Tag Archive for: back pain

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Man looking down at handheld device, straining neck.

“Text Neck Syndrome” Is No Joke; Your Chronic Neck Pain is Trying to Get Your Attention

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Chronic neck pain has been a growing problem since the arrival of handheld technology. “Text Neck,” also called forward head posture, is a condition caused by the repetitive stress placed on the cervical spine from looking down. In addition to chronic neck pain, bending your neck for too long may also cause upper shoulder pain, headaches, muscle stiffness and postural changes. But neck pain can also be an important clue to the existence of underlying health issues.

Looking down for an extended period of time puts you at risk of overstretching the supporting muscles, tendons, and ligaments of the cervical spine. These elastic structures should recoil back to normal, but there are many reasons why the connective tissue in the neck doesn’t rebound, including:

  • Disc problems – cervical discs can wear out and start to degenerate over time, making the neck feel painful and stiff.
  • Facet Arthritis – when cartilage that covers the ends of the facet joints wear out pain and stiffness can result.
  • Hypermobility Syndromes – neck pain, headaches, “heavy head” are all common symptoms of cervical hypermobility.
  • Hormonal Changes – cervical spine (neck) problems could be an indicator of low thyroid in women and low testosterone in men
  • Chronic Infection – untreated viral and bacterial infections can lead to painful inflammation of the neck muscles.
  • Altered Metabolism – Chronic neck pain has also been associated with metabolic syndrome and a high body mass index.
  • Nutritional Deficiencies – B12 and Vitamin D deficiencies can cause or worsen neck pain.
  • Emotional Stress – Many people “carry stress” in their neck which presents as pain and can cause real physiological changes.

Diagnosing & Treating Chronic Neck Pain

At the Kaplan Center, we’ll look at multiple areas of health to determine the root cause of your pain and all the factors that may be exacerbating your symptoms. Neck problems are best treated by a multidisciplinary team and comprehensive treatment is key to long-lasting results. Depending on your evaluation and test results, recommended treatments may include:

  • Osteopathic manipulation – Manual therapies are often used for treating chronic neck pain. Craniosacral therapy, visceral manipulation, myofascial release and strain/counterstrain are just a few of the techniques that we can use to rebalance and realign musculoskeletal, connective, visceral, and other body tissues to ensure optimal body function.
  • Physical therapy – Chronic neck pain can often be successfully treated with physical therapy. Our physical therapists can evaluate and treat your condition with strengthening and stretching exercises, as appropriate.
  • Acupuncture is thought to work by blocking pain messages to the brain with competing stimuli through the release of endorphins (the body’s natural painkillers) and the secretion of neurotransmitters, which affect one’s perception of pain.
  • Hormone replacement – When hormonal changes are the cause of your pain, hormone replacement therapy can help improve symptoms for both men and women.
  • Stress reduction – Mind body therapies can help lower stress.
  • Nutrition & supplementation – Positive dietary changes and supplementation will help correct deficiencies and can improve your pain symptoms and overall wellbeing.
  • Regenerative medicine therapies, including prolotherapy and platelet-rich plasma have been very successful in treating chronic neck pain related to texting and poor posture.

The treatments above can help relieve your immediate pain, promote long-term symptom relief, and help prevent future episodes of neck pain. In our experience, a combination of treatment strategies works best.

Don’t ignore the message, let us help you! Please give us a call today to make an appointment – 703-532-4892. Ext 2.

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

yoga_for_back_pain

Research Confirms This Ancient Practice Helps With Low Back Pain

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We are at a crossroads in the applications of yoga for modern medicine. Traditionally, yoga was designed to promote harmony within the body and with the natural world. Modern medicine is now acknowledging that this ancient approach of breath practices, movement, and meditation is proving beneficial for an issue that plagues many Americans: back pain.

If your smoke alarm sounded, imagine cutting the wires to the alarm instead of putting out the fire. This is what many of us are doing when it comes to our health.

