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What Are Cervicogenic Headaches?

13 Jan

Headaches are a very common problem that can have multiple causes ranging from stress to trauma.  To make matters worse, there are MANY different types of headaches. One such type is the “cervicogenic headache” (others include migraines, cluster headaches, etc.).

The main distinction between the symptoms associated with cervicogenic headaches and those associated with migraine headaches are a lack of nausea, vomiting, aura (pre-headache warning that a headache is about to strike), light and noise sensitivity, increased tearing with red eyes, one sided head, neck, shoulder and/or arm pain, and dizziness. The items listed above are primarily found in migraine headache sufferers.

The following is a list of clinical characteristics common in those struggling with cervicogenic headaches:

Unilateral (one-sided) head or face pain (rarely is it on both sides).

Pain is localized or stays in one spot, usually the back of the head, frontal, temporal (side) or orbital (eye) regions.

Moderate to severe pain intensity.

Intermittent attacks of pain that last hours to days.

Pain is usually deep, non-throbbing, unless migraines occur at the same time.

Head pain is triggered by neck movement, sustained awkward head postures, applying deep pressure to the base of the skull or upper neck region, and/or taking a deep breath, cough or sneeze can trigger head pain.

Limited neck motion with stiffness.

Infrequently, the cervicogenic headache sufferer can present with migraines at the same time and have both presentations making it more challenging to diagnose.

The cause of cervicogenic headaches can be obvious such as trauma (sports injury, whiplash, slip and fall), or not so obvious, like posture. A forward head posture can increase the relative weight applied to the back of the neck and upper back as much as 2x-4x normal. Last month, we discussed the intimate relationship between the upper 2 cervical vertebra (C1 & C2) and an anatomical connection to the covering of the spinal cord (the dura) as giving rise to cervicogenic headaches. In summary, the upper 3 nerves innervate the head and any pressure on those upper 3 nerves can result in a cervicogenic headache. As chiropractors, we are trained to examine, identify, and treat these types of potentially debilitating headaches.

We realize that you have a choice in where you choose your healthcare services.  If you, a friend or family member requires care for headaches, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services and look forward in serving you and your family presently and, in the future.

Whiplash and Chiropractic Management.

13 Jan

Whiplash injuries occur as the result of a sudden acceleration followed by deceleration, and the degree of injury is dependent on many factors. Some of these include: the size of the vehicle, the conditions of the road, the angle of the seat back, the “springiness” of the seat back, the position of the head rest, the size of the patient’s neck, the position of the patient’s head and neck at the time of impact, the awareness of the impending collision, etc. Hence, each case must be evaluated and managed using a unique, individualized approach.

The chiropractic encounter begins with the history and examination. Here we will ask many questions and perform tests that will give us clues to understand the mechanism of injury, identify the primary tissues injured, and determine the best treatment approaches to utilize.

There are many different chiropractic treatment approaches available for patients with whiplash injuries. For example, manual therapies include spinal manipulation, mobilization, manual traction, muscle relaxation and/or stimulation methods, the assessment of the patient’s physical capacities with issuing specific exercises and, considerations of modifying work station issues and/or lifestyle changes. Chiropractic manipulation is a very common approach utilized in the treatment of joint dysfunction. That is, restoring normal movement to the joints affected negatively by the whiplash injury. Terms such as, “stuck,” “fixed,” “subluxation,” and the like are often used to describe altered joint position or function. Typically, the manipulation (also called “adjustment”) is applied well within the normal range of motion of the joint using a “high velocity” (or fast) movement through a short distance in the direction that attempts to correct the joint dysfunction. Because the procedure is quick and of short distance, patients frequently state, “…that felt great!” In fact, if the pre-adjustment position of the patient hurts or is uncomfortable, we will instead use a slow, mobilizing movement.

