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! With back pain and neck pain, a little disc isn’t really pain-free. Surprised? If you have a small disc and pain, you aren’t! What matters 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 exited the anular fibers that surround it and now surrounds the spinal nerve(s) which has (have) never touched each other before. Nerves hurt when this new chemical irritant comes in! A tiny disc extrusion can produce enormous pain if chemical irritation is part of the problem. A huge protruded may not cause pain at all if it does not contact a spinal nerve. (1-7) A 2023 published study just concluded that the size of a disc protrusion did not show a significant relationship to pain and function. (8) If you or a loved one or friend is beginning 2024 with San Jose back pain with or without sciatic leg pain or neck pain with or without arm pain radiculopathy, come see Chiropractic Solutions for some San Jose 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 suffering with back and leg pain because of a disc herniation.              

 

San Jose 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) in managing chronic pain (back, neck, etc.), they are studying influencing factors that chronic pain sufferers and their caregivers need to address for best clinical outcomes:

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

Make 2024 your year for pain relief! Chiropractic Solutions is ready to be your San Jose chiropractic partner in this effort. See you soon!

Schedule your San Jose chiropractic appointment today!