Neck

Cedar Rapids Shoulder Pain Assessment

Cedar Rapids Shoulder Pain Assessment

Healthy shoulders have full range of motion and enough strength to perform the daily tasks that are asked of them. Limited range of motion is the #1 cause of shoulder pain. While there are many reasons as to what can cause limited flexibility and movement, muscle adhesion is one of the most common reasons why.

“If It Doesn’t Move, It Must Improve!” – Dr. William Brady

Unfortunately, adhesion is also one of the most misdiagnosed and mistreated. The good news? Our office is the only office in the state of Iowa that exclusively diagnoses muscle adhesion.

These are often complicated cases. Most patients have had their shoulder pain months or years, and failed multiple providers or therapies.

Success in these cases, begins by finding a diagnosis! The assessment of the shoulder should include range of motion and strength.

Below is a simple test you can try at-home to see how well your shoulder moves.

If you find this test to be limited, there is a good chance adhesion is to blame for the limitation and is at the root of your shoulder problem.

We fix this problem, when others have failed!

Take the test and let us know how you did!

For more information on your Cedar Rapids shoulder pain solution, or how we can help click here.

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At Thrive Care, we work diligently with our patients to find permanent pain relief!

Patients deserve better care than what they have come to expect — and that is what we deliver in our office! Our team provides a patient centered experience in a results driven environment to ensure you get honest and effective treatment for your pain problems.

If you or someone you know is struggling with shoulder pain, we want to see you at Thrive Care!  Getting you to do the things you used to do, and doing them better is our mission!

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    Neck – What is it, what causes it, and how to find relief

    The frequent use of smartphones, tablets and laptops have become a part of everyday life. Constant use can cause serious spinal health problems if used incorrectly and unfortunately, they are almost always used incorrectly. Forward head posture, and looking down with neck bent forward, leads to the phenomenon known as ‘text neck’. With most people who already suffer from upper back and neck injuries, constant use of technology can quickly become an obstacle to recovery.

    Latest studies show 63% of American Adults own a smartphone, 73% of American teens own a smartphone, and 24% of those teens go online almost constantly. Teens are shown to spend on average approximately 5000 hours on their smartphone per year, and about 1400 hours per year by adults. So what do these numbers have to do with your neck?

    Incorrect use of these types of technology puts your body in a constant “humpbacked” posture with the neck bent forward and head looking down.This requires the neck to work extremely hard to adapt to the constant weight loading when flexed forward. The heavy weight of your head leaning forward creates massive amount of stress on the neck and upper back. In fact, approximately every 15 degrees the neck is flexed, adds 10-12 lbs of stress to the spine. This continued stress on the neck is what leads to the condition “Text Neck”.

    Symptoms produced by “Text Neck” and overuse of handheld technology include the following:

    – neck and shoulder pain

    – chronic headaches

    – shortness of breath

    – numbness in the arms

    – neurological issues

    4 TIPS TO AVOID TEXT NECK:

    1. Make an effort to stay in a neutral position so that your ears are aligned with your shoulders.
    2. Simply hold your phone in front of your face while keeping your back straight rather than looking down at it.
    3. If you look down at your device do it with your eyes. No need to bend your neck.
    4. Avoid spending hours each day hunched over and remember to take frequent breaks.

    RELIEF EXERCIES:

    1. Move your head from left to right several times – incorporate both rotation and side bending.
    2. Use your hands to provide resistance and push your head against them, first forward and then backward.
    3. Stand in a doorway with your arms extended and push your chest forward to strengthen the muscles of good posture.

    If you find yourself using these exercises for two weeks or more and have gotten little to no change in your pain or discomfort, you should seek further help from an expert.


    At Thrive Spine and Sport, we are experts in the diagnosis and treatment of adhesion!  If you, or someone you know, find yourself in a continuous need to stretch, or struggling to get out of pain, you deserve a better answer!  Call our office today at 319-423-0925 or request an appointment below!

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      New Effective Sciatica Treatment in Cedar Rapids!

      Sciatica is often used as a catch-all term by patients to refer to any pain they feel in their legs.  Millions of dollars are spent each year, with limited effectiveness.  This is understandable when we begin to take into consideration all the possible causes of symptoms and break down the traditional methods of diagnosis and treatment of this condition.

      Radiating leg pain accounts for around 5-10% of all low back pain cases.  Disc related sciatica symptoms account for only 2.2% of cases.  Tight or overactive muscles are usually to blame in cases diagnosed with piriformis syndrome, and THIS is where the lack of effectiveness in the treatment of radiating leg pain essentially begins!  Whether conservative, or surgical, there is a LACK of diagnosing underlying conditions creating “tight” or overactive muscles!

      Fortunately, new research being brought to light by researchers and doctors are shining a light on a new paradigm shift in the diagnosis and treatment of radiating pain down the leg.  Deep Gluteal Syndrome, or DGS, has the same pain characteristics as sciatica and piriformis syndrome, but the true cause of the problem has finally been found!  

      For years, surgeons have noted and treated “fibrous scar bands” during procedures.  Sciatic nerve decompression is a surgery where fibrous scar bands, also known as adhesion, are removed around the sciatic nerve to alleviate pain.  

      The problem is that surgery is no more beneficial than quality conservative care after 1 year!  Even with surgery, a small but significant group of patients fail to improve all together!  Collagen, the material that makes up adhesion, breaks down with as little as 6 pounds of tension.  The keyword is tension, and its specific application.  Compressive forces take much more pressure.  The good news is that Integrative Diagnosis providers have been effectively treating this problem, without surgery, for over a decade!

      Adhesion, as it is frequently referred as, is a build up of collagen or fibrotic tissue that acts like glue on muscles and around nerves.  As adhesion builds, it limits flexibility of joints causing weakness and pain.  If adhesion builds up around nerves, like the sciatic nerve, it can create symptoms of tingling, burning, or numbness.  Sound familiar?

      The good news is this problem is extremely common, one of the most common problems in the body, that also happens to be one of the most reversible conditions in the human body as well!  Adhesion develops most commonly through overuse, think repetitive motions like running, or prolonged positions like sitting on your butt all day.

      Adhesion builds up most commonly around the sciatic nerve in the buttock. Limited movement accompanies this development often with increasing symptoms.  Normally, with hip flexion the sciatic nerve can stretch over 1 inch in the hip!  As adhesion develops, hip flexion becomes more limited, and more stress is placed not only in the hip, but the low back and knees as well!  This is a big deal for your overall health!

      The concept of adhesion, or fibrous scar bands, playing a role in symptoms related to sciatic nerve mobility and entrapment represents a radical change and paradigm shift in the current diagnosis of and therapeutic approach to DGS.  Effective treatment aims to break down adhesion using tension.  No other method of treatment is as effective in treating this condition!  In fact, other methods of treatment, like stretching or exercise, could make the condition worse!

      Manual Adhesion Release, MAR, is a technique used by certified Integrative Diagnosis providers.  This treatment creates enough tension on adhesion to effectively break it down over a series of visits. It is currently the only treatment that focuses on the diagnosis and breakdown of adhesion.  ID providers use specific tests to establish the diagnosis and measure progress from visit to visit.

      Previously, Deep Gluteal Syndrome was a complex issue difficult to overcome with traditional therapies and surgery.  With this new research, paradigm shift, and advances in effective treatment coming to fruition, finally patients can get the treatment needed for their desired outcome.

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