Back Pain Caused by Car Accidents in Orange County, CA

Orange County Car Accident Back Pain Info
by Auto Accident Specialist Dr Barry Marks, Chiropractor Orange, CA 92868

Back Pain due to Car Accidents

If you are having back pain as the result of an auto accident injury, in addition to the information on this blog, go check out my auto accident specific site at http://occaraccident.wordpress.com

While whiplash neck injuries are more common after a car crash, low back injuries also occur with great frequency.  Low back pain due to low back disc herniation or disc bulges are not uncommon. Many crash victims note their back pain comes on gradually and is delayed sometimes by weeks or even months, which is often due to discs being injured and slowly breaking down.

Back sprain is the most common type of lower back injury after a car crash and is characterized by pain at the junction between the lower back and tailbone that causes pain to be felt running across the lower back. This involves injury of the facet joint ligaments and cartilage and misalignment of the affected spinal bones.  With proper chiropractic treatment, most of these cases will resolve in time.

Pain that does not resolve, worsens or begins to run into the buttocks or down the leg is a sign that a disc was most likely injured and has slowly failed. Symptoms like these require an MRI for evaluation of the discs and nerves and recovery will be much slower.  Treatments such as DRX9000 spinal decompression may be successful at rehabilitating the injured discs and relieving the pain. Failure of that to cure the lower back pain, surgery may be the next option.

Lower back pain is a fairly common occurrence after a car accident. Proper evaluation and treatment are crucial to return the spine to normal and to avoid chronic pain.

For more information on auto accident injuries visit: http://orange-car-accident.com

Back Pain from Disc Dehydration with No Disc Bulge or Herniation and No Sciatica?

Lower Back Pain Diagnosis and Back Pain Treatment Information
Dr Barry L Marks, DC | Orange County Back Pain Specialist

A common question I get is “How can I have pain, when there is no disc bulge or herniated disc and there is no pressure on my nerves on the MRI? My doctor says I have no bulge so he doesn’t know why I hurt…”

It’s an excellent question really and one that often stumps doctors. The answer lies in the anatomy of the spine and disc in particular. Up until about 20 years ago doctors thought the discs and supporting ligaments of the spine had no nerve supply. We now know however that the outer layers of the disc called the annulus and the broad ligament that runs up and down the back of each spinal bone (posterior longitudinal ligament) are both supplied by the sinuvertebral nerve. This nerve carries pain impulses from these structures.

When you think of nerves, you may think of a sinlge wire leading from the spine to it’s intended target like wiring in your house or car. It’s a nice and neat way to think. The reality is however, that nerves are more like ivy. A main nerve may lead to the target, but once there the nerve divides into many tiny fibers that spread out over the area. So it is in your disc and posterior longitiduinal ligament.

So when your disc is in trouble and beghins to become dehydrated and deteriorates (degenerative disc disease) it has been found that your nerves begin multiplying and cover the area even more densly. This leads to a disc that is hypersensitive and when the nerves are irritated they bombard your brain with pain messages.  The nerves that are embedded in your discs tell the brain to sense pain directly over the spine. Therefore, if you have degenerative disc disease of your last disc, your L5 disc, you will perceive pain in the midline of your lower back just above your tailbone.

The reason you do not experience sciatica is because the nerves that cause sciatic pain (pain down your butt to your legs and feet)  are further away from the disc in the hole between the spinal bones known as the foramen. To irritate these nerves, there needs to be pressure into the foramen by either a space that is diminished by the two bones coming closer together as the disc deteriorates or from a bulge or herniation poking into the foramen and onto the nerves.

So, if you are sufferifng from pain that is in the midline of your spine and you have a positive MRI for dehydration (desiccation) or degenerative disc disease, but no bulge or herniation it is likely you are suffering from disc disease that is affecting the sinuvertebrtal nerve.

For more information on treating this type of back pain go to: http://orangespinaldecompression.com and http://cureforlowerbackpain.com

Back pain medications…safe?

Back pain treatment information
Orange, CA
Back pain specialist Dr Barry L Marks, DC
Author of “Cure for Lower Back Pain”

Many regard taking medications for lower back pain to be safe and with little risk. Afterall, it is the first course of treatment in traditional medical treatment of back pain.

