When Knee Pain Won’t Go Away

More than 27 million Americans suffer knee pain, often due to knee osteoarthritis (OA). As you might expect, the number of knee pain victims increases dramatically with age, as does the severity of the pain. Knee OA occurs when the cartilage that protects the knee joint starts to wear down, allowing bones to rub against each other.

What are knee OA’s symptoms?

• Pain that increases when you’re active but gets better with rest
• Knee swelling
• Warmth in the joint
• Knee stiffness after periods of inactivity
• Less mobility, making it tough to get in and out of cars or chairs or to walk

What factors increase the risk of developing OA?

• Age. Your cartilage’s ability to heal lessens as you get older.
• Obesity. People carrying excessive weight are placing more stress on their knee joints, adding to the wear and tear on their knees.
• Genetics:  If other family members developed OA at a young age, you may be similarly predisposed.
• Repetitive Stress Injuries: Occupations that require excessive activities that stress the joints, such as kneeling, squatting, lifting heavy weights, etc., are prone to OA.
• Gender: While the reason remains unclear, women are more likely than men to suffer from OA.
• Athletics: While moderate exercising is encouraged, people involved in soccer, tennis and/or long-distance running seem to be at higher risk than others of getting OA.
• Other medical conditions: People suffering from diabetes, gout and rheumatoid arthritis run a higher risk of getting OA.

Is there a cure for OA?

Unfortunately, there is not, but there are several treatments that can help relieve the symptoms.

What are the most common treatments for knee OA?

• Exercise. Strengthening the muscles around the knee makes the joints more stable and lessens the pain. Stretching exercises can be especially effective.
• Weight loss. Every pound lost reduces pressure on the knee.
• Knee Injections. Injections of steroids or hyaluronic acid can be effective, as the medicine is delivered directly into the problem area.
• Physical and Occupational Therapy. Professionals in these specialties can help you strengthen muscles, increase flexibility and perform daily tasks without pain.
• Chiropractic Care. Non-invasive measures that do not rely on medication or surgery can be effective, such as chiropractic manipulation and mobilization.
• Pain Relievers and Anti-Inflammatory Drugs. Over-the-count options like acetaminophen can provide help in the short term, but if the pain continues to persist for 10 days or more, you should see a doctor.
• Surgery. This is often used as a last resort when other treatment methods have failed.

Did you know that roughly three million Americans are injured in car accidents every year? In most cases, the accident occurred so quickly that victims had no time to prepare their body or mind for the crash’s impact or for the emotional stress and physical pain that would follow.

People sustaining serious injuries in a car accident will be taken to a hospital immediately. Others who don’t feel pain may not feel that it’s necessary to get immediate medical attention. What many of them don’t realize is that some serious soft tissue injuries that could create problems down the road don’t make themselves known until several hours or days after the crash. With this in mind, it makes sense to schedule a medical appointment shortly after the accident.

What is the most typical injury associated with car accidents?

The most common accident injury is whiplash, which occurs when the head is rapidly moved backward or forward and then “whipped” in the opposite direction. Left untreated, whiplash can have serious long-term health effects, such as memory loss and disability. Common symptoms of whiplash include:

• Neck pain
• Neck stiffness
• Blurred vision
• Headaches
• Shoulder pain
• Back pain
• Dizziness
• Decreased motion around the neck

 Why do some accident victims choose chiropractic care?

Most chiropractors are trained to detect the hidden injuries that accident victims experience. Unlike medications or surgeries, chiropractic care focuses on the root cause of the pain and discomfort. Chiropractic adjustments help realign the spine and remove pressure from the impacted nerves, typically bringing about quick relief. Chiropractors use diagnostic imaging, such as x-rays, to get the clearest picture possible of your spine and neck areas before recommending any kind of treatment plan.

What chiropractic techniques might be used to address your injuries?

