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Diet, exercise can be keys to relieving chronic knee pain
Knee pain, or osteoarthritis of the knee, can be a debilitating and life-altering condition for many.
However, diet, especially related to maintaining a proper weight, and exercise play critical roles in treating osteoarthritis of the knee and other weight-bearing joints.
About 60 percent of adults in this country are overweight and 30 percent are obese. Those numbers continue to rise, and we know that obesity is a definite risk factor for developing osteoarthritis. We also know that heavier patients often have more pain associated with arthritis.
If an arthritic patient is overweight, we encourage that person to lose weight and adopt a non-impact exercise program; activities such as swimming, walking, bicycling or using an elliptical trainer can be well tolerated while helping to burn calories and maintain joint motion. Low-resistance strength training can also be helpful.
There are many programs available through our local YMCA, health clubs and rehabilitation / physical therapy departments that can help patients get on the “right track.” The key to success, however, is commitment and perseverance. Often working with a personal trainer or being part of an exercise / weight loss accountability group can help a person to “stay the course.” If followed, he or she may experience less pain and improved outcome in combination with other treatment modalities.
Full story of chronic knee pain health at Germantown Now
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Freezing Nerves, An Effective Way To Treat Chronic Pain
A form of treatment called cyroneurolysis is being used for chronic pain caused by nerve damage; it involves using a tiny ball of ice to interrupt pain signals and eliminate pain while the nerves slowly recover.
The results of the study, presented at the Society of Interventional Radiology's 38th Annual Scientific Meeting in New Orleans, could mean possible treatment for people suffering from a condition called neuralagia, characterized by a sharp shocking pain that follows the path of a nerve.
William Moore, M.D., medical director of radiology at Stony Brook University School of Medicine in Stony Brook, N.Y, said:
"Cryoneurolysis could have big implications for the millions of people who suffer from neuralgia, which can be unbearable and is very difficult to treat. Cryoneurolysis offers these patients an innovative treatment option that provides significant lasting pain relief and allows them to take a lower dose of pain medication - or even skip drugs altogether."
Full story of freezing chronic pain at Medical News Today
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Americans think people with chronic pain should suck it up
A new health and medical poll shows that far more Americans are concerned about the abuse of painkillers than the chronic pain that forces people to seek relief through prescribed drugs.
Which is sort of weird since 63% of respondents to the Research!America poll said they know someone whose pain was extreme enough for them to seek prescription medication, yet only 18% believe chronic pain is a major health problem.
While prescription painkiller addiction is a real problem in this country, it's interesting that chronic pain essentially is dismissed by more than 80% of respondents. Maybe some Americans actually have to be in chronic pain to believe it's real. Everyone else is just a crybaby!
For a large percentage of elderly Americans, chronic pain is part of their daily lives, a byproduct of aging as the body's various parts -- particularly the joints -- begin to wear out. Perhaps the poll respondents who dismiss chronic pain should advise old people to stop complaining or maybe just stop getting old!
Full story of America's chronic pain at IT World
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Relieve Chronic Pain By De-Stressing, Study Says
Living with chronic pain can be truly stressful, but a new study contributes to growing research that managing stress may help reduce discomfort as well. Doctors from the University of Montreal found an association between the intensity of the pain experienced by chronic pain patients and their reported stress levels.
In the small study of just 24 participants, 16 of whom had chronic pain and 18 of whom were healthy control subjects, researchers found that patients who had a smaller hippocampus were more likely to also have higher cortisol levels. And higher levels of the stress hormone, in turn, contribute to increased reported pain scores on a scale of intensity.
"Our study shows that a small hippocampal volume is associated with higher cortisol levels, which lead to increased vulnerability to pain and could increase the risk of developing pain chronicity," lead author Étienne Vachon-Presseau said in a statement.
Full story of chronic pain and de-stressing at Huffington Post
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Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: Signs, Symptoms, Risks And Foods That Prevent Pain And Aching
It starts with tingling and can end in a wrist splint.
Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a condition that leaves wrists in pain, inflamed and numb, according to Sherry Torkos, author of The Canadian Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine.
But causes of CTS start almost on the surface. Often, it begins with pressure on the median nerve, the only nerve that runs through the carpal tunnel of the forearm and up past the upper limb and into your neck. Think about it: Our nerves and blood vessels are delicate pieces of tissue that have an important role in our bodies and, as Torkos adds, any type of pressure can cause damage.
And sometimes, it's not you — it's your workplace. Even though there aren't exact numbers of how many people suffer from CTS each year, the Canadian Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCCOHS) says studies have shown that some occupations have a higher chance of developing the condition.
One study found that 614 out of 982 grocery store cashiers reported symptoms of CTS, while another report found that out of a group of 788 meat handlers, 117 had surgical treatment for CTS over a 12-year period, according to the CCCOHS. The organization also found that farmers, painters, assembly line workers, janitors and office workers are at the highest risk of developing pain.
