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Lower back pain with irritation of the L3, L4 nerve roots can cause pain and spasm in the rectus femoris and pain and spasm in this muscle will aggravate lower back pain.
This muscle is one of the four muscles termed the quadriceps muscles. The quadriceps are the muscles in the front of the thigh and are responsible for straightening the knee.
The rectus femoris arises from an area on the pelvic bone known as anterior superior iliac spine and the part of the bone just above the hip joint. It inserts at the upper border of the kneecap (patella) and also to the tubercle on the front of the shin bone (tibia). Its action is to bend the thigh upwards (hip flexion) and to straighten the knee (knee extension). It receives the L2-L4 nerve root supply through the femoral nerve.

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Cause of Lower Back Pain can arise out of complex origins and symptoms including identified muscle trauma, or a hitherto unknown non-traumatic event. Moreover Lower back pain can originate in regions other than the back and eventually find its way to the muscles or other structure in the lower back. The origins of lower back pain are many and varied, including congenital disorders, inflammatory disease, and circulatory disorders among others.

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Do you rely on Vioxx, Celebrex or Aleve (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs) to ease pain? If you suffer from inflammatory arthritis or pain due to injuries, you probably are familiar with one of these drugs. No doubt you have also heard recent reports linking some NSAIDs with an increased risk of heart attack or stroke. Belonging to a class called Cox-2 inhibitors, the drugs in question work by reducing inflammation and pain, while having a minimal effect on stomach bleeding and ulcers. But several studies have raised questions as to the long-term consequences of using Vioxx, Celebrex, Aleve and, possibly, other drugs in this classification. What are the facts and do you have an alternative for pain relief?

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Chronic pain affects between 75 and 90 million Americans every year, and will disable more people than cancer and heart disease combined. Texas is certainly no exception to this. Prospering pain management clinics in every major city in the state, from Houston, to Austin, to Dallas reflect this reality. Though chronic pain can be induced by a variety of situations, the majority of sufferers have back, hip and/or shoulder pain.

Carpal tunnel syndrome, work-related injuries, neurological disorders, joint disease, migraines, and autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, are just a few examples of conditions causing chronic pain. Particularly with the proper health insurance coverage, most painful conditions can be effectively treated and, if not cured, at least managed.

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Working days lost in the US alone due to back pain runs into hundreds of millions.

Our back is highly complex mechanism and even with the use of modern technology pin pointing the exact cause of low back problems can be difficult and challenging. At the center of our back is the spine, with a sophisticated inter linking of vertebrae and various bones. The spinal column itself is supported by a complex array of muscles and ligaments. Many back problems occur as a result of some change in the spinal column. These changes often happen after an injury to the neck or back. Any shift in our spinal column alignment causes the muscles tighten up and go into spasm, making the muscle work continuously, (nature’s protection mechanism).

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The decision of whether to use a lifting belt during exercise should be guided by the following information:

As mentioned in an earlier article on lower back pain, the deep stabilizing muscles of the lumbo-pelvic region (core) are suspected as having a “drum forming” effect – that is the muscles contract simultaneously in a reflex (no conscious thought required in people without back pain) action to help stabilize the low back and allow forces to be transferred from the lower body to the upper body and vice versa. This action also has the effect of compressing the abdominal contents – composed primarily of water and very little gas; thus the name of this phenomenon is the “fluid ball” effect. Water as a liquid is essentially incompressible, so you can see how the presence of an internal pressurized fluid “ball” will lend stability to the pelvis and spine and actually help generate torque in the lift. For example, as you descend into a heavy squat, the muscles of the core and diaphragm begin to contract and generate tension on the fluid ball. As you squat deeper and your knees and hips flex more and more, the pelvis starts to tip forward and the large erector spinea muscles begin to lose their strength advantage due to a decreased muscle length. It is logical then to assume that the fluid ball acts as a “block” to prevent excessive spinal flexion and possible compressive damage to the intervertebral ligaments and discs.

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Adjustable beds by their very existence as mechanical marvels of design and function are perfectly adapted to alleviate many different symptoms associated with varied conditions that lead to back pain. If you suffer from lower back pain, your condition may be the result of a multitude of causes, many of which the sufferer has no clue as to how they got them in the first place.

The causes associated with back pain include muscle spasm or sprains, ligament sprains, joint problems or a slipped disk. Actual physical disability from instances such as work related accidents are another well-known cause of back pain. In all these instances, an adjustable bed can help alleviate your sore aching back. Why can an adjustable bed help you? You do not have to take my word for it. I am not a medical expert. But I do know how to quote them.

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A person with lower back pain or hip pain often will limp with a lurch over to the side of the weight supporting limb every time he/she takes a step. This sign called the Trendelenburg sign is due either to pain and or weakness of the gluteus medius muscle. This duck waddle type of gait is characteristic of this muscle’s inability to function well.

Gluteus medius arises from the outer surface of the pelvic bone called the iliac bone and attaches to the outer part of the hip. Its function is to spread the thigh outward away from the midline (abduction). This muscle receives very strong nerve supply from the L5 nerve root via the superior gluteal nerve. Since L5 nerve root is the most commonly injured nerve root, weakness and/or pain in the gluteus medius is common.