Back pain remains a primary reason many Americans find themselves on over-the-counter NSAIDS and even prescription narcotics. As common as it is for us to want to cover up symptoms rather than address the root of the problem, it gets us nowhere, fast. We end up addicted to medications to help us get through the day (or night), experiencing side effects like heartburn and worse, all the while allowing the underlying problem to fester.

Research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine put yoga side by side with physical therapy (PT), one of the most widely prescribed treatments for low back pain, and found that yoga had “almost the same amount of improvement in pain and activity limitation over time” as PT.

However, patients are strongly encouraged to consult a physician before engaging in a yoga routine to establish limitations and avoid further injury. The research also gives hope that insurance companies will more widely offer yoga as a covered treatment.

Yoga eases back pain first by increasing awareness.

When our bodies are in pain, we tend to “check out” – we don’t want to feel it. However, the body is full of wisdom when we stop to listen to it. Inherent in any imbalance is the mechanics of its healing. As you tune into your body, you gain a natural understanding of what needs strengthening, what needs to stretch, and what needs to relax.

We start by deepening the breath and learning to direct the breath into the back and hips. Beginning with gentle movements, we increase the flow of energy into areas of the body weakened by pain and lack of use. Health is flow. Imagine what a stagnant pond looks like; all sorts of microbes and bacteria can fester there. Now imagine a clear flowing stream; illness and pain can’t take hold as easily when energy is flowing. It is important to focus both on strengthening and stretching – many people over-stretch when in pain. However, the key for back pain is increasing stability; this means engaging your core, back, and hip muscles while also allowing them to lengthen.

Lastly, meditation is key.

They call back pain the “new ulcer” — a societally acceptable physical manifestation of stress, the way ulcers used to be. As with any stress-related illness, the key is learning to calm and soothe the nervous system and to increase your love and appreciation of yourself and of life. Meditation helps to press the pause button. It offers a choice as to where you place your attention — I can choose to focus on the pleasant feeling of breath in my body right now, rather than running a mental movie in my head about something that is going (or not going) to happen tomorrow. As our present-moment awareness grows, the tension in our bodies dissolves.

Yoga is a systematic approach to health and happiness that has an infinite variety of applications. May you discover the power of yoga to support you on your journey toward health.
—
It’s
All
Grace.
Laura Elizabeth Dorsett, MTS, RYT 500

* Before starting any new exercise routine, patients should discuss potential limitations with a physician.

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

This article was originally published in June 2017. It was reviewed and updated in September 2023.

treating chronic pain

Treating Chronic Pain

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The number of patients diagnosed with chronic pain conditions continues to rise in the United States, topping 51 million in 2021. 1

Chronic pain is defined as pain that lasts for more than 3 months, a time frame that under normal circumstances should accommodate the body’s normal healing process. But when the body doesn’t respond how we expect it to, lives can quickly be interrupted, and for many, it can be life-shattering.

Chronic pain is treatable and there are many effective options available, so why are millions of people being left behind?

One of the biggest challenges in diagnosing and managing chronic pain is the fact that providers have to rely almost exclusively on the individual’s description of their pain and the disability it causes. Pain is subjective – there is no biomarker, blood test, or imaging study that can objectively detect the presence and severity of pain.

However, research that looks at the way our brains and nervous systems initiate and sustain severe chronic pain continues to point to the same conclusion – that chronic pain, in and of itself, is not the problem to be treated. Instead, chronic pain should be seen as a symptom of an underlying medical problem, and it is to this underlying problem that treatment must be targeted.

Specifically, chronic pain is a symptom of inflammation in the brain, or what I call “a brain on fire”. This inflammation is triggered by the body’s own immune system, which is designed to respond to any kind of assault. For example, physical injury, infections (such as Lyme disease or COVID-19), exposure to environmental toxins, concussions, celiac disease, loss of oxygen to the brain caused by sleep apnea, and even long-term emotional trauma, can set off an inflammatory response in the brain and central nervous system. Identifying the source(s) of inflammation is critical to breaking the cycle of chronic pain; and frequently, the sources are multiple, compounding, and cumulative.