Full story of carpal tunnel syndrome at Huffington Post CA
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Carpal Tunnel Self-Help Program Earns Five Star Rating
The Carpal Tunnel Master and Beyond program earned Clickbank’s highest rating based on exceptional customer satisfaction. The program shows how to identify and fix various causes of numbness and pain in the hands and fingers.
Hilma Volk, a licensed massage therapist since 1991, created the online video program “Carpal
Tunnel Master and Beyond” two years ago. But really it was almost 20 years in the making. She began developing techniques to use on herself when she started having hand problems. She then expanded her knowledge to cover numerous occupational and recreational causes of numbness in the fingers.
Carpal Tunnel Master and Beyond is the only carpal tunnel product to earn the five-star rating from Clickbank.com, the Internet’s largest marketplace for digital products. Clickbank’s rating is based on customer satisfaction combined with a rarely used guarantee policy. Praise like the following from customer Christy Pierce is common, “I have been in so much pain for months….Shoulders, arms, elbows and hands, that I was beginning to think I would never have any relief…. Thank you. I never buy anything like this on the internet, but how thankful I am that I did this time.”
Full story of carpal tunnel self-help program at Press Release Center
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Genetic Differences May Influence Sensitivity to Pain, According to New Study
The study, published in PLOS Genetics on 20 December, adds to growing evidence that particular genes are involved in chronic pain and highlights this pathway as a potential target for more effective pain relief treatments for patients.
The collaborative study between King's, Pfizer Ltd and the Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI), used a new method to study and compare DNA, called 'exome sequencing', to identify genetic variations relating to pain sensitivity.
Lead author Dr Frances Williams, from the Department of Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology at King's College London said: 'Chronic pain is a significant personal and socio-economic burden, with nearly one in five people experiencing it at some time in their lives. Current pain treatments often have either limited efficacy or side effects for many, so the possibility of a new approach to pain relief is an exciting development.
Full story of pain sensitivity at Science Daily
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Preventing Osteoarthritis: How Much Exercise is Just Right?
During the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in Chicago, Thomas M. Link, MD, PhD, chief of the Musculoskeletal Imaging Section in UCSF’s Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging described a study expanding on earlier work that showed an association between physical activity and cartilage degeneration.
Nearly one in every two people in the U.S. may develop knee osteoarthritis by age 85, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By 2030, an estimated 67 million Americans over the age of 18 are projected to have physician-diagnosed arthritis.
In the new study, Link and his colleagues looked at changes in knee cartilage among a group of 205 middle-aged adults over a four-year period, taking magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based measurements every two years to track early degenerative changes to the cartilage in their knees over time.
The patients were all part of the Osteoarthritis Initiative, an international collaboration working on the prevention and treatment of knee osteoarthritis that is coordinated by UCSF and funded by the National Institutes of Health. They answered questionnaires yearly over four years to correlate their exercise levels with the MRI measurements.
Full story of osteoarthritis prevention at Health Canal
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Neurostimulator: The chronic pain eliminator
BACKGROUND: Chronic pain can be mild or excruciating, episodic or continuous, merely inconvenient or totally incapacitating. With chronic pain, signals of pain remain active in the nervous system for weeks, months, or even years. This can take both a physical and emotional toll on a person. The most common sources of pain stem from headaches, joint pain, pain from injury, and backaches. Other kinds of chronic pain include tendinitis, sinus pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, and pain affecting specific parts of the body, such as the shoulders, pelvis, and neck. Generalized muscle or nerve pain can also develop into a chronic condition. Because of the mind-body links associated with chronic pain, effective treatment requires addressing psychological as well as physical aspects of the condition. ( Source: WebMD)
SYMPTOMS: The symptoms of chronic pain include mild to severe pain that does not go away, pain that may be described as shooting, burning, aching, or electrical, and feeling of discomfort, soreness, tightness, or stiffness. Pain is not a symptom that exists alone. Other problems associated with pain include fatigue, sleeplessness, withdrawal from activity and increased need to rest, weakened immune system, changes in mood including hopelessness, fear, depression, irritability, anxiety, and stress, and disability. (Source: www.webmd.com)
Full story of neurostimulator at KSAT.com
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Innovations in pain management free patients to live their lives (VIDEO)
Like a hot fireplace poker being rammed into her foot. That’s how Denise Yackle describes the pain she suffered after falling and tearing the nerves in her broken ankle.
The searing pain was there every day, nonstop. It kept her from sleeping at night. It forced her to take powerful narcotics that left her in a fog. It made her feel like a burden on her new husband.
Eventually, it cost her her career as a law enforcement officer.
And after several years of ceaseless agony, it brought her to the brink of suicide.
“At one point, because of the stress, the pain every day, I felt like I was not going to be able to handle it,” Yackle told GreenvilleOnline.com.
About 100 million Americans deal with chronic pain of varying intensity every day, according to the Institute of Medicine.
That’s more than heart disease, cancer and diabetes combined, said Dr. Christopher Gilligan, medical director of the Center for Pain Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and anesthesia instructor at Harvard Medical School. And it costs the nation $635 billion a year in medical treatment and lost productivity.
Full story of pain management at Greenville Online
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