New York, NY (PRWEB) July 04, 2015
Chronic Neck Pain. Neck pain is no small problem. NIH statistics suggest that 15% of chronic pain sufferers have pain located in the neck. Another 19% suffer from head, migraine, or facial pain, in some cases related to pain referred from the neck. Chiropractic literature suggests that 45% of American workers must deal with neck pain. Strategies for mitigating neck pain range from controlling postures that cause pain or designing an ergonomic work space to minimize the generation of pain. People have been pursuing therapies to remove the neck pain and restore normal neck function.
Acupuncture. A review of 29 well-designed investigations by Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center found that nonsurgical management of neck pain with acupuncture has been shown to be effective in relieving back and neck pain, arthritis, and shoulder pain. Acupuncture is often coupled with a massage and exercise protocol. Acupuncture employs direct needle application to neural focal points which either encourage or discourage afferent and efferent nerve fibers to relieve pain.
Extra-Corporeal Shock Wave Therapy. ESWT is derived from lithotripsy protocols initially developed to manage kidney stones a number of decades ago. Essentially it employs shock waves that cause kidney stones to disintegrate. More recent research since 2000 has demonstrated that ESWT pressure waves can stimulate healing in the interface between tendons, ligaments, and bone while reducing pain by stimulation at the neuron level. The therapy has been useful in orthopedic therapy and has been applied to other body areas experiencing pain with reported success.
Myofascial Pain Syndrome. Both acupuncture and ESWT treatment rely on identifying the source of pain within the nervous system. There is a problem where pain arises from multiple nerve sources, the “myofascial pain syndrome.” Low intensity pressure waves applied radially have shown success in managing chronic neck related to this syndrome, particularly paired with acupuncture. ESWT utilizes wave technology which is dependent on body mass (tissue density). Using elastography the pressure waves can be adjusted for degree of wave penetration subject to wave intensity in the neck and shoulder muscles girdling and supporting the neck. The end result is that acupuncture can directly address nerve synaptic points while ESWT can address related tissues causing nerve firing at those points by stimulating blood flow and relieving chronic tissue compression.
Restoration of Lost Function Using Focused Shock Waves. ESWT penetrates to a depth of four inches to improve blood flow to compromised tissue and facilitate muscle regeneration. Healing of these tissues allows therapists to begin modifying patient posture to minimize previous pressure within the body and alter motor synergy patterns which previously brought chronic pressure to the patient. This is possible because muscle pain and myofascial triggers respond to the ESWT stimulation. The intensity of the pressure wave allows the clinician to identify specifically how deep the neural pain synapse is located so that direct ESWT therapy (Extracorporeal Pulse Activation Treatment), or acupuncture can be applied to that locus.
Chronic Pain Answers. New York Dynamic Neuromuscular Rehabilitation & Physical Therapy is able to evaluate and provide non-surgical therapies to address chronic neck and body pain using ESWT and therapeutic exercises and postural reeducation, a combination approach bringing effective relief to many patients. Dr. Kalika’s clinic is located at 130 West 42 Street, Suite 1055, in New York City. Patients may discuss evaluation by contacting the clinic at 1-866-938-7779 or visit us online at http://nydnrehab.com.
