Latest News and Research

Some people believe they’re stuck with the body they’re in – that they have no power to change. They think they have no choice but to silently watch their bodies age. Fortunately, they’re mistaken.

Did you know?

• You generate an entirely new stomach lining every five days?
• That all your skin cells are replaced once a month?
• That all your bones are restored every three months?

At Better health Pain and Wellness Centers, we believe understanding your body, especially your spine, is the first step towards taking better care of it. Here are some topics to get you started on your journey towards better health.

Your Spine
In addition to helping you move, your spine protects the spinal cord, part of your nervous system - the most important and amazing body system.

The nervous system is made of three parts; brain, spinal cord and spinal nerves. Your brain is the control center of every function in your body, and it sends information and energy down your spinal cord.

By M. Sterling

Study highlights:

1. Many whiplash patients develop chronic symptoms.
2. Currently, the Quebec Task Force is the system used to classify whiplash associated disorders.
3. Research has shown that patients who develop chronic symptoms have different physical and psychological impairments than patients who recover.
4. Because of these differences, a new classification system that takes the differences into consideration may be developed.

By Thomas T.W. Chiu, PhD, Tai-Hing Lam, MD, Anthony J. Hedley, MD

Study highlights:

1. This study evaluated the effectiveness of neck exercise programs for patients with chronic neck pain.
2. Patients were separated into exercise and non-exercise groups.
3. After the six-week study, patients in the exercise group had significant improvement in disability, pain and neck strength.

By K.R. Niere, S.K. Torney

Study highlights:

1. Diagnosing minor cervical instability correctly is key to recommending appropriate treatment.
2. This study identified six symptoms considered to be “very important” or “vitally important” to the diagnosis of minor cervical instability. These six symptoms were:

• A history of major trauma
• Reports of the neck catching, locking or giving way
• Poor muscular control
• Signs of hypermobility (excessive movement)
• Unpredictability of symptoms

By C. Norman Shealy, MD, PhD, Vera Borgmeyer, RN, MA

Study highlights:

1. Low back pain is the most common pain complaint.
2. It is the most common cause of disability in people under the age of 45.
3. Back pain is also a very costly problem.
4. Up until recently, treatments have been expensive, invasive and mostly ineffective.
5. The authors developed the DRS System to offer low back pain relief through decompression, reduction and stabilization.
6. In their study, they compared the pain relief offered by the DRS System to traditional mechanical traction.
7. Up to 86 percent of the DRS patients experienced “good” to “excellent” pain relief. Meanwhile, only up to 50 percent of the traction patients had “good” to “excellent” relief.
8. The DRS System is estimated to cost 80 percent less than standard treatments.

At Better Health Pain and Wellness Center, we are committed to helping our patients heal by providing compassionate, personalized, comprehensive care. But in order to reach your optimal health, you need to believe and participate in the healing process.

During our years of experience, we have noticed several things that set successful patients above the rest. We'd like to share these with you, so you can make the most of your treatment, getting back to optimal health as soon as possible - and staying that way.

By G. Jull

Study highlights:

1. This study looked for differences in neck impairment between patients with whiplash injuries and patients with gradual neck problems.
2. No significant differences were found.

By H. Lee

Study highlights:

1. This study was designed to describe characteristics of different levels of neck pain – pain that required treatment, pain that didn’t require treatment, and no pain.
2. Study participants were measured for neck muscle endurance, neck range of motion, posture, neck length and head circumference. They also completed questionnaires about their neck pain.
3. Researchers found differences in neck muscle endurance, range of motion, and questionnaire answers between each group, which may help distinguish between them.

Kok-Yong Seng, Vee-Sin Lee Peter, Pin-Min Lam
Clinical Biomechanics 17 (2002) 545 - 547

FIFTH EDITION
Volume 1 / St. Lucie Press / Boca Raton, Florida

Chapter 20:
New Concepts in Back Pain Management:
Decompression, Reduction, and Stabilization
C Norman Shealy, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.C.S.
Pierre L. LeRoy ,M.D., F.A.C.S.

Spine. 2003; 28: 2215-2221
Laurie Barclay, MD

Spine. 2003; 28: 2215-2221
Laurie Barclay, MD

Gun RT, et al. Spine. February 15, 2005; Vol. 30, No. 4, pp. 386-391.

By Edward L. Eyerman, MD

Study highlights:

1. Dr. Eyerman’s study looked for evidence of patients’ improvement after receiving DRS treatment by comparing MRIs taken before and after treatment.
2. He found that:

• DRS treatments provided “good” to “excellent” pain relief.
• There was up to 90 percent reduction in the size of patients’ disc herniations.
• Improvement of patients’ radiculopathy and healing of herniated discs was also seen.

MTG NEWSLETTER - FIFTH EDITION
Volumne 1

Active Neck Muscle Training in the Treatment of Chronic Neck Pain in Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial, by Jari Ylinen, MD; Esa-Pekka Takala, MD, DMedSc; Matti Nykänen, MD, DMedSc; Arja Häkkinen, PhD; Esko Mälkiä, PhD; Timo Pohjolainen, MD, DMedSc; Sirkka-Liisa Karppi, MSc; Hannu Kautiainen, BA; Olavi Airaksinen, MD, DMedSc; JAMA, May 21, 2003.

Smoking
Is this the right time? You promised yourself if you really wanted to quit smoking, you would. You know all the reasons why you should quit, but you have to be ready to do it – for you.

How do I quit?
Once you make the decision, it probably won’t be easy. But with commitment, the right attitude and the methods listed below, you can be off to a good start.

By D. Falla

Study highlights:

1. Research has shown exercise is important in treating patients with neck pain.
2. However, it is not clear what type of exercise and how much exercise is effective.
3. This study found patients with chronic neck pain have complex muscle impairments.
4. Understanding these impairments is important in recommending an appropriate and effective rehabilitation program.