Most chiropractors use gentle adjustment techniques to restore the spinal column to its proper position. These techniques could include:

• Spinal Adjustments: Depending on your diagnosis and symptoms, a chiropractor will identify the best methods of gentle manipulation.
• Manual Therapies: A chiropractor may place pressure on specific pressure points to relieve tension, use manual joint stretching and resistance techniques, or perform a therapeutic massage to reduce muscle tension.
• Instrument-Assisted Therapies: Electrical stimulation or ultrasound may be used to stimulate muscles, reduce inflammation and/or enhance circulation.

If you or a loved one are recovering from an auto accident, you have various options to consider, as a medical professional, like an experienced chiropractor from Palatine, IL, from a treatment facility like the Lotus Wellness Center, can explain.

Fire Debris Cleanup

What Goes on Following a Fire

People rarely expect that their property or business will catch on fire leading to widespread damage, but unfortunately fires do happen. They happen for a number of reasons, which is generally the result of an accident. Fires can range from isolated and mild damage to severe damages leading to a building or property being completely destroyed. While the destruction is obvious when someone looks at it, rarely do people ponder about what goes on next like who will clean up the debris and possibly demolish any part of the property that needs demolishing. Are there companies out there who can clean up debris and how long does that process typically take?

Are There Companies Who Specialize in Fire Cleanup?

Companies do exist for fire debris cleanup contracts. A company that specializes in fire debris cleanup can help people out who have had their properties or houses damaged or destroyed by fire. These companies generally are licensed in this type of work and with their expertise can spot things that could be hazardous within the debris. Items like aerosol cans, propane tanks, fertilizers, and household cleaning supplies are all things that could be hazardous in the cleanup. This is why it is important to hire a company that can take care of these things. 

How Long Does Cleanup Take?

Cleanup can take anywhere from a few days to months depending upon how severe the damage is. Some people are able to rebuild their houses, while others have to completely demolish them. Sometimes the materials of the house are so badly damaged that it does in fact need someone to come in and make an assessment on whether they should try and rebuild the house or destroy it. A licensed inspector can come in and inspect the damages as well for any potentially hazardous items that are on the premises. 

Do I Need a Professional?

A professional debris cleanup company generally has the experience and skills required to carry out projects where demolition or debris cleanup is required. These companies and their workers understand the complexity of the scene where the fire took place and know how to spot things that could be dangerous on the premises. It is highly recommended that professionals be contacted to do your debris cleanup. Contact an experienced and knowledgeable fire debris cleanup contractor like Nielsen Environmental today to help out if you require these types of services.

So many of us have knee pain. Many just take ibuprofen or ice down after an athletic activity that leaves the knees screaming. What other options for knee pain caused by osteoarthritis? One important thing to note is that once osteoarthritis starts in your knee, you cannot reverse the damage — you can, however, slow or even the progression of osteoarthritis.

Being overweight is a big factor in the increase of cases of osteoarthritis, as is age. Symptoms typically increase from the ages of 55 to 64.  

What are the symptoms of osteoarthritis?

Pain may slowly develop over time. Your knees could hurt before, after, or when you move them, or even when light pressure is put on them. If you have not been mobile for a while, your knees may feel stiff and your range of motion could be limited. It is even possible to hear or feel a grating sound or sensation when bending your knees. You are experiencing these symptoms because the cartilage in your knee is changing. Cartilage is the tissue that is between your joints that is responsible for motion. If cartilage starts to wear down or even completely diminish, your bones will be rubbing on each other and this can be very painful.

Others at Risk for Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis can be an inherited genetic disorder. You could inherit a disorder that may interfere with your body’s production of cartilage, meaning you could see symptoms of osteoarthritis at an earlier age. Athletes that have repeatedly used their knees or suffered knee injuries while playing sports may be more susceptible to osteoarthritis in their knees. 

