low back pain condition via education/advice was related to beneficial developments in pain, function, quality of life, and psychological outcomes. (9)
2. Consider emotional influences. Adverse childhood events were found to be significantly related to chronic pain and pain-related disability as an adult. (10)
3. Undergo spinal manipulation. A study of nonpharmacological pain management methods used by Medicare patients reported that manipulative therapies, mainly chiropractic, have been the most extensively investigated methods. (11) Cox® Technic flexion-distraction - as we utilize in our chiropractic practice – helped a 67-year-old veteran who suffered with chronic low back pain and intermittent lower extremity pain for many decades get overall improvement in his condition, reduce use of pain medication, and increase mobility after 4 sessions over a 4-week period. (12)
4. Exercise. Structured exercise programs were reported to reduce pain and functional limitation in chronic low back pain patients. (13)

Make 2024 your year for pain relief! Manchester Chiropractic & Sports Injuries is happy to be your Manchester chiropractic partner in this endeavor. See you soon!

Schedule your Manchester chiropractic appointment today!