How A Chiropractor Can Treat Pain Related To Overuse Or Injury To Muscles And Tendons
There are, of course, many ways to injure your muscles. But in some cases, joint tightness and overly tight muscles can actually cause injury to muscles and tendons. Regular chiropractic care can keep your joints lubricated and moving and help you keep your muscles from becoming too tight in the first place.
But even after you are injured, chiropractic can help with these ailments. Injury to a muscle or tendon will often cause undue stress on associated joints and other supporting muscles. A chiropractor can make sure that your body remains in alignment throughout your recovery that associated joints, muscles, and tendons do not become stiff and inflexible from lack of movement and that scar tissue in the injured area, which can cause future tightness, is broken up and dispersed.
Whether youre hoping to lower your risk of sustaining an injury or want professional treatment to recover quickly and safely from an injury, the team at Advanced Spine & Sports Care in Chicago have the expertise you need. For more information about treating pain caused by overuse and muscle and tendon injuries, please contact us today.
What Treatments Are Available
Nonsurgical treatments: Physical therapy, chiropractic manipulation, and stretching exercises help many patients. Some patients may require oral anti-inflammatory medications or topical patches, creams, salves or mechanical bracing.
Joint injections: Steroids can reduce the swelling and inflammation of the nerves. Joint injections are a minimally invasive procedure that involves an injection of a corticosteroid and an analgesic-numbing agent into the painful joint . While the results tend to be temporary, if the injections are helpful they can be repeated up to three times a year.
Nerve ablations: Injections into joints or nerves are sometimes called âblocks.â Successful SI joint injections may indicate that you could benefit from radiofrequency ablation ââ¬â a procedure that uses an electrical current to destroy the nerve fibers carrying pain signals in the joint.
Surgery: If nonsurgical treatments and joint injections do not provide pain relief, your physician may recommend minimally invasive SI joint fusion surgery. Through a small incision, the surgeon places titanium implants and bone graft material to stabilize the joint and promote bone growth. The surgery takes about an hour. The patient may go home the same day or following day. For several weeks after surgery, the patient cannot bear full weight on the operated side and must use crutches for support.
Best Chicago Chiropractor For Hip Pain
If youre suffering from hip pain, then the professional chiropractors at Advanced Spine & Sports Care in Chicago can provide effective treatment options that address the underlying cause of the pain, as well as ongoing advice and guidance to support your recovery.Hip pain treatment at Advanced Spine & Sports Care will start with a consultation to discuss your medical history and a full hip and spine examination performed by a trained chiropractor. Once the underlying cause of your hip pain has been identified, a full treatment plan will be created.
The hip pain treatments that we provide here at Advanced Spine & Sports Care can include stretches, exercise plans, spinal adjustments, and advice on lifestyle and nutritional changes.
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What Are The Causes
The SI joint can become painful when the ligaments become too loose or too tight. This can occur as the result of a fall, work injury, car accident, pregnancy and childbirth, or hip/spine surgery .
Sacroiliac joint pain can occur when movement in the pelvis is not the same on both sides. Uneven movement may occur when one leg is longer or weaker than the other, or with arthritis in the hip or knee problems. Autoimmune diseases, such as axial spondyloarthritis, and biomechanical conditions, such as wearing a walking boot following foot/ankle surgery or non-supportive footwear, can lead to degenerative sacroiliitis.
Other Causes For Hip Pain And Back Pain
In this article we discussed conditions of the spine which can lead to hip pain. However, there are also hip related conditions which can cause lower back pain. SI joint dysfunction, osteoarthritis of the hip and other conditions can lead to pain in the hip and lower back. Therefore, if you experience both hip pain and back pain it may make sense to visit your doctor who can help diagnose your condition.
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Greater Trochanteric Pain Syndrome
Greater trochanteric pain syndrome describes pain that is felt along the outer hip area. Causes include sports injury, muscle tears, and injury due to motor vehicle accidents. The pain is caused by a combination of inflammation in two distinct areas: the bursa of the hip and pain in the buttock . Pain may also be caused by tendinitis of the hip abductor muscles. Symptoms of greater trochanteric pain syndrome include hip pain at night lying on side, dislocated hip symptoms, and hip muscle weakness. Hip pain relief can be sought through anti-inflammatory medications, physical therapy, and stretches for hip pain.
What’s Causing The Pain
Dr. Elson says pain in the side of your hip most often results from one of the following conditions:
Tendinitis. This is an inflammation of the tendons that connect the gluteal muscles in your buttocks to the hip bone. “Tendinitis develops because of muscle imbalance. It could be from a lack of activity, crossing your legs, or even sitting on a wallet,” Dr. Elson says.
Overuse injury. When you walk or run, weak hip and buttock muscles can tighten and irritate the iliotibial band a long band of connective tissue that runs from the knee to the hip. It merges with the gluteal muscles to stabilize the leg.
Tight muscles in the buttocks and hip. If the gluteal muscles and IT band are too tight, they pull at the thighbone where they attach, and that causes pain on the side.