Ways to Manage the Pain

• Stay away from high-impact, repetitive sports and exercises such as tennis and running that can further harm your already damaged knees. Listen to what your body tells you — if it hurts, you probably shouldn’t do it.
• Participate in low-impact exercises that are still aerobic such as biking, swimming, and walking. These types of activities will assist in making the joints stronger and help keep them aligned and working correctly. A physical therapist, like a physical therapist from AmeriWell Clinics, can design an exercise program specifically around your strengths and weaknesses.
• Include both flexibility and strength training in addition to aerobic exercise. Stretching will help maintain and may increase flexibility in the knee and strength exercises work to support muscles all around the joints.
• When you do exercise, don’t forget to warm up before you start and cool down when you are done. Both will help minimize injury during your workouts.
• Keep your weight at a healthy level. Doing so will put a lot less stress on your knees, which can decrease the pain and even slow down the speed that the cartilage degenerates. 
• The type of shoes you wear for everyday activities can impact how your knees feel.
• It’s okay to wear a knee brace or even use a cane to help you move. There may be a time where you are not at the point to have surgery but the pain is pretty intense. A brace or cane can help you get through that time.
• Medications can help with pain and swelling but they will not slow down the progression of the disease. The same holds true with corticosteroid injections, they will only provide temporary relief from the pain and swelling but will not reverse any degeneration. Ice and heat therapy can also help temporarily reduce symptoms.

Contact a knee doctor or physical therapist today to see how he or she can help you manage your knee pain. 

Carpal tunnel is a very common condition that causes pain, numbness and weakness in the wrist and the hand. Carpal tunnel syndrome can affect the person’s ability to use their entire arm, depending on how severe their carpal tunnel is. 

Carpal tunnel is caused by pressure on the nerve at the base of the palm; otherwise known as the median nerve. Your hands see constant use and this means you are constantly putting pressure on your hands and wrists. In some instances surgery may be required if you have a severe case of carpal tunnel syndrome, however physical therapy can often relieve pain and numbness, and even help to restore normal hand, wrist and arm use while avoiding surgery. 

What Exactly Is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

Carpal tunnel syndrome is the narrowing of the passageway on the palm side of your wrist. This passage protects the median nerve, as well as tendons that help you to bend your fingers. When that tunnel narrows, you may find that nerves or tendons swell and take up more space, therefore taking space away from the median nerve. Pressure on this nerve causes weakness in the wrist and hand and numbness or tingling in the fingers. Oftentimes the most affected fingers are the thumb, index and middle fingers. 

Carpal tunnel syndrome is common in professions like assembly-line work and it is common in  jobs that require the use of hand tools, especially tools that vibrate. Too much keyboard use can also cause carpal tunnel syndrome, even holding mobile devices, hand-held video games, sewing, or playing games or sports can cause it as well. 

Signs And Symptoms of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

CTS often starts gradually, sometimes you might wake up with numbness, tingling or burning in your thumb, index finger or middle finger. People often report feeling the need to “shake out their hands” to relieve the feeling. 

The symptoms often worsen as the day draws on:

• You may find yourself having trouble grasping heavy objects.
• You may even have trouble using the computer or holding a cell phone.
• You may have trouble gripping something for long periods of time.

Hand weakness and constant numbness can occur if the pressure continues to go untreated. You may find you drop things without expecting to drop them. 

What Can A Physical Therapist Do?

Your physical therapist that treats your CTS should be someone you trust and know has experience with your condition, such as the therapists at AmeriWell. Your physical therapy program is often tailored to your needs specifically, but you may learn these things:

• How to change wrist positions and when to change them.
• Avoiding bent-wrist positions for long periods of time.
• Proper neck and upper-back posture, to avoid forward-head posture or slouching.
• Safety precautions when using sharp utensils, tools and other implements. 
• “Stretch breaks” during your work routine. 

Those are basic things that will probably be included in the physical therapy plan of most CTS patients. 

How to Prevent a Knee Injury

Those currently suffering from a knee-related injury can consult with a doctor, for a health evaluation. You may have been dealing with pain or discomfort for some time now and are looking for relief. Knee doctors believe in helping patients get to a better place through integrative medicine.

