It is known that physically active patients who have stiff muscles frequently develop pain. What is less known is that patients with overly flexible joints will also frequently develop muscle pain. Congenital diseases, such as Marfan Syndrome and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), may cause joints to repeatedly dislocate, resulting in stiffness in the muscles surrounding the […]
The baseball season just opened and already players are calling off their first few games due to “tweaked knees” and “sore backs”. As the sun is starting to come out, and the snow is (FINALLY!) melting, many of us are anxious to get outside and start playing sports again. However, this is also a time
More and more doctors are transferring their records to an electronic format. One electronic medical records software, OpenNotes, allows patients to view their medical records online as well. Does having this information mean better care for a patient? The New York Times published an article about one patient, Steven Keating, who benefited from the ability
The BMJ (what used to be called the British Medical Journal) just published an article stating that acetaminophen (ie Tylenol) has been found to provide no relief in low back pain (compared to a placebo). Acetaminophen was also related to a risk of having an abnormal liver test. The article included data from 13 randomized
We all know that smoking is bad for you. In fact, since 1965, the Surgeon General’s Warning posted on every package of cigarettes says: Smoking Causes Lung Cancer, Heart Disease, Emphysema, And May Complicate Pregnancy. But did you know that in addition to the myriad of illnesses that are related to tobacco and smoking, recent
Men: Where do you keep your wallet? Many of you probably answered, “your back pocket.” Did you know that this could be causing your back pain? When you sit down with your wallet in your back pocket, it presses into your muscles, which can cause pain in your low back and buttock. The squeezed muscle
Men, Women, and Children — Simple Solutions to Eliminate Back Pain Read Post »
I had dinner with Dr. Robert Atkins years before his untimely death. He ordered a juicy marbleized steak with a baked potato drowning in butter and sour cream. At the time I thought this wasn’t a healthy choice- I was wrong! A front page article in the NY Times earlier this week reports on a
Eating forbidden foods, losing weight and helping your heart Read Post »
A New York Times article Weather May Not Affect Back Pain, printed mid-July, cited a study showing that weather may not affect back pain. The purpose of the study was to explore the often-heard complaint from patients diagnosed with persistent pain related to muscles and bones (musculoskeletal pain) that weather changes cause an increase in pain.
Is Bad Weather To Blame For Your Lower Back Pain? Read Post »
Because of the growing problem of addiction, misuse, and diversion, 49 states have now adopted a state prescription drug database. You may have read an article recently in The New York Times about Missouri being the only state that has not adopted such a database. In New York, as a prescriber of controlled substances, each
49 States Adopt Prescription Drug Database to Prevent Prescription Drug Abuse Read Post »
From 1991 to 2009, the number of prescriptions written for the strongest pain medications tripled. These medications are collectively named opioids and include morphine, oxycodone, and hydrocodone.Opioids are a type of pain drug that may cause serious side effects. From 2005 to 2009, the number of emergency room visits for nonmedical use of prescribed pain
Concerns about the Growing Misuse of Opioids – Prescription Painkillers Read Post »
You may have read several articles in the news lately about opioids and pain medications. Earlier in July, The New York Times printed two separate articles on the dangers and abuse of prescriptions drugs in the States. On July 1st, Sabrina Tavernise’s Prescription Overdose Deaths in Florida Plunge After Tough Measures, Report Says, appeared in
At NMPI, we frequently see patients in our office with pain in their elbow. Most often it’s tennis players who complain of persistent pain in the forearm as the result of overuse from racquet sports but other sports and non-athletic activities can also put you at risk for this condition known as Tennis Elbow (TE),
Tennis Elbow Causing You Pain? PRP is NOT the Solution Study Shows Read Post »
PRP injections have become a frequently used treatment for painful muscle and tendon injuries despite there being no rigorous studies of its effectiveness[1]. PRP involves the drawing of blood from the injured patient, spinning it down to collect the platelets and then injecting the platelets into the injured tissue. The rationale is that platelets will
Platelet Rich Plasma Injections (PRP) are not effective for Hamstring injuries Read Post »
I have been suggesting for many years that there is an overuse of spinal injections and surgeries for low back and leg pain, so it was no surprise when I read an article in The New York Times (NYT) that reported on a study recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine[1] about patients
Epidural steroids are not effective for spinal stenosis Read Post »
I recently saw Fred, a 30 year old male, who complained of significant neck pain and shoulder pain. The pain on his left side was much greater than on the right. He tried several chiropractic treatments, massage, physical therapy, acupuncture, and exercises without relief of his pain. When I first examined Fred, I found
Sometimes the pain isn’t coming from where you think Read Post »
I recently saw George, a 48-year-old man, who suffered from pain, described as soreness in the thighs, neck, shoulders and arms, and tingling in his calves and shin. Sitting for more than two hours or sitting for more than 20 minutes would cause an increase in his pain. Bending over also brought on his pain.
Low level laser therapy (LLLT) is a promising new treatment for a variety of painful conditions which is believed to reduce inflammation and stimulate healing of wounds. Interest in the laser first developed when Endre Mester at Semmelweis University noticed that applying the laser to the backs of shaven mice caused hair to regrow faster
There has been an increase in the number of hours we sit in front of a computer for leisure and work. Does your job require you to stare at a computer for hours at a time? One study found that workers sitting for 95% of the day, and/or worked with their neck at 20˚ or
Small changes may make a big difference to your neck pain Read Post »
Many patients with chronic pain become depressed; therefore it is not surprising that many of these patients will receive antidepressant medications. What is very interesting is that these antidepressants not only can decrease depression associated with pain, but they can also decrease pain itself. They are frequently used to treat persistent pain associated with problems
How antidepressant medication can affect your pain Read Post »
The next series of blogs is a brief discussion of different types of medications used for pain. NSAIDs Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are generally one of the first line of medications used in the initial treatment of pain. They are exactly what their name means – they are not steroid medications (like cortisone or prednisone)
