Posts Tagged ‘Chronic’

What Could Be The Cause Of Chronic Nosebleeds ?

My dad is having really bad nosebleeds that last approximately 10 minutes each time. He has recently had 3 strokes, he has high blood pressure, congestive heart failure and sciatica. He takes a myriad of medications to treat these conditions.
We live in Nevada, dry climate but he’s been living here for 12 years and has never had nosebleeds. If a nurse or someone in the medical profession could answer this I would greatly appreciate any advice.

I Have Chronic Lower Back Pain Due To Sciatica, I Need Help From People Who Have Overcome This Problem.?

HELP!!! I am in severe pain and do not want to get surgery. I am thinking about trying Reflexology. Also, I have heard acupunture can relieve the pain permanently.

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Does Anyone Else Suffer From Chronic Sciatica Pain?

i have had sciatica pain for ten weeks now. my husband is insistent that sciatica goes away sooner than that. i dont think he is right. dont people have chronic sciatica, or is this something i should be worried about having had it last this long. please keep in mind i have a thirty lb. toddler i tote around with me all day……..could be affecting it?

Is Sciatica Something That Can Be Chronic For 4 Months?

Yes. It’s nerve pain. I got rid of mine through stretching exercises and yoga, but I had it for months before I found out I could help myself. Medications can help, but not all that much. They just dull the symptoms a bit. There is a prescription Lidocaine patch that numbs it, and that’s helpful.

How Do You Cope With Severe Chronic Sciatica?

foe over one year I have been dealing with chronic pain from sciatica and i am losing my coping skills

I Have Severe Chronic Back And Sciatica Pain 24/7 And Is Getting Worse.?

I am on 20 mg endone daily, 80mg Oxycontin daily and have been prescribed endep though have yet to start it, the dose is 50 mg. I average if i am lucky 8 hours sleep a week. Can some one suggest some thing else that may help

Using Natural Alternatives for Pain

I see many people who deal with daily pain in my practice. Many resign themselves to taking pain medications such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) or naproxen (Aleve). Others with more serious pain end up getting prescriptions for narcotics or having procedures such as epidural injections or even surgery.
Fortunately I am in a position to recommend a number of non-medical alternatives for controlling pain. Many of these are available at the local health food store. Others require a visit to a healthcare practitioner. If you are suffering from pain here are a few things you can do.
First of all you need to determine whether you are experiencing acute or chronic pain. Acute pain feels sharper in quality than chronic or what we sometimes call subacute pain. Many times acute pain is associated with inflammation. The tissues may feel slightly swollen and can be very tender to the touch. With subacute pain the tissues feel tighter and can restrict movement.
If the pain is moderate to severe and feels sharper in quality, (acute pain) then icing the painful area will help. Most people use the gel type ice packs. These are nice because they only last for about 20 minutes which is all you need. A good protocol to follow is to ice for 20 minutes then remove the ice for 40 minutes. One of the best times to use ice is before bedtime as the tissues tend to become inflamed over night. This will cause more intense pain in the morning.
Sometimes the inflammation comes and goes over a period of weeks. This is due to the damage in the soft tissues such as in your neck and back. When you go about your day the tissues absorb a certain amount of force. If the force exceeds what the damaged tissues can handle the tissue becomes inflamed. Many of my patients prematurely used heat in this case. If you heat up tissues that are inflamed you will prolong the inflammation. Using ice is a safer bet.
Another thing you can do for pain is to begin a regimen of natural anti-inflammatory substances. Many people do not know about these. There are a number of natural substances that have an anti-inflammatory effect. You can get these at your local health food store.
The natural anti-inflammatory substances include:
Bioflavinoids — these come from fruits and vegetables. There are many bioflavinoid compounds and many natural anti-inflammatory products contain them.
Tumeric and Ginger are commonly used spices and are sold in capsule form in health food stores.
Boswellia Serrata is an Indian herb with anti-inflammatory properties.
Trypsin and Chymotrypsin are digestive enzymes usually taken for digestive problems but also exhibit an anti-inflammatory effect.
The dose will depend on the product. You can consult with the store or a natural physician to determine the dose. Nutritional substances are much safer to take than even over the counter medications so side effects are at a minimum.
Lastly, some healthcare practitioners use electrical modalities such as TENS to help control pain. TENS stands for transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. Basically TENS bombards the spinal cord with electrical signals that interfere with pain. The research on TENS is mixed with regard to acute pain. In my experience with TENS I have seen both good and poor results. A lot has to do with setting up the unit properly. After using it awhile the body can adapt to the stimulus so the unit has to be adjusted regularly.
Other electrical modalities used for pain include interferential current and microcurrent. These are administered by practitioners such as chiropractors or physical therapists. Both help the tissues heal by either reducing inflammation or by stimulating the production of proteins in the cells.
One of the newer therapies used to decrease pain and stimulate healing is low level laser light therapy. The actual mechanism of healing is not known but clinical research shows that it can be effective in reducing pain and accelerating healing.
Acupuncture can also be effective in reducing muscle pain. Acupuncture is done by inserting needles or using mild electrical stimulation at specific points on the body. The points are located along meridians which are channels through which the life force flows. No one knows exactly how acupuncture works but many studies have been done that support its pain reducing effects.
There are a number of mind-body techniques that can help reduce or even eliminate pain. Meditation and guided imagery are two popular techniques that are used to reduce pain. In guided imagery you get into a relaxed state and then create an image of your pain or illness. You then imagine the image dissolving and yourself in a healthy pain-free state. Guided imagery may take a bit of practice but the results are well worth the effort.
There are many ways to treat pain aside from the familiar pills and injections that carry with them a significant risk of side effects. I always recommend trying the safer alternative methods first. In most cases the pain can be successfully treated without the dangers of medications.