To accurately diagnose and treat the causes of neuroinflammation that manifest as chronic pain, providers must:

  • Take a comprehensive medical history of each individual.
  • Work to correctly identify and treat the underlying root cause(s) of chronic pain.
  • Educate people about their relationship with chronic pain. Like all relationships, how this is managed can make life substantially better or worse.

Pain Management Programs

Intensive pain management programs can be an extremely important tool in helping patients manage their pain and live a better life. They typically involve a treatment schedule that spans several weeks, during which time attendees are typically seen by a team of healthcare providers with a variety of specialties. Although programs vary somewhat from one to another, each is likely to include:

  • Initial consultation with a provider who has pain management experience.
  • Specialized lab tests.
  • Nutritional intervention, including anti-inflammatory elimination diets and consultations with nutrition experts.
  • Behavioral health techniques, such as meditation and relaxation therapies.
  • Acupuncture.
  • Movement therapies, such as yoga (especially restorative yoga and yogic philosophy training), and physical therapy, including core strengthening and biomechanics.

The goal of this type of intense programming with an emphasis on education is to help individuals think differently about their pain while providing them with new tools to manage their pain and re-engage in their lives. Additionally, if the programs are designed to approach pain as a symptom of an underlying medical condition and the treatment aims to resolve the root cause of the pain, there is a very good possibility that the pain will go away.

The Bottom Line

  1. Chronic pain is not a disease but a symptom.
  2. The way we treat pain now has, for the most part, been a costly, abysmal failure. Opioids are the most pressing issue but there are also serious concerns about the number of unsuccessful and unnecessary procedures (surgeries in particular) and the proliferation of the use of dorsal column stimulators (implanted electronic devices placed near the spinal cord to treat chronic pain), and the overutilization of spinal blocks (injections of anesthetic into the spine). The research evidence for these approaches for the treatment of chronic pain ranges from fair to poor. 2,3,4,5
  3. Behavioral health programs have some of the strongest data and the greatest success in treating chronic pain conditions. And, more importantly, when these programs are not successful, they don’t make the situation worse (unlike surgery and other invasive procedures).

What Needs to Happen

Individuals suffering from chronic pain must, in every single case, be offered a comprehensive workup with an individualized treatment approach.

We need to continue with research into the causes of inflammation in the brain, while also working on developing a treatment for brain inflammation that leads to chronic pain. We also need to develop testing that will provide us with an objective indicator of the chronic pain/underlying disease and its response to treatment.

In the interim, we should focus on improving the lives of our patients by using targeted therapies that address the biology of the pain, rather than its symptoms; anything short of this is like putting a Band-Aid on a bullet hole.

–Dr. Gary Kaplan

Sources:

1. Rikard SM, Strahan AE, Schmit KM, Guy GP Jr.. Chronic Pain Among Adults — United States, 2019–2021. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2023;72:379–385. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7215a1.

2. PMID: 24308846
3. PMID: 25840040
4. PMID: 26824399
5. PMCID: PMC3777049

Long-COVID Recovery Program

Our Long-COVID Recovery Program provides comprehensive care to patients who still have COVID-19 symptoms more than six weeks after recovering from the initial infection. If you are experiencing symptoms beyond six weeks of being diagnosed, please give us a call at 703-532-6302.

More Info

 

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

 

This article was originally published in September 2016. It was reviewed and updated in September 2023.

Texting Neck and What it Does to the Spine

What Texting Does to the Spine

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Did you know that your head becomes 5 times heavier when your head position is bent down to text? In fact, each degree of forward tilt adds a tremendous strain on the neck and its muscles such as the levator scapulae that are attached from the shoulder blades to each side of the neck.

At a minimum, when these muscles are stretched for a long time or misused it can lead to headaches; other more serious symptoms can include dizziness, herniated disks, pinched nerves, neck sprain, and abnormal posture (by compensation).