In order to help prevent a knee injury from happening or becoming worse, you can practice following the tips below. If you have any questions about the information provided, do not hesitate to reach out to a doctor today. 

Preventative Tips: 

• Maintain overall fitness including lower body strength
• Wear proper fitting shoes and buy specialty workout shoes for sports
• Maintain a healthy weight
• Do not overexert yourself when training
• Use proper exercise stances and lifting techniques
• Avoid surfaces that are uneven, broken, or slippery
• Do not walk a long distance on loose gravel or turf 
• Utilize knee braces and pads if needed for sports, or as required by your doctor
• Seek treatment for osteoporosis if you have been diagnosed
• Do all rehabilitative exercises for previous knee injuries
• Examine your household and fix areas that may cause a fall 

Reasons Knee Injuries Happen 

Knee injuries are most commonly due to an excessive amount of force being applied to the knee through bending or twisting. Most knee injuries result from twisting during sports, falling, or other accidents. A twisted knee may cause damage of cartilage and ligaments. Injuries due to high-force events like extreme sports or traumatic vehicle accidents, may greatly disrupt the surrounding knee anatomy. Other reasons for knee injuries include degenerative joint disease, arthritis, overuse, infections, or gout. A knee doctor can perform diagnostics in order to evaluate the knee itself, and nearby tissues. 

Schedule an Appointment

You may be feeling distraught and unsure about your ability to fully recover from your knee injury. You may have even gone through many treatments with many different doctors, and are looking for an alternative treatment plan. An experienced knee doctor can go over with you the treatment options that are unique to your body. Every patient is different and should not all be treated the same when it comes to care. Schedule an appointment with a doctor today to begin getting relief for your pain. 

Asbestos in the Home

If you live in a beautiful older home, then there could be danger lurking throughout all that beauty that you’re not aware of. This danger though, can negatively impact your family’s health. We’re talking about asbestos, that mineral known for its fire-retardant capabilities. Prior to around 1980, builders routinely used asbestos in home construction.

The problem with asbestos is that it breaks down over time. When it does, it releases microscopic fibers that disperse throughout your home in the slightest of breezes. When you and your family breathe in these fibers, they can build up in your lungs and other tissues, causing all sorts of respiratory problems and, ultimately, a variety of cancers.

Where Asbestos Lurks

Asbestos can be a component of numerous materials in your home, including the following:

• Ceiling tiles
• Sheetrock and drywall
• Fireplaces and wood-burning stoves
• Floor tiles
• Blown ceilings
• Pipes
• Window putty
• Joint compound
• Outdoor siding and stucco
• Heating ducts
• Water heaters
• Attic and wall insulation

When Asbestos Becomes Hazardous

Asbestos is harmless as long as it’s not damaged or compromised. However, even such an innocuous thing as driving a nail into an asbestos-containing wall in order to hang a picture can start the degradation process. Once begun, it continues on its own, releasing even more asbestos fibers into the air for your family to breathe.

If your water pipes contain asbestos, their interiors tend to degrade over time, which then releases asbestos into your family’s drinking and cooking water. Asbestos ingestion is just as dangerous as asbestos inhalation and has just as many negative health effects.

Asbestos Red Flags

If you or your family members, especially your children, exhibit any of the following symptoms, asbestos could be the cause:

• Persistent cough
• Persistent hoarseness
• Persistent chest or abdominal pain
• Shortness of breath
• Persistent fatigue
• Unexplained loss of appetite or weight loss
• Difficulty swallowing

Finding and Removing Asbestos

Unfortunately, confirming the presence of asbestos in your home can be difficult and time-consuming. This is not something you can generally do yourself. You need to call in an experienced asbestos removal contractor. Not just any contractor will do. Each state requires its asbestos abatement contractors to be licensed, so make sure the one you hire has such a license.

Tell your contractor where in your home you think asbestos may be lurking. He or she can safely take samples and send them to the proper labs to be analyzed. If the presence of asbestos is confirmed by lab tests, then your only permanent solution is to have your contractor safely remove it.