Spine problems. “The body isn’t always smart in recognizing where the pain is coming from,” Dr. Elson explains, “and spine arthritis, a , or bones in the spine rubbing together can create pain in the side of your hip.”
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Why Do I Have Hip Joint Pain And/or Knee Pain
Hip and knee pains can be experienced together or separately, but it is important to note that as the old saying goes, your knee bone is connected to your hip bone, therefore what happens with one, affects the other. Your hip is a ball-and-socket joint that works to support the weight of your upper body, relying on multiple muscles and tissues to keep it mobile and stable so it can function properly. Your knee is a hinge joint, confined to forward-and-backward motions. Individually, your knees support more weight than the hips, 6 times your body weight when doing a squat. Proper movement of both your hip and knees allows complicated motions giving you the ability to stand, walk, run, and dance without falling over.
Pain felt in the hips and/or knees may originate in the joints themselves, but it may also be a result of an underlying condition in another part of the body. For example, your hips and knees are part of the same kinetic chain, meaning they make up a combination of weight-bearing joints that must function together in harmony in order for your body and posture to function properly. Therefore, a problem with your knee joint may transmit abnormal forces to your hips, and vice versa. If one part of the kinetic chain is out of balance, stress and deterioration may be placed on another.
What Is The Hyprocure Treatment
The HyProCure® procedure corrects an abnormality within the ankle that allows the foot to turn outward, while the ankle moves inward. The procedure is minimally invasive and requires one small incision.
During the procedure, a small stent is placed into the small space that naturally lies between the ankle and heel bones. No drills or screws are used to hold the stent in place. The stent provides support to both bones and helps to stabilize the ankle, preventing it from rolling inward and forcing the foot to turn outward.
Once the stent is permanently in place, the healing process begins. Because this is considered to be an outpatient procedure, you will be allowed to return home shortly after the surgery is over.
Misalignment of the foot and ankle doesnt have to cause problems with your knees, hips, and back. Correcting structural abnormalities and restoring balance takes pressure off the other joints and allows you to walk and run without pain or any general discomfort.
When you begin to experience chronic back, hip, knee or foot pain, consult a New Hampshire podiatrist at Nagy Footcare to assess the health of your feet and ankles. With proper treatment, he can get you back on your feet and living life to the fullest.
At Nagy Footcare, our best day is when you wake up with no foot pain.
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Conditions With Similar Symptoms
A number of conditions that are not actually related to the hip joint can cause hip joint pain and symptoms in the “hip” area. These include:
Spinal stenosis This condition most commonly causes pain in the buttock, low back, and back of the upper thigh . Spinal stenos is a lower-back problem, not a hip problem. Spinal stenosis causes pain in the buttock area that some identify as part of the “hip.”
Greater trochanteric bursitisThis causes pain over the point of the hip . It also causes tenderness and sensitivity to pressure. Although this seems like a hip problem, it is a problem well away from the joint itself and is related to an inflammation in a lubrication point called a bursa. Greater trochanteric bersitis is not a joint problem .
Non-orthopedic conditionsVery occasionally, non-orthopedic conditions can cause pain in the groin that masquerades as hip joint symptoms ovarian cysts, hernias, and other intra-pelvic conditions can sometimes cause pain that is mistaken for hip joint pain.
Other types of arthritisOther forms of arthritis can cause similar symptoms to osteoarthritis of the hip in particular, post-traumatic arthritis and avascular necrosis are almost indistinguishable in many cases from osteoarthritis of the hip.
The diagnosis of osteoarthritis versus rheumatoid arthritis can be made by a physician with experience in treating conditions of this type.
A Fat Wallet Can Trigger Piriformis
You might not think of too much cash as a source of pain, but a fat wallet can trigger piriformis syndrome. The condition can affect men who wear their wallet in the back pocket of their pants. This puts chronic pressure on the piriformis muscle and can aggravate the sciatic nerve over time. You can avoid this problem by keeping your wallet in a front pocket or jacket pocket.
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Alternative Remedies And Treatments
Nutritional supplementation is helpful to some patients though the science on this is not entirely supportive of their effectiveness.
There are some studies to suggest that acupuncture can decrease the pain associated with osteoarthritis of the hip.
Although there is little hard science on this point, most hip surgeons and rheumatologists believe that patients with osteoarthritis of the hip should consider avoiding impact sports such as running in order to avoid increasing the rate at which the disease progresses.
It is important that patients with osteoarthritis of the hip avoid decreasing their activity level and it is important that they remain fit. However this often does require some modification of exercise programs running and walking programs are usually poorly tolerated by patients with osteoarthritis of the hip. Stationary bike, swimming and water aerobics usually are well-tolerated and they are recommended.
Complications Related To Sciatica
If you develop a loss of bladder or bowel control, contact your doctor right away. This can be a sign of a medical emergency that requires surgery to avoid permanent damage. Fortunately, this complication is rare. Most cases of sciatica go away within a few days or weeks and cause no lasting harm.