But are medications really safe?

Here are a few drug facts to consider:

• According to Canadian researchers, approximately 32,000 hospitalized patients (and possibly as many as 106,000) in the USA die each year because of adverse reactions to their prescribed medications. (Source: AMA, 1998), Nov. 25, 1998, Vol. 280, No. 20, from the web at http://jama.ama-assn.org/issues/v280n20/ffull/jlt1125-1.html, last accessed Feb. 12, 2001.)
• OTC medications as a category are responsible for more than 150,000 hospitalizations every year, according to the Food and Drug Administration, and almost 1000 OTC medications have been linked to liver toxicity, which causes about 2000 deaths annually in the United States (Ford MD et al 2001).
• More than 30,000 cases per year of acetaminophen overdose are reported to the American Association of Poison Control Centers (Bartlett D 2004).
• NSAIDs results in approximately 107,000 hospitalizations annually for gastrointestinal complications and 16,500 deaths for arthritis patients (Peura DA 2002).

Obviously popping a pill is not without risk. If you are suffering from back pain or arthritis be sure to investigate proven alternative methods that minimize your exposure to dangerous drugs.

For more on back pain treatment go to “Cure for Lower Back Pain”

Severe Back pain in 22 year old mother

Severe back pain treatment information by back pain specialist Dr Barry Marks, DC, Orange, CA 

This is in response to a question posted by Carmen…

 Hello,
My name is Alicia, but you may call me Carmen.

I am 22 years old, I have had back pain on and off ever since I had my son who is now 6. I recently went to the doctor for it and I was told it was a muscle spasm. I went through therapy which did seem to help but I don’t know if they diagnosed the pain correctly.

I don’t know what could be causing it but I am in pain again only this time there is a new pain with it.

In the past the lower back pain has been so severe that I had to walk at a right degree angle. this was when I was pregnant a second time.

Aside from then the pain has come unexpectedly, I could be getting up or walking when a sharp pain almost puts me on my knees. It felt like my spine was about to collapse.

Sometimes it was just instant and went away just as fast as it came and then sometimes, like when I went to the doctor, it last for weeks.

I am more concerned now because for the past couple of days the back of my leg has been aching along with my back. The pain is a little different than usual but not substantially.

All the pain is on the left side of my lower back/hip and the back of my thigh.

If there is anyone who can shed some light, I would appreciate it.

 

Hi Carmen,

Sorry to hear about your back pain. Back pain during and after preganacy are very common no matter what age.

Recurring severe back pain in a 22 year old is not though. The symptoms  you describe could easily be severe muscle spasm, and/or spinal misalignment as diagnosed by your other doctor, but there is always an underlying cause for this. Spasm is always secondary to something else. It is not a primary condition.

Common causes of severe spasm:

• Joint sprain and/or muscle strain which would require a physical action or injury preceding the spasm by hours or a few days
• Congenital (born with it) anomaly such as a short leg, malshaped vertebra or other structural defect of the spine or pelvis
• Disc disease such as degenerative disc disease,  a bulging disc or a herniated disc which commonly occur during pregancy and/or on delivery

Here’s what you need to do:

1. A thorough examination by a low back specialist who deals with disc disease such as a chirorpactor, not just your family MD
2. X-rays to rule out any structural anomalies of the bones and to look for tell-tale signs of disc disease
3. MRI lumbar spine to rule out disc bulge, herniation, etc which cannot be detected on x-ray

Once this evaluation is completed, your specialist should have enough information to render a “working diagnosis” and commence some type of care. After a period of time a re-eval should be done to assess whether the treatment is working or not.

Carmen, once the evaluation is done, please feel free to send me the results and I will review them and give you my opinion on what your next steps should be.

Warmest regards,

Dr Barry L Marks, DC
http://www.orangespinaldecompression.com

Cause of Lower Back Pain: Degenerative Disc Disease

Degenerative disc disease refers to the breakdown and malfunction of one or more intervertebral discs. “Discs” are the spacers and shock absorbers between the spinal bones.

Discs are naturally about 75% water. With physical exertion, gravity, injuries and chronic postural stress the discs begin to lose their water content and become dehydrated. When this occurs the disc begins to shrink or contract. Rather than their usual “rubbery” consistency, they become dried out and leathery.