“Text Neck Syndrome,” also called forward head posture, can not only lead to chronic pain and postural problems but can be an important clue to the existence of underlying health issues, like hormonal changes, nutritional issues, facet arthritis, or emotional stress.

Treatments for Texting Neck Syndrome

At the Kaplan Center, we offer osteopathic manipulative therapy, postural rehabilitation, PRP, injection therapy, and physical therapy to correct those ailments. Furthermore, nutritional and hormonal correction, when indicated, can have a formidable impact on improving the musculoskeletal system. For men and women over 40, we recommend checking your testosterone level for general health and improving strength and libido. The impact of testosterone is well known on overall vitality which leads to a better tone in the muscle and standing upright as opposed to slouched with fatigue (see diagram below on the effects of testosterone).

Bottom line: If you have neck pain, don’t ignore it as it’s likely to worsen over time and cause more serious problems later in life. Get yourself checked and tested so we can help you feel better now.

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

preventing compression fractures

8 Steps That Can Help You Prevent Painful Compression Fractures

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Research shows that one-quarter of post-menopausal women eventually suffer from compression or collapsing of some vertebrae, the bones that comprise the spinal column. Compression fractures can not only increase one’s risk of future fractures, but they can also compromise one’s ability to function and may cause disabling chronic back pain.

Although these injuries are common, they can usually be prevented, delayed, or mitigated by adopting a healthy lifestyle that includes:

1. Engage in resistance training, such as weight training, yoga, or Qigong every other day, ideally for 30-60 minutes per workout.

There is good news for those who struggle to find those 30-60 minutes: a 10-year study that was completed in 2015 measured the bone mineral density (BMD) of 741 participants pre and post-yoga regimen. Participants who routinely engaged in 12 yoga poses each day for just 12 minutes showed a reversal of osteoporotic bone loss.

2. Do weight-bearing exercises like running, walking, or hiking, for at least 30 minutes each day.

Weight-bearing exercises work against gravity and stimulate bone cells to produce more bone.

3. Get your Vitamin-D levels tested to ensure that they’re between 50-70 ng/mL.

If your levels are low, consider getting more sunshine (exposing some of your skin for 15-30 minutes each day) and taking a supplement. Most people need between 3,000 to 5,000iu of supplementation, but some may need up to 10,000 international units. If you take Vitamin-D supplementation, your 25-hydroxy Vitamin-D level should be checked twice a year.

4. Check your calcium and magnesium intake.

Women should consume a total daily amount of calcium between 1200 and 1500 mg, with no more than 600 mg from supplemental calcium. Taking in more than this amount in supplemental form can lead to an increased risk of heart disease and kidney stones. Good sources of dietary calcium are sardines, white beans, almonds, oranges, leafy greens, and dairy.

Taking magnesium can increase bone mineral density and reduce fracture risk.

5. Consider bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.

Before prescribing medications, we at Kaplan Center explore the possibility of using bioidentical estrogens and progesterone or estrogen analogues like Evista to prevent bone loss.

6. Talk with your doctor before using medications to treat bone loss.

Because most of these medications work by decreasing bone breakdown, this can potentially cause more brittle, unhealthy bone, and result in fractures of the femur and jaw necrosis. We generally reserve medication treatment for those with severe osteoporosis or a history of pathological fractures. Before considering bisphosphonates, like Fosomax, Actonel, Boniva, Reclast, or a newer injectable, Prolia, it is recommended to complete dental procedures before starting treatment for osteoporosis. Report any persistent jaw or thigh pain to your healthcare provider immediately.

Another treatment option is Miacalcin, a synthetic version of the hormone, calcitonin. It has been shown to build bone more in the spine than in the hip, offering users some pain relief. Two alternatives to the bisphosphonates and Miacalcin are Forteo and Tymlos, synthetic versions of a hormone called parathyroid hormone which also builds bone. Some of these drugs, however, carry warnings about an increased risk of bone tumors called osteosarcoma.