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What Are The Symptoms
The signs and symptoms of SI pain start in the lower back and buttock, and may radiate to the lower hip, groin or upper thigh. While the pain is usually one sided, it can occur on both sides. Patients may also experience numbness or tingling in the leg or a feeling of weakness in the leg.
Symptoms may worsen with sitting, standing, sleeping, walking or climbing stairs. Often the SI joint is painful sitting or sleeping on the affected side. Some people have difficulty riding in a car or standing, sitting or walking too long. Pain can be worse with transitional movements , standing on one leg or climbing stairs.
Know The Source Know The Solution: Treating Back Pain And Hip Pain
Once your pain is identified as truly originating in your hip or in your low back, your doctor will work with you to craft a treatment plan to address it. In many cases, this regimen will include medication to reduce inflammation and pain, and a specially designed physical therapy program to teach you movements, stretches, and physical activities to help alleviate symptoms and prevent them from returning. Depending on the nature of your pain, your doctor may also recommend lifestyle modifications to treat your pain. For both spine pain and hip pain, surgery is rarely necessary and viewed as a last-resort treatment option.
Jones HR, Burns TM, Aminoff MJ, Pomeroy SL. Pain. Chapter: Diagnosis of Low Back, Buttock, and Hip Pain. Netter Collection of Medical Illustrations: Spinal Cord and Peripheral Motor and Sensory Systems, Section 8, 201-224.My Hip Hurts: Or Is It Back Pain? UPMC HealthBeat. https://share.upmc.com/2014/09/hip-hurts-back-pain/. Published September 8, 2014. Accessed July 8, 2019.Nall R. What causes lower back and hip pain? Medical News Today. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/325433.php. Last reviewed June 10, 2019. Accessed July 8, 2019.Oh, My Aching Back Or Is It My Hip? Cleveland Clinic. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/oh-my-aching-back-or-is-it-my-hip/. Published August 25, 2015. Accessed July 8, 2019.
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Signs Your Back May Be Causing Your Knee Pain
Modern medicine has advanced significantly in the last century, meaning huge leaps forward in our understanding of our bodies and how their different systems work.
However, even with everything we know about our bodies now, there are still many mysteries in how they operate, and how certain systems link together. Unfortunately, this can lead to unnecessary treatments or surgical interventions particularly when pain that presents in one area of the body is actually caused by issues in another part of the body.
Referred pain occurs when a problem in one place in the body causes pain in another place, after the pain travels down a nerve. For example, a pinched nerve in our backs can cause pain and other problems throughout our legs.
Referred pain needs to be correctly diagnosed to make sure its treated effectively. If you can learn to understand and recognise the links between your knee and back pain, youll be better able to identify the real source of your knee pain.
Exercises To Help Reduce Knee Pain
The following exercises can strengthen the hips and thighs, specifically the glutes, adductors, hamstrings and quadriceps muscles, which control the motion of the hips and knees. The focus of each exercise is to engage the hips while allowing only a limited amount of motion in the knee. In the case of the lunges, the fact that the body is moving backward causes most of the force of the exercise to move into the glutes, which strengthens those muscles, as opposed to moving into the knees and causing strain on the patellar tendon. These links provide additional information about how the hamstrings and adductors function to control motion of the hips and knees.
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What Is Sacroiliac Joint Pain
The SI joints are located between the iliac bones and the sacrum, connecting the spine to the hips. The two joints provide support and stability, and play a major role in absorbing impact when walking and lifting. From the back, the SI joints are located below the waist where two dimples are visible.
Strong ligaments and muscles support the SI joints. There is a very small amount of motion in the joint for normal body flexibility. As we age our bones become arthritic and ligaments stiffen. When the cartilage wears down, the bones may rub together causing pain . The SI joint is a synovial joint filled with fluid. This type of joint has free nerve endings that can cause chronic pain if the joint degenerates or does not move properly.
Sacroiliac joint pain ranges from mild to severe depending on the extent and cause of injury. Acute SI joint pain occurs suddenly and usually heals within several days to weeks. Chronic SI joint pain persists for more than three months it may be felt all the time or worsen with certain activities.
Other terms for SI joint pain include: SI joint dysfunction, SI joint syndrome, SI joint strain and SI joint inflammation.
What Is Radiating Pain
Radiating pain is pain that “radiates” from one area of the body to other areas of the body. When pain in one area of the body causes pain in other areas, this is known as “referred pain.” In fact, radiating lower back and hip pain can cause pain in all kinds of places near these areas like
- Thigh muscle pain
- Pain back of the knee
- Knee pain at night
- Pain in the upper thigh
- Numbing of nerves in leg
- Hip and groin pain
- Pain in the back of leg behind the knee
- Pain in one side side
- Pain in the calf
- Pain in back of the knee
- Hip and groin pain
- Sharp pain in the toes
- Lower calf pain
Note your symptoms from the list above and use these to learn your diagnosis with our helpful descriptions of symptoms, possible causes, and when you should get to a doctor or emergency room to know how to treat your injury.
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