Under pressure of your body and gravity, the discs begin to thin. This allows the vertebrae (spinal bones) to crowd eachother causing pain in lower back. As the condition deteriorates, more pressure is built up around the spinal nerves passing between the spinal bones, which can cause back and leg pain otherwise known as sciatica. In time, the nerves become more irritated and begin to become damaged resulting in not only sciatica, but more seriously, muscle and reflex weakness.

See a flash video of degenerative disc disease here: http://www.secretdiscsolution.com/flash/HERN.swf

Diagnosing degenerative disc disease is straight forward. A thorough history, physical examination and plain film x-rays will detect this common cause of lower back pain.

Morning back pain and stiffness that improves after a hot shower or period of walking and/or stretching is a characteristic symptom of degenerative disc disease. Physical examination will usually show painful and reduced back mobility with tenderness over the affected joints. X-rays will show the characteristic signs of thinning disc space(s), and lipping or spurring on the vertebral bodies.

Degenerative disc disease is a slowly progressive condition that deteriorates over time. It begins as dehydration and then eventually leads to nerve damage.

Cause of Lower Back Pain: Bulging Disc Herniation

Intervertebral discs are “spacers” between the spinal bones. They provide room for the joints to move allowing flexibility of the spine. They also provide room for the nerves to exit from the spinal cord to the rest of the body.

Discs are usually filled with water and are quite flexible, almost rubbery. Due to lifting injuries, repeated physical stress, automobile accidents, etc the outer disc fibers (annulus) become damaged allowing water to escape from the disc. In time, the disc become more and more dehydrated and begins to weaken. Just like a car or bicycle tire that’s sidewall is weak, a bulge forms. The bulge may put pressure within the canal that nerves pass through causing not only back pain, but also butt, thigh, leg or foot pain (sciatica).

The disc bulge may worsen and the outer fibers may actually tear open and allow inner disc material (nucleus) to protrude outward (herniation) into the nerves or spinal cord. In most instances, a herniation like this will cause back pain and sciatica, but also serious physical signs such as loss of muscle strength in the legs, shrinking of leg muscles (atrophy) and/or loss of reflexes. See video tutorial of disc herniation here: http://www.CureForLowerBackPain.com

Diagnosis of disc bulge and herniation are by careful phsyical examination and confirmed conclusively on MRI scan. Plain x-rays will NOT show disc bulges or herniation. A seemingly normal x-ray may show up as a severe herniation on MRI.

Is Your Disc Bulge ‘Focal’ or ‘Diffuse’? and Why it Matters…

The spine is made of 26 interlocking bones held together and made flexible by “discs” between each spinal bone.

Disc Function:
The disc is a flexible, yet very strong structure that bears the brunt of our weight by absorbing shock. Discs allow movement between the vertebrae or spinal bones. The discs also act as spacers to allow enough room for sensitive and important nerves to pass from the spinal cord to the rest of the body so that your brain can control and communicate with distant organs and tissues.

Disc Anatomy
A disc has 2 parts:
1. Annulus–outer fibrous tissue
2. Nucleus–inner gel substance

Disc Damage
When a disc is injured by acute trauma or by long-standing physical stresses, the outer fibers are weakened and allow the disc to bulge outward. The annulus may bulge or protrude in a small discreet area called a “focal” disc bulge or it may bulge across a wide portion of the disc, which would be called a “diffuse” bulge.

Focal bulges by their smaller and more localized nature cause more discreet neurologic symptoms like pain. Because the bulge is small or focused to only one area, the nerves involved are fewer.

Diffuse bulges however, take up more space and can cause more varied symptoms. You could one sided or both sided pain, you could have pain that appears to be coming from a different level altogether because of pressure on the spinal cord itself and not just a discreet nerve.

Obviously if you are going to pick and choose your bulge, you’d opt for a focal one. Unfortunately back pain sufferers have no choice. The “take away” point here though is if you know what type you have, it will help you to understand what your likely recovery is.

It’s also crucial for your doctor to take this into account to determine what treatment methods to use to cure your lower back pain and sciatica.