7. Consider Bone-Density Imaging

It’s important to evaluate the effectiveness of any medications or hormone replacement therapies you may use because each individual inevitably has their own unique response to a given treatment. A bone-density test can help measure the therapeutic benefits of any treatment path you have chosen.

8. Vitamin K supplementation.

Research on Vitamin K and postmenopausal bone loss has shown that it can have a positive effect on bone strength. This 2022 meta-analysis that looked at 16 randomized controlled trials and included 6,425 subjects concluded that “Vitamin K2 supplementation has a positive effect on the maintenance and improvement of [bone mass density lumbar spine] in postmenopausal women, and it can also reduce the fracture incidence”. Supplements are a great way to improve your health, but you should always discuss any new supplements or medications with your provider to ensure that it would be a good option for your unique health profile.

In sum, there’s a lot you can do to keep your bones strong! So, do it!

If you would like to talk to a Kaplan provider about any of the treatments above, please give us a call at 703-532-4892.

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

This article was originally published online in May, 2018. Its content was reviewed and updated in May, 2023.

Additional References

Castiglioni S, Cazzaniga A, Albisetti W, Maier JA. Magnesium and osteoporosis: current state of knowledge and future research directions. Nutrients. 2013 Jul 31;5(8):3022-33. doi: 10.3390/nu5083022. PMID: 23912329; PMCID: PMC3775240.

Rondanelli M, Faliva MA, Tartara A, Gasparri C, Perna S, Infantino V, Riva A, Petrangolini G, Peroni G. An update on magnesium and bone health. Biometals. 2021 Aug;34(4):715-736. doi: 10.1007/s10534-021-00305-0. Epub 2021 May 6. PMID: 33959846; PMCID: PMC8313472.

Chronic Back Pain with Acupuncture

Relieve Your Chronic Back Pain with Acupuncture

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Back pain affects 70% of Americans in their lifetime and is currently the leading cause of disability. With the limited options typically offered for pain management by medical professionals, many of those who suffer from back pain find themselves depending on prescription painkillers, despite their many negative side-effects and the risk of addiction with long-term use. Acupuncture, on the other hand, is a non-narcotic and VERY effective treatment for chronic back pain – and it’s a treatment method that we use frequently at The Kaplan Center.

Acupuncture involves the placement of fine needles on the body for the purpose of reducing pain and treating various physical, mental, and emotional conditions. It is thought to work by blocking pain messages to the brain with competing stimuli through the release of endorphins – the body’s natural painkillers – and the secretion of neurotransmitters, which affect one’s perception of pain.

Questions? Give Us a Call!

703-532-4892 x2

While acupuncture has been practiced for thousands of years, it is also standing the test of modern research. In 2007 the results of a large study of over 1,100 patients with chronic back pain was published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. After 10 treatments, the group that received acupuncture had a 47% improvement in pain and functioning after six months, compared to a 27% improvement among those who received more conventional care involving medications and physical therapy. (Unfortunately, while there are also studies focusing on spinal lumbar stenosis, they are inconclusive due to poor methodologies and research biases.) The American College of Physicians Clinical Practice Guidelines in 2017 and the CDC Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain in 2016 both recommended acupuncture in place of opioids as non pharmacological interventions along with massage therapy, spinal manipulations, and yoga.

At The Kaplan Center, a patient’s initial visit includes a complete health assessment covering the history of the pain, as well as other potential health concerns such as sleep, digestion, and additional musculoskeletal issues. A holistic approach is used to provide maximum pain relief and healing – even in complex cases of postoperative pain and arthritis. It is recommended to do a course of at least 8 acupuncture treatments, which may include adjunct treatments, such as heat therapy or “moxibustion,” Chinese herbal medicine, and electro-acupuncture. Most patients report benefits after a few sessions though many notice changes immediately following the initial visit.

In sum, acupuncture is a low risk, nonpharmacological intervention that is effective in reducing pain, helping to improve the quality of life for chronic pain sufferers.

– Rebecca Berkson, L.Ac, Dipl. O.M.

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

Moving Forward with Back Pain

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Has living with chronic low back pain affected your productivity, mobility, and overall ability to enjoy life?

