Natural Hydrogel Helps Heal Spinal Cord, Barrow Researcher Finds
Research led by a scientist at the Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center has shown injecting biomaterial gel into a spinal cord injury site provides significantly improved healing. The project that also included researchers from Purdue University and Arizona State University indicates that a "practical path" to treatment may be found for spinal injury patients. The research led by the Mark Preul, MD of Barrow and Alyssa Panitch, PhD of Purdue was published in the Journal of Neurosurgery. Their study found that injection of an engineered hydrogel made up mainly of hyaluronic acid (a naturally-occurring body substance) into the spinal cord injury site decreases scarring and promotes a realignment of the spinal cord fibers around the injury site.
'Back-Breaking' Work Beliefs Contribute To Health Workers' Pain
Whether from heaving, twisting, bending or bad lifting postures, it's well known that caring for the sick or elderly can lead to back pain. This often results in time off work or dropping out of caring professions altogether. Now Danish research published in the online open access journal BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders suggests that the fear of getting back pain from care work is predictive of actually developing it. Among healthcare workers, studies have found LBP rates during a 12-month period of 45-63 percent compared with 40-50 percent in the general population. Rather than avoiding physical activity, medical guidelines based on LBP research recommend staying active and continuing normal daily life, including going to work.
Back Pain Permanently Sidelines Soldiers At War
Military personnel evacuated out of Iraq and Afghanistan because of back pain are unlikely to return to the line of duty regardless of the treatment they receive, according to research led by a Johns Hopkins pain management specialist. In a study published in the Nov. 9 Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers found that just 13 percent of service members who left their units with back pain as their primary diagnosis eventually returned to duty in the field. Women, officers, those deployed in Afghanistan and those with previous back pain had better outcomes, but only marginally. Aside from combat injuries sustained during battle, the return-to-duty rate for spinal pain and other musculoskeletal disorders is lower than for any other disease or non-combat injury category except for psychiatric illness, the researchers said.
Primary Care Physicians Are Front Line Defense In Diagnosing Serious Illness In Patients With Acute Lower Back Pain
A study by researchers at The George Institute for International Health in Australia found that it is rare for patients presenting to PCPs with acute lower back pain to have previously undiagnosed serious diseases. The most common serious disease cause documented was vertebral fracture, with half of the cases identified at the time of initial consultation. Full findings appear in the October issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that global prevalence of lower back pain could be as high as 42%. Pain occurring in the lower back interrupts daily routines such as work, school, or activities and is a chief cause of visits to primary care physicians (PCPs).
For Patients With Acute Lower Back Pain, PCPs Are Front Line Defense In Diagnosing Serious Illness
A study by researchers at The George Institute for International Health in Australia found that it is rare for patients presenting to PCPs with acute lower back pain to have previously undiagnosed serious diseases. The most common serious disease cause documented was vertebral fracture, with half of the cases identified at the time of initial consultation. Full findings appear in the October issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that global prevalence of lower back pain could be as high as 42%. Pain occurring in the lower back interrupts daily routines such as work, school, or activities and is a chief cause of visits to primary care physicians (PCPs).
Taking The Guess Work Out Of Predicting Pain Relief For Patients With Back Pain And Sciatica
Patients suffering from back pain, sciatica, or a herniated disc, sometimes find relief with epidural steroid injections (ESI). Recent research has found that needle electromyography (EMG) can reliably predict, among other factors, the patient's potential pain relief from these injections. A prospective study was conducted at the North Texas Veterans Administration Medical Center in Dallas, TX to determine whether needle EMG findings could predict pain relief in patients who had sciatica and underwent ESI. Eighty-eight subjects were found to meet the following criteria for lumbar radiculopathy: symptoms of leg pain, abnormal lumbar magnetic resonance imaging, and positive physical examination findings.
Recovery In Four Out Of Ten Back Pain Sufferers Within A Year
Research published on bmj.com today reports that over a third (35 percent) of patients will recover from chronic low back pain within nine months and four out of 10 (41 percent) will do so within a year. This groundbreaking study reveals findings that are contrary to the broad theory that recovery from an episode of chronic low back pain is doubtful. Dr Luciola Menezes Costa, from the University of Sydney is the lead author. She reports that individuals were more likely to have delayed recovery it they had a prior sick leave due to low back pain, high disability levels, low levels of education and were born overseas. The authors explain that chronic low back pain is a major health problem.
Four Out Of 10 Back Pain Sufferers Will Recover Within A Year
Over a third (35%) of patients will recover from chronic low back pain within nine months and four out of 10 (41%) will do so within a year, according to research published on BMJ.com. This is the first study of its kind and the results go against the common view that recovery from an episode of chronic low back pain is unlikely. The lead author, Dr Luciola Menezes Costa, from the University of Sydney, says individuals with previous sick leave due to low back pain, high disability levels, low levels of education and being born overseas were more likely to have delayed recovery. Chronic low back pain is a major health problem, say the authors, and places a huge social and economic burden on society.
MRI Abundance May Lead To Excess In Back Surgeries, Stanford Study Shows
Patients reporting new low-back pain are more likely to undergo surgery if treated in an area with a higher-than-average concentration of magnetic resonance imaging machines, according to research from the Stanford University School of Medicine. This may be bad news for patients, since previous studies have found that increased surgery rates don't improve patient outcomes. "The worry is that many people will not benefit from the surgery, so heading in this direction is concerning, " said senior author Laurence Baker, PhD, professor of health research and policy. In their new study, to be published online Oct. 14 in Health Affairs, Baker and first author Jacqueline Baras correlate areas with high numbers of MRI machines to an increased likelihood that MRIs will be performed on new low-back pain patients.
100-Year-Old Woman Gets Relief From Debilitating Back Pain After Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery
On World Osteoporosis Day, October 20, centenarian Helen Daniels of Poughkeepsie, NY, has a good reason to smile; she's able to comfortably walk again following minimally invasive spine surgery. After suffering two spinal fractures caused by osteoporosis, Mrs. Daniels had debilitating back pain. After being treated with a minimally invasive spinal procedure, called balloon kyphoplasty, she no longer suffers from back pain and is able to walk with the aid of a walker or cane. Osteoporosis is a disease that leads to fragile bones and an increased susceptibility to fractures of the spine, hip or wrist. The degenerative disease is the main cause of the estimated 1.