Is Their A Medication That Chronic Sciatic Nerve Suffers Has To Take Ever Day For The Symptoms Of Sciatica?

to resume a daily lifestyle, like exercising or working on a job in general. If so what kinds of medication do they take and what kinds does the doctor per scribe them?

Herniated Disc Back Pain

Herniated disc back pain is a dreaded occurrence for many dorsopathy sufferers.  The actual words “herniated disc” are enough to cause anxiety and worry over possible agony, surgery and disability.  In reality, the spinal disc is a much maligned structure, rarely responsible for the plethora of painful conditions typically blamed on it.  This is due to the extremely common nature of disc bulges and ruptures, as well as the universality of disc degeneration.

Herniated discs can occur anywhere in the spine, but are usually found at either end.  The cervical spine, also known as the neck, is an area which must bend and flex constantly, as well as hold up the significant weight of the head.  The discs in the neck wear out fast from all this movement and degenerative disc disease is often diagnosed in one or more vertebral levels by the age of 30 and sometimes much younger.  The lumbar spine, also known as the lower back, is the most common location for degenerative disc disease to occur and these age and activity related changes are usually in effect by the age of 20, especially at L4/L5 and L5/S1.  Herniated discs are also common in both of these spinal regions and can occur from injury, normal degeneration or idiopathic reasons.

Herniated discs are thought to create pain in several possible ways.  The most common is called foraminal stenosis, also known as a pinched nerve.  This condition exists when a bulging or ruptured disc puts pressure on one of the spinal nerve roots which exit the spinal column at every vertebral level.  While this situation can occur, it is very rare, since the disc would have to completely close off the neuroforaminal opening under extreme pressure in order to compress the nerve sufficiently.  Furthermore, even when this rare event does happen, continued compression of the nerve root will result in absolute lack of sensation.  This is objective numbness, not the subjective numbness often experienced by many patients.  Additionally, there will be no pain or tingling, although real muscular weakness in the area served by the pinched nerve is likely.

The next possible source of herniated disc back pain is due to spinal stenosis.  This is diagnosed when the disc applies pressure to the actual spinal cord, narrowing the spinal canal through which the cord passes.  Many cases of spinal stenosis are completely asymptomatic, while occasionally, this condition can be a real problem.  The most symptomatic instances of spinal stenosis exist when bone spurs (osteophytes) are the source of the narrowed canal and most disc bulges simply do not create any noticeable effect on the cord.

The third way that herniated disc back pain may be explained is from chemical radiculitis.  This is when the proteins from the interior of the disc bleed out of the damaged disc structure and irritate surrounding nerve tissue.  This is a controversial diagnosis and is not openly accepted in many medical sectors.  It seems that if this condition does indeed exist, it only affects some people with particularly sensitive nerve tissue, since many people suffer severe ruptures and experience no pain at all. 

The last possible explanation for disc related back pain is the unusual diagnosis of discogenic pain.  In this condition, the damaged disc is said to be the actual source of discomfort, which makes little sense, since intervertebral discs do not have nerves or even a dedicated blood supply.  Instead, they are nourished through the cartilaginous end plates which attach the discs to the surrounding upper and lower vertebral bones.  Some doctors believe it is the tiny nerves in these endplates which are painful, but that seems highly unlikely, since most patients report pain which is far too great and widespread to be sourced from such tiny and anatomically limited neurological tissues.

In the end, most patients do not enjoy relief from a wide range of conservative treatments or even surgeries directed at herniated discs and degenerative disc disease.  This has nothing at all to do with the talent of the doctor or the method of treatment.  Instead, therapy fails since the diagnosis is completely wrong.  Statistics show that herniated discs are often completely asymptomatic and even those which do cause trouble usually resolve with or without treatment in 6 to 8 weeks.  Disc conditions are almost never the real reason for chronic back pain.  Once you understand this simple fact, it is easy to see why the condition has such a treatment–resistant reputation… It is not that the damage to the spine is so great; it is instead that the pain is being blamed on a complete innocent and coincidental spinal scapegoat.

What’s The Difference Between Chronic Back Pain And Sciatica?

I have been experiencing strong and consistent back pain for as long as I can remember (I am 25 now). It starts with a little discomfort in my lower back, and about 20 minutes later, if I don’t take pain medication, my joints will start to ache on one side (my hip, my knee, my ankle). X-rays show some minor scoliosis and a compressed disc (L4 and L5). So far, orthopedic surgeons are reluctant to do anything or even take me seriously because I’m “not old enough to be in a lot of pain.”
My question is, could this be something more than a compressed disc? I’ve heard mention of sciatica but I have no idea what that is. I can usually catch it before it gets too bad, but it takes about 4 pills a day (Excedrin, Advil, etc) and I don’t think that’s a good long term answer.
And, one last question – what can I say to the doctor to get him to take me seriously?