In the United States, it’s estimated that nearly 16 million adults experience chronic back pain, making it one of the most costly health expenses annually and one of the most common complaints heard in doctors’ offices. Causes can include injury, disease (i.e. arthritis, cancer), obesity, poor posture, a sedentary lifestyle, even infection.

Patients with acute and sub-acute cases (pain that goes away within 3 months) may find that their pain improves over time without treatment of any kind. But not everyone has the ability to simply wait it out. In these cases, and when the pain becomes chronic, the American College of Physicians (ACP) recommends that non-invasive and non-drug therapies like exercise, acupuncture, massage, yoga, and other mind-body therapies should be the first line of treatment over surgery and narcotics, and we agree!

Remember, chronic pain, including low back pain, is a symptom of inflammation. Without targeting the root cause of the inflammation and treating it, your pain symptoms will not improve. Mind-body therapies help calm the inflammatory process in the body, promote healing, and present little to no risk to the patient.

Here are a few common misconceptions about treating back pain that can contribute to a slower recovery.

Myth: Exercise makes back pain even worse

Putting the brakes on exercise may seem like a good idea when you’re feeling pain symptoms, but research shows that the opposite is true. Strengthening and stretching exercises combined with aerobic activity will improve back pain symptoms by increasing blood flow, improving range of motion and flexibility, and strengthening core muscles.

· Physical Therapy is a great place to start if you’re concerned about further injuring or straining your back. Physical therapists have outstanding manual skills with a comprehensive understanding of body mechanics. They can work with you to decrease pain, improve movement, and provide instruction on how to continue moving safely in your everyday life.

· Going for a walk is one of the easiest ways to stay active. Try taking a short walk every day to keep your heart pumping and blood flowing.

· The poses, controlled breathing, and meditation involved in the practice of yoga can not only improve symptoms of chronic low back pain but can lower instances of depression and use of medication. As reducing back pain requires improving core strength, yoga is great for increasing core stability and strength while increasing awareness of other areas that may need stretching and strengthening.

Watch: Sun Salutations A & B with Dr. Lisa Lilienfield

Questions? Give Us a Call!

703-532-4892 x2

Myth: NSAIDs can’t hurt

Occasional use of NSAIDs can certainly be helpful if patients have seen little improvement with non-invasive treatments. But a big misconception about these OTC (over the counter) painkillers is that they’re completely safe and harmless. Regular use of NSAIDs can lead to problems with gut ulcers, liver damage, and kidney damage. Ironically NSAIDs can even heighten one’s sensitivity to pain. People who take them more than once a week should discuss this with their physician.

Myth: Mind-body therapies are unscientific

Dismissing the benefits of mind-body therapies is at the least, misguided. There is a mountain of evidence that supports the use of alternative therapies for pain management.

· Acupuncture: This 2000-year-old practice is thought to work by blocking pain messages to the brain with competing stimuli that cause an increase of endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers, and the secretion of neurotransmitters, which affect one’s perception of pain.

In 2007 the results of a large study of over 1,100 patients with chronic back pain were published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. After 10 treatments, the group that received acupuncture had a 47% improvement in pain and functioning after six months.

Read: Relieve Your Chronic Back Pain with Acupuncture

· Massage Therapy: A 2011 study concluded that people who were treated with massage therapy, whether relaxation massage or structural massage (deep tissue massage), for their chronic back pain, saw benefits that lasted at least 6 months.

· Meditation: A study reported in the Journal of Neuroscience showed that patients who had received only a little more than 60 minutes of meditation training were able to dramatically reduce their experience of pain. Patients experienced a reduction in “pain intensity” of about 40 percent and a reduction in “pain unpleasantness” of 57 percent. According to the lead author of the study, Fadel Zeidan, “Meditation produced a greater reduction in pain than even morphine or other pain-relieving drugs, which typically reduce pain ratings by about 25 percent.”

