Low Back Pain - Top Chiropractor in San Leandro, CA

Diet and Pain Management

June 10, 2011 by drburt

“Changes in the modern diet are largely responsible for the increasing incidence of essential fatty acid (EFA) imbalances and deficiencies.”

“The ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats has changed dramatically due to the widespread use of vegetable oils (mostly n-6 fats) in cooking and to the processing of oils to alter omega-3 fats to improve shelf life and eliminate their stronger taste (just think of the distinctive tastes of cod liver or flax oil).”

“Historical estimates place the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 oils at nearly 1:1 for prehistoric humans.”

By the turn of the century (1900), the ratio had increased to about 4:1. The current American ratio is about 25:1.

“The sharp rise is due to increased vegetable oil consumption: from 2 lb. per year in 1909 to 25 lb. per year in 1985!”

“Many of the chronic inflammatory conditions that accompany EFA imbalance are currently treated with symptom-specific pharmaceutical drugs such as steroids, prednisone, aspirin, and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), sulfasalazine, and colchicine.”

“The problem with such drug therapies is that they prevent the formation of ‘good’ anti-inflammatory eicosanoids, or they shift the production of one type of eicosanoid to another.”

“For effective, long-term management, eicosanoid production should be modified through dietary changes (balancing dietary intake of specific fats) and controlling insulin levels in the circulation.”

“Maintaining a proper balance between the various families of dietary fats may be one of the most important preventative measures a person can take to reduce the likelihood of developing one of the chronic diseases of modern civilization, such as diabetes, heart disease, obesity, irritable bowel syndrome, and autoimmune disease.”

“And for patients who may already have one of these diseases, EFA testing and therapy has been demonstrated to reduce both morbidity and mortality associated with these diseases.”

Source: American Academy of Pain Management – Weiner’s Pain Management – A Practical Guide for Clinicians

Proper Chiropractic Care for Low Back Pain in Young Athletes

May 27, 2011 by drburt

Proper Chiropractic Care for Low Back Pain in Young Athletes

I have recently had patient in my San Leandro Chiropractic clinic, traveling all the way from San Francisco. This is a young male in his early thirtieth with severe lower back pain which debilitating his activities of daily living every day. He has difficulty performing his duties at work as a financial advisor for one of the major banks in San Francisco Bay Area. Most of the day he has to stand around his desk, because both of his feet get numb and the pain gets unbearable. Taking pain medications during working hours does not do him any good as he can not concentrate on his tasks. He had this pain and numbness for the past seven months

He used to play hockey game with his friends. As you all know hockey is a very aggressive and contact sport. This physical activity requires maximum endurance in a short period of time. Many players fall and have multiple sprain and strain injuries that often times being ignored. My patient was not able to play a single game since the beginning of the first symptom.

During this seven months period he has seen a variety of different medical care practitioners. Medical Doctors were only able to prescribe pain medications and refer to other medical doctors such as Orthopedists and Neurologist. From his own words: “It seems like the Medical Doctor do not have any training at all for musculoskeletal conditions.” Physical therapists were trying to strengthen his injured muscles. His Gluteus Maximus and Medius as well as Psoas Major and Tensor Fascia Latae (TFL) were super tight and painful during deep tissue massage. It is counterproductive to strengthen injured musculature. One must heal it first and balance it out, then strengthen it.

During examination I have discovered that his right Sacroilliac Joint is about two inches lower then the right one. His shoulder level and ear level were unequal as well. Basically shoulders and head were compensating SI joint imbalance. All of the muscles mentioned above were not functioning properly. I have advised this patient two weeks of rehabilitation which includes electric simulation and heat for specific injured musculature, Gonstead Specific Manual Adjustment to the entire spine, and deep tissue massage from my CMT. I will publish another post after two weeks period about the results. So far, he informed me that the first session held up much longer then any other therapy he has received so far.

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Left Sided Lower Back Pain

May 20, 2011 by drburt

It is very common that some people will experience left sided back pain more frequently than the right side. This kind of pain can last for days, weeks and sometimes months. The location of this pain is usually below the ribs and around the side of the torso. This dull like and aching pain is usually more intense during particular hours of the day. Some people are very sensitive to touch in that area and some are sensitive to the dietary changes. Exercises, deep breaths and bowel movements can affect the pain on a left side of the lower back as well.

Many patients get frustrated because many times all of the tests come out negative. Prescription medication for pain might not be the solution to a problem. Some doctors will not have enough experience figuring out the cause of the pain. Ask your physician to refer you over to a specialist who has more experience with that kind of pain.

Here is a list of conditions which can cause lower left side back pain:

Ectopic pregnancy: A woman with a developing ectopic pregnancy may not display any signs or symptoms of being pregnant. Symptoms include lower abdominal pain, vaginal bleeding, cramping or stabbing pain around the pelvic area, dizziness and felling lightheaded.