Exercise strategies are important and typically employed as soon as possible. The type of exercise is (again) case specific, but in general, exercises are initially prescribed in a manner that restores movement with as little discomfort as possible. Following the goal of increasing range of motion, strengthening the injured region with stabilization exercises, and restoring sensory-motor activity to the muscles becomes the primary focus in the management of the whiplash patient. When the intervertebral disks are “deranged” or altered, directions that minimize radiating pain are emphasized in the exercises. After careful in-office training, the patient is instructed to perform exercises at home, often multiple times a day, for stability of the spine and to re-establish motor control and movement. Ergonomic and daily lifestyle modifications are frequently addressed to avoid the possibility of the condition being irritated on a regular basis, thus interfering with the healing process. If a patient is stressing the injured area at work, job modifications can make or break the success of the management program.

We realize you have a choice in where you choose your healthcare services.  If you, a friend or family member requires care for whiplash, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services and look forward in serving you and your family presently and, in the future.

 

Low Back Pain and Sleep.

9 Jan

Sleep deprivation has been called, “…an epidemic” by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. To achieve and maintain good health, we must ensure restorative sleep!  Here are some ways to help with that.

Avoid snacks at bedtime …especially grains and sugars as these will raise your blood sugar and delay sleep. Later, when blood sugar drops too low (hypoglycemia), you not only wake up but falling back to sleep becomes problematic. Dairy foods can also interrupt sleep.

Take a hot bath, shower or sauna before bed. This will raise your body temperature and cooling off facilitates sleep. The temperature drop from getting out of the bath signals to your body that “it’s time for bed.”

Keep your feet warm! Consider wearing socks to bed as our feet often feel cold before the rest of the body because they have the poorest circulation. Cold feet make falling asleep difficult!

Rest your mind! Stop “brain work” at least 1 hour before bed to give your mind a rest so you can calm down. Don’t think about tomorrow’s schedule or deadlines.

Avoid TV right before bed. TV can be too stimulating to the brain, preventing you from falling asleep quickly as it disrupts your pineal gland function.

Consider a “sound machine.” Listen to the sound of white noise or nature sounds, such as the ocean or forest, to drown out upsetting background noise and soothe you to sleep.

Relaxation reading. Don’t read anything stimulating, such as a mystery or suspense novels, as it makes sleeping a challenge.

Avoid PM caffeine. Studies show that caffeine can stay active in your system long after consumption.

Avoid alcohol. Though drowsiness can occur, many will often wake up several hours later, unable to fall back asleep. This can prohibit deep sleep, the most restoring sleep (~4th hour).

Exercise regularly! Exercising for at least 30 minutes per day can improve your sleep.

Increase your melatonin. If you can’t increase levels naturally with exposure to bright sunlight in the daytime and absolute complete darkness at night, consider supplementation.

We realize you have a choice in who you choose to provide your healthcare services.  If you, a friend or family member requires care for low back pain, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services and look forward in serving you and your family presently and, in the future.

 

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Self-Help Management Options.

9 Jan

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) is the most investigated, researched, and talked about disorder when it comes to work related injuries to the upper extremity because it is often the cause of so much lost work time, disability costs, and the source of financial hardship for many of its sufferers. So, the questions are: Is there a way to detect it early? What can be done to prevent CTS? And, what can you do to facilitate in the treatment process of CTS?

1. EARLY DETECTION: Because CTS symptoms usually start out mildly, maybe a little numbness or tingling in the hand or fingers that can be easily “shaken off,” people usually do not identify these early symptoms as, “…a big deal” and consequently, do nothing about it. After a while, and the time depends on how severely the median nerve is pinched, you may start waking up at night needing to shake out your hands in order to return to sleep. Similarly, when driving, you may need to change your hand position on the steering wheel due to the same symptoms. If you are really stubborn (and many people are) and you STILL don’t give in and come to us for treatment, then buttoning shirts, writing, crocheting, knitting, playing piano, typing, etc., may all soon become affected. The KEY in early detection is to NOT ignore the early symptoms. Come in right away!