Bottom line

Whether you have an acute, sub-acute, or chronic case of low back pain, the first line of treatment should be a therapy that can help calm the body’s inflammatory process naturally and safely. While there is unquestionably a time and a place for surgery or narcotics, medical evidence indicates that conservative treatment of low-back pain is often as effective.

If low back pain is interfering with your quality of life, please give us a call to learn more about how we can help with these wonderful and science-based therapies that can benefit your mind, body, and soul.

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

Gentle Yoga Poses for Back, Neck and Hips

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Yoga is a wonderful tool to alleviate stress, which in turn can improve both your mental and physical health. Taking just a few minutes each day to gently move and stretch your body can make a big difference. Here are some gentle yoga poses to try at home, demonstrated by Laura Dorsett, MTS, RYT500.

Seated Pigeon Pose

This gentle stretch opens up the hips, glutes, and lower back.

Eagle Arms Posture

Eagle Arms helps to release tension in the head, neck and shoulders.

Runners Lunge/Yogic Lunge

Yogic Lunge opens up the hips and releases the lower back.

Seated Spinal Twist

Seated Spinal Twist gently loosens strained muscles in the back to revitalize the spine and posture.

Frequency Specific Microcurrent treatment for shoulder pain.

What is Frequency Specific Microcurrent (FSM)?

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Physical Therapists Jeanne Scheele and Pat Alomar are now using Frequency Specific Microcurrent (FSM) therapy in the plan of care for their patients.

What is FSM?

FSM uses low-level electrical impulses, measured in hertz or pulses, to deliver microcurrents to targeted areas of the body to initiate healing. It has been used by licensed & trained practitioners for decades to treat a variety of conditions from joint and muscle pain to IBS and GERD. FSM is a safe, effective and non-invasive alternative treating pain & injury for anyone who is looking for non-opiate/non-pharmaceutical treatments.

How does it work?

As we know, the body hosts its very own electrical system and each type of tissue is known to operate at a specific electrical frequency. However, injury and illness can disrupt those frequencies making recovery more difficult. FSM delivers similar frequencies to targeted areas of the body with the goal of increasing cellular energy production (ATP), reducing pain and inflammation, and repairing and restoring tissue function.

What is it used for?

FSM can benefit a wide variety of conditions, including:

The results?

Jeanne and Pat have seen some amazing results so far! The following are testimonials from patients who received FSM as part of their physical therapy care.

“I have been receiving FSM on my shoulder and knee. It always gives me pain relief right away.” D.S., Patient

“I have been using FSM for my anxiety. My anxiety noticeably disappeared within the first few minutes of use and lasted throughout the day.” L.R., Patient

“You guys are not just restoring my body, you are taking me to what I can’t conceive of. I had never heard of FSM until now.” A.B., Patient

What about risks?

FSM is not recommended if you have are pregnant or if you have a known cancer.

How can I learn more?

If you would like to find out if FSM is appropriate for your medical condition and can help you recover, please call 703-532-4892 and ask to speak with Jeanne Scheele or Patricia Alomar today.

References:

Sharp SJ, Huynh MT, Filart R. Frequency-Specific Microcurrent as Adjunctive Therapy for Three Wounded Warriors. Med Acupunct. 2019 Jun 1;31(3):189-192. doi: 10.1089/acu.2019.1366.

McMakin CR, Gregory WM, Phillips TM. Cytokine changes with microcurrent treatment of fibromyalgia associated with cervical spine trauma. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies. Volume 9, Issue 3, July 2005, Pages 169-176

Seegers JC, Lottering ML, Joubert AM, Joubert F, Koorts A, Engelbrecht CA, van Papendorp DH. A pulsed DC electric field affects P2-purinergic receptor functions by altering the ATP levels in in vitro and in vivo systems. Med Hypotheses. 2002 Feb;58(2):171-6.

Seegers JC, Engelbrecht CA, van Papendorp DH. Activation of signal-transduction mechanisms may underlie the therapeutic effects of an applied electric field. Med Hypotheses. 2001 Aug;57(2):224-30.