Analysis suggests saline shots may do just as well as steroids for lower back pain
New research from Johns Hopkins suggests that it may not be the steroids in spinal shots that provide relief from lower back pain, but the mere introduction of any of a number of fluids, such as anesthetics and saline, to the space around the spinal cord...
Combined treatment shows a better curative effect on spinal cord contusion
Following spinal cord injury, astrocyte proliferation and scar formation are the main factors inhibiting the regeneration and growth of spinal cord axons, leading to motor and sensory function loss below the level of spinal cord injury...
PET predicts outcomes for patients with cervical spinal cord compression - Metabolic activity in spine indicates optimal time for surgery
For patients with degenerative cervical myelopathy, imaging with 18F-FDG positron emission tomography (PET) could act as a marker for a potentially reversible phase of the disease in which substantial clinical improvement can be achieved...
Can you predict complications with back surgery? Preoperative factors increase risk
For older adults undergoing surgery for spinal stenosis, some simple indicators of poor preoperative health predict a high risk of major medical complications, reports a study in the September 1 issue of Spine. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health...
Spinal compression fractures - a common cause of back pain
Spinal compression fractures are an often overlooked, but common cause of back pain. These small fractures in the bones that form your spine are frequently caused by osteoporosis. Fortunately, spinal compression fractures can be treated with pain medicine and bed rest. Some patients may wear a back brace or undergo physical therapy...
Award-winning paper questions assumptions about how herniated discs happen
Herniated discs in the lower (lumbar) spine most often result from avulsion (separation) of the tissue connection between the disc and spinal bone, rather than rupture of the disc itself, according to a study in Spine. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health...
One of the first MRI-safe devices for pain, implanted by Ohio State's Wexner Medical Center
Neurosurgeons at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center are among the first in the United States to successfully implant an MRI-safe spinal cord stimulator to help patients suffering from chronic back or limb pain. Neurosurgeons Dr. Ali Rezai and Dr. Milind Deogaonkar performed the surgery Aug...
Treatment for back pain varies despite published clinical guidelines
Management of back pain appears to be variable, despite numerous published clinical guidelines, according to a report published by JAMA Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. Spinal symptoms are among the most common reasons patients visit a physician and more than 10 percent of visits to primary care physicians relate to back and neck pain, the authors write in the study background...
Hope for injection of cells to regenerate spine discs
Scientists have developed a new method of stopping or reversing disability and pain caused by degenerative disc disease in the spine using cell therapies, according to a proof-of-concept study published in the journal Biomaterials...
Similar Lower Back Pain Relief Achieved By Weekly Yoga Class And Twice Weekly Classes
Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have found that a weekly yoga class provided similar lower back pain relief and reduced the need for pain medication as twice weekly classes in lower income minority patients...