2. PREVENTION: There are many highly effective preventative tactics. For example, recognize that certain conditions predispose us to CTS and anything to avoid and/or properly manage these conditions will help. Some of these conditions include diabetes mellitus, pregnancy, the use of birth control pills, inflammatory arthritis (such as rheumatoid or lupus), hypothyroidism, and obesity. From an ergonomic approach, make sure your work station is set up properly including (but not limited to) the position of the monitor, the keyboard, the mouse, and your chair. Set up the area so the extremes of wrist bending can be avoided. If a wrist brace doesn’t get in the way, it may help, especially when there is a high incidence rate of CTS with your co-workers. Most importantly, small mini-breaks and stretching can be highly effective during the day. If you develop any symptoms, come in and see us RIGHT AWAY (see #1 above).

3.  SELF-MANAGEMENT: Certainly consider and implement the “prevention” approaches described above in #2. Specific exercises for stretching, strengthening, and dexterity REALLY HELP! We will teach you these, as it is important that you perform the correct exercises accurately. Improper exercising will only add to the problems that lead to CTS or, worsen it. Control your diet to avoid obesity, to control diabetes and the other sometimes preventable conditions described above. Wearing a wrist splint, especially at night can also really help. There are many types from Velcro wrist wraps with or without thumb loops to cock-up splints, carpal lock splints, and many more. The key as to whether to use a wrist splint or not during work is largely dependent on the comfort of the splint during the work day. Many occupations simply require too much wrist bending or movement for the splint to be comfortably worn during the work day which ends up bruising the forearm and/or hand due to the repetitive motion into the edges of the splint. If or when daytime use of the splint isn’t tolerated, use it only at night to prevent extreme wrist bending while sleeping. This usually REALLY helps. Bottom line, remember the saying, “…an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!”

We realize you have a choice in who you consider for your health care provision and we sincerely appreciate your trust in choosing our service for those needs.  If you, a friend or family member require care for CTS, we would be honored to render our services.

 

A Multi For Preventing Cancer.

9 Jan

Dr. Michael F. Roizen

Co-Author of 4 #1 NY Times Bestsellers including: YOU Staying Young.

The Owner’s Manual For Extending Your Warranty (Free Press)

Our basic premise is that your body is amazing.  You get a do over. It doesn’t take that long, and it isn’t that hard if you know what to do.  In these notes, we give you a short course in what to do so it becomes easy for you, and for you to teach others. We want you to know how much control you have over your quality and length of life.

In these articles, we’ve repeatedly recommended a multivitamin (“multi”) as an insurance policy against deficiency from an imperfect diet.  Now, there is an even more important reason.  But first, let’s deal with our premise that a multi is an insurance policy against an imperfect diet. Since only 190,000 of the over 26 million people who have taken the full nutrition program at RealAge (it’s free at RealAge.com) get the right amount of vitamins and minerals from diet alone, we believe that taking half a multi twice a day is exactly that, an insurance policy against a less than perfect diet.

But, it is more than that.  A headline randomized controlled study (the gold standard of studies) from this October’s Journal of the American Medical Association indicates a daily multi prevents cancer.  That’s big! A daily multi (actually half a multi twice a day) decreased non-prostate cancer by 12%. Prostate cancer was equal in the placebo and multi group. (The data came from the Physicians’ Health Study-II, a long-term study of the health of male Physicians over the age of 50.)

50 to 87% of Americans are short of vitamin D in published studies and you need it to help fight cancer (see below), to keep arteries young, and to aid brain function. So, make sure you get it measured and take what is needed to keep its level normal. Also, vitamin D3 is essential for calcium absorption and incorporation into bone.  Why ½ of a multivitamin in the morning and half in the evening?  You pee out the water soluble vitamins in 8 to 16 hours so you need it twice a day.

