May 2017 Newsletter

Chiropractic Office Closed May 24th – May 30th

The office will be closed for chiropractic visits May 24th – 30th for vacation.  We will open again on Wednesday, May 31st at 8:30 AM.

Please inquire with Allyson, Chrisanthi and Kelly for individual massage or acupuncture appointments as they will have varying availability.

Chiropractic Care Critical After Auto Injuries

In early April, I attended a terrific conference in Chicago to learn more about treatments to help people who have been injured in auto accidents. I learned some great new approaches to help people dealing with whiplash, headaches, concussion, neck and back pain after collisions.

Chiropractic adjustments are exceptionally useful for helping people recover more fully from their injuries. We are able to isolate specific injured joints that need motion restored. Physical therapy, massage and exercise are all useful as well, but specific adjustments really improved patient outcomes. Consider this:

• Patients treated with adjustments needed one half the sessions to complete the treatment compared to with conventional physiotherapy protocol.

Manipulative Treatment vs Conventional Physiotherapy Treatment in Whiplash Injury: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

More critical info from the conference:

• Half of all those exposed to a motor vehicle collision will never fully recover.
• Whiplash-Associated Disorders (WAD) from motor vehicle collisions afflict over 4 million Americans annually, reducing quality of life and accounting for an estimated $30 billion in medical costs.

The Rapid and Progressive Degeneration of the Cervical Multifidus in Whiplash:  A MRI study of Fatty Infiltration.

Key points from the studies and the conference include:

• Care should ideally begin early, within a week of being injured.
• Include varieties of stress management.
• Encourage early and persistent movement.
• Include exercise. passive articular movements, and chiropractic joint adjusting.

If you know anyone who has had a motor vehicle collision, I would love to help them recover and get back to living a full life. Too often in practice, I hear people tell me about an old auto accident being a cause of lingering issues and pain 10 and 20 years later during their initial consultation.

Looking at the head and neck diagram above, you can see that ligament injury occurs 75 milliseconds after impact. People often assume if they are strong and have good muscular support, they can withstand collision forces with little damage. While strong muscles are helpful in other aspects of recovering from injury, 75 milliseconds is not enough time for our brains to initiate our muscles to help protect us. The damage, unfortunately, is already done. Ligaments sprain and tear.

Let’s work to make sure you are a part of the 50% of people who do fully recover. We are here to help you!
 

Get Ready for Flying Pig Races!

Sunday May 7th is the 19th annual Flying Pig marathon. Many of you are running or walking a one mile, 5K, 10K, 1/2 marathon or full marathon this coming weekend.

Congratulations on putting in the training effort for these great events. Last week we started seeing more and more of our runners in the office getting adjusted prior to the big day.

We will look forward to seeing many more of you in the office this week get ‘tuned up’ to be in great condition for the races.

Good luck to all and enjoy the day!
 

Degenerative Joint Disease aka Arthritis

I came across a quote from Dr. Stuart McGill that nicely explains a common finding/diagnosis from imaging studies on the back or neck. McGill is a professor of spinal bio-metrics and well known expert on back pain treatment and prevention.

• Yet another popular diagnosis is “degenerative disc disease”.  I am so disheartened when a distraught patient patient expresses their fears to me to me regarding this supposedly progressive disease.  When I tell them in actuality they have no such disease, their reactions vary from relief to anger towards the person who mislabeled their condition. A “degenerative disc disease” diagnosis is the equivalent of telling your mother-in-law with wrinkles that she has a degenerative face disease.

The reason I like this quote is because many people I work with have been diagnosed with degenerative disc disease and they are quite distressed. I try to help people understand that most people age 25 and older would be diagnosed with some mild or moderate degree of “DDD” of “DJD” upon imaging regardless of any pain or dysfunction. Similarly, most people have wrinkles on their skin as they age, as tissue changes with time and exposure to the environment. With this said, clearly there are degrees of degeneration. More advanced stages of degeneration are more likely to usher in pain and functional problems.

A study published in 2014 corroborates McGill.  “Systematic Literature Review of Imaging Features of Spinal Degeneration in Asymptomatic Populations” found that high proportions of individuals have spine degeneration but do not have any pain or decreased function.

That does not mean that imaging should never be used to help diagnose back pain. MRIs can be very helpful in determining the best types and approaches to treatment in some cases. In a study that contrasts with the one previously cited, “MRI Findings of Disc Degeneration are more Prevalent in Adults with Low Back Pain than in Asymptomatic Controls: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis” researchers found that for conditions such as Disc Bulge, Spondylolsis, Central Canal Stenosis and Disc Extrusion, MRI’s found a positive result more in symptomatic patients with  as opposed to asymptomatic people.

Please don’t be discouraged if you have been diagnosed with degenerative joint disease or degenerative disc disease. In some cases this diagnosis describes changes associated with aging and other times it describes serious problems. Please do not assume the worst. We can help you sort this out and create a plan for better health now and going forward.
 

Prenatal Yoga Classes and Partner Workshops at Shine Yoga

Yoga during pregnancy is a great exercise that helps with variety issues from pain to optimizing the labor and delivery process.  If you are looking for a prenatal yoga class, I recommend Shine Yoga, located in East Hyde Park.  The class is for all mom’s-to-be at any stage of pregnancy and it is also helpful for women wanting to get into a yoga practice after having a baby. 

Shine also offers a one day prenatal partner workshop for pregnant mothers and their partner. My wife and I really enjoyed this workshop. The workshop teaches positions that may be helpful during childbirth and relaxation techniques that can be used at any time.

For more information about class and workshop schedules please visit Shine Yoga’s website or call 513-533-9642.

Recipe of the Month: Grilled Fajita Steak Salad with Avocado Cilantro Dressing

Grilling weather is upon us! This Grilled Fajita Steak Salad with Avocado Cilantro Dressing from Wholesomelicious is a hearty salad perfect for dinner and extra dressing makes a great dip for raw vegetables.  The recipe is both Paleo and Whole 30 friendly.