Endometriosis: Symptoms may include pain in the pelvis, abdomen and lower back. Heavy flow of vaginal bleeding may accompany these symptoms.

Hypochondrial pain: Symptoms include pain under the rib cage, which can be referred from the colon or spleen.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS): Also known as spastic colon, IBS may be accompanied by abdominal pain, diarrhea, headaches, low back pain and chest pain.

Gastroesophageal Reflux Disorder: Symptoms may include heartburn, chest pain, back pain, difficulty swallowing or dry cough.

Pancreatitis: Symptoms that are chronic may include indigestion, abdominal pain, back pain, weight loss and steatorrhea (stool that is appears oily and foul smelling).

Peptic Ulcer: Symptoms may include a burning pain in the chest, nausea, vomiting, weight loss, change in appetite and back pain.

Gastrointestinal bleeding: Common causes include esophageal varices, stomach ulcer, erosions of the esophagus, duodenum or stomach; duodenal ulcer, abnormal blood vessels, colon cancer, anal fissures, colon polyps, diverticulosis, inflammatory bowel disease, internal hemorrhoids and inflammation of the large bowels.

Celiac Disease: Symptoms of celiac disease may mimic those of other conditions such as anemia, parasite infections, irritable bowel syndrome, gastric ulcers and skin disorders. Symptoms may include joint pain, weight loss, back pain, weakness and fatigue, bone disorders such as osteoporosis, diarrhea, abdominal cramps and anemia.

Radicular pain: This occurs when there is irritation or compression along the nerves exiting the spine. Symptoms include pain that is accompanied by weakness, numbness or a tingling sensation. Causes of radicular pain can be due to injury, trauma, soft tissue, disc herniation, facet syndrome or bony changes to the vertebral column.

Kidney stones: Symptoms include pain below the ribs, pain around the torso and back pain. It is also common to experience pain radiating into the lower abdomen and groin region. Other symptoms include pain during urination, nausea and vomiting.

Gallstones: Symptoms may include pain between the shoulder blades, pain in the center and upper right region of the abdomen, back pain and pain into the right shoulder. Additional symptoms may include abdominal pain after eating meals.

Problems with the adrenal gland: Common symptoms include headaches, dizziness when standing up or changing positions quickly, sensitivity to bright lights, low back pain.

Back Surgery, Cost of Insurance and Ineffectiveness of Care

April 13, 2011 by drburt

As the number of orthopedic surgeons in the USA is growing so is the number of back surgeries performed on patients with back pain. Often time it is a 50/50 chance that patient will be pain free after a surgical procedure due to the soft tissue fibrosis and lack of proper post surgical rehabilitation. Did you know that over 100,000 people die each year in this country from surgery complications. This number by far exceeds the number of automobile accidents in the entire country. The ratio is 23 percent for men and 32 percent for women.

It is not the secret that the health care system in this country is the most expensive in the world. Thus all U.S. citizens must get the best educated doctors who in theory would make the healthiest nation in the world and would provide the best medical care available. World Health Organization stated that as of 2000 the U.S. ranked #1 in cost, #72 in population health, #37 in health care delivery with 48 million Americans uninsured. France is ranked as #4, #4 and #1 and only 1% uninsured. The question is why French get more medical care for their money than we are?

TIME Magazine stated that U.S. spends more to get less then any other industrialized country in the world. Why such a waste of resources? This country spent twice as much on a sick-care as it did on food in 2006 and more than China’s 1.3 billion citizens consumed altogether. Wow, we can feed countries like India and China for the whole year.

President Barack Obama stated: “Today, we are spending over 2 trillion a year on health care – almost 50 percent more per person than the next most costly nation. And yet, for all this spending, more of our citizens are uninsured; the quality of our care is often lower; and we aren’t any healthier. In fact, citizens in some countries that spend less than we do are actually living longer than we do.”

According to Forbes Magazine Back Pain cost over $40 billion for treatment alone. If we include disability, work loss and other factors the total cost would range somewhere between $100-200 billion per year. That is quite a large amount of money. Most of the countries do not even produce this much. About 3 million people went to Hospital E.R. for lower back pain which cost $9.5 billion. Low Back Pain is the number nine most expensive condition treated in U.S. Hospitals. If people could only maintain their bodies the way they maintain their vehicles things would be different. Regular Chiropractic care could prevent biomechanical vertebral misalignments and therefore save an individual from unnecessary expensive surgical procedure.

Pran Manga, PhD. MPhil health economist stated: “ There is an overwhelming body of evidence indicating that chiropractic therapy of lower back pain is more cost-effective than medical management.” Many other studies proved that chiropractic manipulation for none specific low back pain is far more effective than other forms of treatments. Millions of patients are satisfied with the results that they are getting with chiropractic care. Watch several video testimonials on this blog. Only 42 out of 131 military treatment facilities have access to a chiropractic care due to the medical bureaucracy within the Department of Defense.