When you think about it, much of what we do and use for our health really boils down to protection. For example, we wear helmets to protect us from an accidental brain smoosh and running shoes to protect us from shards of glass. Perhaps the greatest protector of all is the one that you can’t buy in any store or order from any online discount warehouse (though there’s an idea). It’s the p53 tumor suppressor gene, which has the job of recognizing when your cells are at risk of developing into cancer and doing what it can to put a stop to it. Its job (that of biological guard dog and computer spell-checker rolled into one mean gene) is to protect your body. Do you know what is essential to turn on your p 53 gene? It seems it is something in that multi.  In that randomized study of a multi or placebo, the individuals less likely than usual to get cancer were those physicians with 1/5th the smoking rate of the general population, exercised more than usual, took a daily aspirin more than the population as a whole, and were thinner.  Thus, a 12% reduction in all non-prostate cancers (what the multi had) was a very big deal.  A big enough deal for me to take the multi for that reason alone.  Even though I eat 9 servings of fruits and veggies a day on average, I also need a multi as an insurance policy against an imperfect diet.

Thanks for reading.

Young Dr Mike

NOTE: You should NOT take this as medical advice. 

This article is of the opinion of its author.

Before you do anything, please consult with your doctor.

You can follow Dr Roizen  (and get updates on the latest and most important medical stories  of the week) on twitter @YoungDrMike. 

Feel free to continue to send questions to youdocs@gmail.com. You can follow Dr Roizen on twitter @YoungDrMike (and get updates on the latest and most important medical stories of the week).  The YOU docs have a new web site: YOUBeauty.com  and its companion BeautySage.com the only site we know of where you can find skin products proven to meet the claims (opened for business on June 1st, 2012), and a new book: YOU: The Owner’s Manual for Teens.

Michael F. Roizen, M.D., is chief wellness officer and chair of the Wellness Institute at the Cleveland Clinic. His radio show streams live on http://www.healthradio.net  Saturdays from 5-7 p.m . E-mail him questions at YouDocs@gmail.com.   He is the co-author of 4 #1 NY Times Best Sellers including : YOU Staying Young and YOU: The Owner’s Manual. He is Chief Medical Consultant to the two year running Emmy award winning Dr Oz show– The Dr Oz show is #2 nationally in daytime TV.  See what all the fun is about, and what he, The Enforcer, is up to. Check local listings or log onto DoctorOz.com for channel and time. And for more health info, log onto youbeauty.com anytime.

 

 

Low Back and Obesity.

4 Jan

Losing weight can dramatically reduce Low back pain (LBP). For the next 2 months, we will look at easy ways to lose weight without the need for fancy, hard to follow diets. As the saying goes, this is a “no-brainer.”

Time you meals. Set a timer for 20 minutes and “pace yourself” so that you eat slower. This is one of the most effective ways to reduce weight without a complicated diet plan. Make each bite “count” and enjoy the food’s flavor! This tricks your brain into thinking you’re more full while wolfing down your food in a hurry blocks those brain signals, resulting in over-eating.

Sleep an extra hour. This can result in a drop of 14 pounds a year according to University of Michigan research.

Serve three vegetables and/or fruit vs. one in your evening meal. You can eat more and STILL reduce weight!

Add a broth-based soup to your day. It fills you up without adding calories. Avoid creamy soups as they can be high in fat and calories.

Eat more whole grains. Add brown rice, barley, oats, buckwheat and/or whole wheat when consuming waffles, pizza crust, English muffins, and pasta. If you are gluten sensitive, look for alternatives like quinoa.

Visualize your favorite “skinny clothes.” Think about, or literally take out, a favorite dress or pair of pants that you no longer fit into and use it as a target or goal to wear them again.

Skip the bacon! If you avoid that 2 strips of bacon at breakfast or on your sandwich at lunch, you’ll save about 100 calories / day, about 10 pounds per year! Instead add tomato slices, banana peppers, roasted red bell peppers, grainy mustard, or a light spread of herbed goat cheese.

Pizza perfect! Choose a veggie topping vs. meat and shave 100 calories from your meal. Consider going light on the cheese, use reduced fat cheese and choose a thin, bread-like crust made with olive oil.

Drink “smart!” Trade that soda in for water or zero-calorie seltzer and you’ll avoid about 10 teaspoons of sugar! Add a lemon, mint or frozen strawberries for a much more satisfying beverage.

We realize you have a choice in who you choose to provide your healthcare services.  If you, a friend or family member requires care for low back pain, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services and look forward in serving you and your family presently and, in the future.

 

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