Learn what can be done to repair damaged discs and relieve the pain without surgery here:http://www.spinediscrehab.com/

“Back Pain Remedies…”

Back pain is reported to afflict upwards of 90% of adults. Only the common cold is more common. Despite how common it is, it is still a perplexing problem for many.

For many, chiropractic care, physical therapy and/or acupuncture are quite effective at relieving back pain. But not all back pain responds to these common back pain remedies.
For a certain percentage of the population, a cure for lower back pain remains elusive. For these sufferers of chronic low back pain, here are a couple of tips that may help you get over the hurdle.

Home remedies for lower back pain

• Drink more water
• Add more minerals (Calcium, magnesium, potassium, etc.) to your diet
• Lose 1 belt size
• Walk more
• Alternate heat and ice
• Add Omega-3 fatty acids to your diet
• Do 100 sit-ups/crunches a day
• Perform knee to chest stretches
• Bounce on a therapy ball
• Sit in a rocking chair for 1 hour a day (JFK did!)
• Get orthotics
• Try a different bed

If you are suffering from lower back pain that just won’t go away, try the items on this list. Go crazy and do them all within a day or two, or slowly plod along. The point is, do something.

“Back Pain Remedies: Water”

It’s no coincidence that our planet, every living thing and of course our own bodies are composed of about 76% water. We were created to thrive on water. Water makes the entire world work. It stands to reason therefore, that if we do not take in enough water there will be consequences.

Most people realize that inadequate hydration can cause illness like bladder and kidney trouble, headaches, fatigue, etc. But you may be surprised to learn that a significant number of people suffer from aches and pains, like back pain due to lack of water.

Without proper hydration, our body cannot perform complex biochemical processes that are required for normal health. Waste products are not flushed out adequately, which leads to build up of toxic chemicals. Muscles, lacking proper hydration tend to tighten up exerting pressure on the spine.

So if you have back pain, do your doctor or therapist a favor and help them help you. Drink more water.

But how much is enough?
Without going into complex calculations factoring body weight, age and activity level, try this test. I call it the T.T. or “Toilet Test.”

Toilet Test for proper hydration

When you urinate, simply observe the color:

• Very pale yellow to clear: Good hydration
• Medium yellow: Pretty good, drink a cup or two more each day
• Dark yellow: Getting dehydrated, drink several more cups
• Dark almost brown: You are dehydrated, drinks lots more water

Also note the odor:

• Well hydration results in very low urine odor because it is diluted.
• A strong odor indicates dehydration and concentrated waste products in the urine.

Are you thirsty?
If you feel thirsty, chances are you are already on the verge of dehydration! Being well hydrated throughout the day prevents thirst. Thirst is a signal tat we are seriously low on water. Don’t wait to be thirsty before drinking.

Drink coffee, tea, soda or alcohol?
These beverages are diuretics; they make you urinate more. So if you drink these, you need to replace the lost water by drinking additional water.

Try drinking enough water to keep your urine clear and low odor and your mouth is moist. If you do, you will probably find that your back hurts less.

“Back Pain Remedies: Minerals”

This back pain remedy goes hand in hand with the previous one: water. As you’ve read, water is critical for normal bodily functions. But water alone is useless. Your body needs the proper amount of minerals to be present in your body’s water. We call these minerals “electrolytes.”

Your body functions much like a liquid electrical system. Minerals, which are basically very small particles of metal, help conduct electrical impulses from your brain to the muscles via nerves.

Muscles stay in a state of relative relaxation until Calcium is removed from receptors, which then makes the muscle contract. Therefore, if your intake of minerals is low, your muscles will have a tendency to be tighter. And if your electrolytes dip too low, your muscles will go into spasm.

How do we lose minerals?

• Inadequate nutrition
• Hot weather
• Muscular exertion; sports, work, etc
• Medications that cause you to lose potassium or other minerals

How do you get enough electrolytes?

• Diet with variety of foods
• Nutritional supplementation with basic multivitamin and mineral
• Electrolyte drink, powder or pill during times of sports, work, hot weather, etc.

Signs of low electrolytes
Small muscle twitching in eye lid and toes
Foot and leg cramps, usually at night
Back or neck spasm
Fatigue
If severe, irregular heart beats, lethargy and mental confusion

So if you want to do your part in treating your lower back pain, drink plenty of water and make sure you’re getting enough minerals into your body.