Therapeutic soft tissue manipulation or massage involves manipulating the soft tissues of the body to prevent and alleviate pain, discomfort, muscle spasm, and stress. Muscle knots, or trigger points, can cause swelling and stiffness and can cause pain in the involved muscle, or can refer pain to distal areas. Trigger point therapy is used with…

Back injuries can develop due to a numerous amount of different factors and circumstances. Some people are more likely to develop back pain than others. Something as simple as twisting the wrong way in bed can cause misalignment of the vertebrae while others may sustain back injuries while working, at home, or from an automotive…

Fact joints are what guide and limit the movement of the spine. These joints are located in pairs on each segment of the spinal cord except for the very top of your vertebrae. Roughly one-fifth of the twisting ability of your neck and lower back is controlled by facet joints. A small capsule surrounds each…

Osteoporosis is a progressive bone disease that is characterized by a decrease in bone mass and density and that leads to an increased risk of fracture. In osteoporosis, the bone mineral density (BMD) is reduced, bone microarchitecture deteriorates, and the amount and variety of proteins in bone are altered. Osteoporosis is defined by the World Health…

Sports injuries are injuries that occur in athletic activities. They can result from acute trauma, or from overuse of a particular body part. Classification Traumatic injuries account for most injuries in contact sports such as Ice Hockey, Association football, rugby league, rugby union, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, and American football because of the dynamic…

Describing a range of injuries to the neck caused by or related to a sudden distortion of the neck. Cervical acceleration-deceleration” (CAD) describes the mechanism of the injury, while the term “whiplash associated disorders” (WAD) describes the injury and symptoms. Anatomy There are four phases that occur during “whiplash”: Initial position (before the collision), retraction…

A Spinal disc herniation (prolapsus disci intervertebralis) is a medical condition affecting the spine in which a tear in the outer, fibrous ring (annulus fibrosus) of an intervertebral disc (discus intervertebralis) allows the soft, central portion (nucleus pulposus) to bulge out beyond the damaged outer rings. Disc herniations are normally a further development of a previously…

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is caused by the entrapment of the median nerve in the wrist that then causes paresthesia, pain, numbness, and other symptoms in the distribution of the median nerve. It appears to be caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Some of the predisposing factors include: diabetes, obesity, pregnancy, hypothyroidism, and…

Scoliosis is a medical condition in which a person’s spine is curved from side to side. It can be caused by vertebral anomalies present at birth, caused by vertebral anomalies present at birth, various other syndromes, or the cause can sometimes simply be unknown. According to recent studies, the most common form of scolioses, late-onset…

‘Slipped disc’ is a common term used to describe an injury to the lower back. While discs may herniate or bulge from between the bones, they do not actually slip. A herniation is a displaced fragment at the center of the disc that pushes through the outer layer of the disc. Discs that herniate are…