Chiropractic Care

Getting long-term relief for chronic back pain is a common struggle many people have. Due to a variety of conditions as well as occupational factors, back pain is one of the most common issues people suffer from. Thankfully, you can get much needed relief by discussing possible treatment options with a specialist who provides chiropractic care and other alternative approaches to health and wellness. A back pain specialist uses natural forms of treatment that are non-invasive and pose less risks, unlike surgery or medication. To find out which relief methods may be best for your back pain, schedule an appointment to discuss your condition with a certified back pain specialist.

Common Conditions That May Require Back Pain Treatment

If you experience constant back pain on a regular basis you may benefit from going to a specialist who can evaluate you and form a recommended care plan. You may want to consider talking to a specialist if you suffer from the following common health conditions or symptoms:

• Lower back pain
• Sore muscles
• Thigh pain
• Muscle spasms
• Bulging or herniated discs

What Are Natural Effective Treatments For Back Pain?

When you visit a back pain doctor or specialist, there are several treatment methods that they may propose. These include chiropractic care in the form of spinal manipulation or physical therapy exercises. Instead of traditional treatments such as surgery, a specialist who practices chiropractic care in Rockville, MD, like one from the Pain Arthritis Relief Center, emphasizes a holistic approach to wellness so that underlying causes of pain and discomfort are addressed. Surgery is expensive and comes with many risks, and a successful surgery does not guarantee that your back pain will be completely remedied. The focus is not on just treating one area or eliminating a particular symptom, but treating pain so that relief for the entire body can be achieved. These are some effective treatment options that back pain doctors often use to treat their patients:

• Chiropractic care. Spinal adjustments are commonly used by chiropractors as treatment methods for patients who suffer from back pain. 
• Physical therapy. Patients can achieve pain relief through low to moderate impact physical therapy exercises and stretches.
• Acupuncture. As a natural method for pain management, acupuncture is used for a variety of ailments, including back pain.

Schedule an Appointment Now

Don’t wait another day to search for an alternative treatment plan that will provide you lasting relief and help manage your condition. Contact a back pain specialist today to get started. 

It’s the question that keeps many of us up at night. It’s the thought that can permeate both the new home health aide and the most seasoned caregiver. It’s the need to ask: am I doing this right?

As caregivers, it’s only natural to want to be successful and effective in our efforts. The following will provide four easy tips for being an effective caregiver!

1. Know your own strengths

The best way to be an effective caregiver is to know what you can accomplish. Be aware of what you personally excel at and target any potential areas that may seem challenging to you. Having an awareness of your strengths and weaknesses provides a foundation of knowledge for your own caregiving abilities.

2. Establish healthy boundaries

Once you have pinpointed what you can and cannot do, use this information to set healthy boundaries with who you are caring for. Carve out some time to discuss what will help you excel as a caregiver.

You can spend this time negotiating moments for self care, finding tasks that can be delegated to others, and creating a system in the event of caregiver burnout.

3. Establish a caregiving network

Establishing a caregiving network is one of the best ways to be an effective caregiver. This is a team of others who can assist in daily caregiving needs. It’s important to note that a caregiving network is not solely the registered nurse or home health aide.

A caregiver network is the support system that empowers you to provide the most efficient care possible. It’s the neighbor who can help walk the dog, a family member who can assist with medication management, or a friend who can provide a home-cooked meal.

Reach out to the people in your life and see if they can help take on a weekly or monthly task. You never know who can offer help until you ask!

4. Do your research

If you want to be an effective caregiver, it’s important to be as knowledgeable as possible about your loved one’s needs. Educate yourself on their ailment, the potential side effects of medication, their medical history, and any applicable recovery process.

This research doesn’t need to fall entirely on your shoulders. Reach out to your healthcare and caregiving network for help. Have a cloud-based storage document where you can compile findings, diagnoses, research, and relevant data. Seeks to provide the best advice for nurses from nurses, especially when it comes to caregiving.