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The crowd is on its feet wild with excitement. One basket and the championship trophy stays at home with your team. The basketball rebounds off the backboard directly into your daughter’s hands. There are scant seconds left to play in the last period of the game. She pivots quickly to takeoff up the court outpacing everyone; all of a sudden she pulls up grimacing in pain and grabbing the back of her leg. She falls to floor the victim of a hamstring pull, possibly even a muscle tear, which could have been prevented – before time ran out!

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Massage therapy is seeing explosive growth throughout the industrialized world and in the United State in particular. This growth is due to many factors both within the therapeutic massage industry and in the broader context of US culture as well. One of the most important developments in the field is the growing acceptance and awareness of the alternative therapies for common issues both temporary and chronic. Massage, when applied properly has been shown in many studies to effectively alleviate pain and other symptoms as well as promoting faster and more extensive healing. Hand in hand with the development of studies showing the benefits of massage has come a broader acceptance of the use of massage therapy in a variety of settings encompassing a broad range of goals. One growing area of treatment that massage therapists provide is in the medical massage field.

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One in seven Americans–nearly 41 million–has some form of arthritis. That number will climb as the baby boomers age. By the end of this decade, about 60 million Americans will have arthritis, according to The National Arthritis Data Workgroup of the National Institute of Arthritis. The disease is physical, but also exacts a mental anguish, emotional and economic toll. Arthritis means the joint pain or the joint inflammation.

The joint means the junction where the ends of the two bones meet. The ends of the joints are covered with the cartilage, a smooth and slippery cushion that protects the bone edge during the time of the movements and reduces the friction.

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Back pain cushions provide comfort as well as support to your back. These cushions are helpful especially if you suffer frequently from back pain.

Many people suffer from back pain for various reasons. A pregnant woman can experience aches in her back due to her condition. An office employee who sits in a chair all day long can also feel the effects of a strained back after a long day. A manual laborer who has to do a lot of heavy lifting in his job is also prone to back aches. Someone with scoliosis or even a person who drives a long distance can be plagued by nagging back pain.

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Back pain is a common ailment; however, people may get better within a few weeks through massages. Massage is known to improve blood flow and eases tension, thus providing relaxation to muscles. While gentle massages are pleasurable, it does not necessarily offer relief to sufferers of acute low back pain. Combining massage with other treatments, such as physical therapy and chiropractic, is likely to produce best results. In addition, back massages, in combination with non-medical treatments, back exercises and good diet, ensures gradual pain relief.

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Acupuncture is a popular alternative medical treatment for pain. It involves inserting thin, metallic needles into strategic points on your body. Acupuncture was first used in China more than 2,000 years ago. It first gained attention in the United States in 1971, when New York Times reporter James Reston wrote about how impressed he was with the postoperative pain relief he got from acupuncture.

The Chinese and Western theories on how acupuncture heals the human body are very different. According to traditional Chinese medicine, everything in nature, including the human body, has two opposing forces: yin and yang. The yin force is very passive and the yang force is very active. There is also the notion that there is a flow of energy, known as Qi, which flows through pathways, known as meridians, in the body. Each meridian corresponds to one or more organs. As long as the Qi is flowing properly, there is a balance between yin and yang and your body will remain healthy. If the flow of Qi is disrupted, this will cause an imbalance between yin and yang, which will cause illness. Qi is accessible through approximately 400 acupuncture points on the human body that are connected with the meridians. These acupuncture points are places near the surface of the skin. To restore the proper flow of Qi, an acupuncturist will insert thin, metallic needles into the acupuncture points in various combinations.

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There is probably nothing more debilitating than chronic pain. Defined as pain lasting for six months or longer. Chronic pain afflicts millions of people. There is no way for you to be completely sure of preventing chronic pain. It can strike at any stage of your life, whether because of an accident or disease.

Chronic pain often long outlives its original cause, worsening over time and taking on a life of its own. Recent research has shown that chronic pain is destructive to your body. The longer chronic pain goes untreated, the worse it becomes. Chronic pain unleashes a cascade of harmful hormones, such as cortisol, that adversely affect your immune system and kidney function. You can’t expect it to go away by itself.

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Vertigo presents with many different symptoms and Western medicine tries to treat each. The approach of alternative health is about finding the underlying cause and providing a solution to it.

If one were to imagine the ideal Medical clinic for a modern society, it would be one where all of the different approaches to treatment would be practiced side by side. Western medicine offers procedures and lab work that is often helpful in the diagnosis of many conditions. Alternative medical practices offer treatments for many ailments that are totally unresponsive to Western treatments. In many cases, the answer is best found in Traditional Chinese Medicine. In other cases, a Chiropractor might be able to give instant relief.

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One of the most common work-related injuries is back pain. This can be caused by simple work activities such as sitting at your office chair or lifting of heavy objects. If you establish certain workplace ergonomics, especially when seatd in your office chair, it can widely reduce work related back pains and even injuries. It will also help employees maintain a healthy back and not take work home with them at least in the pain part of the job. Your office chair can help you to better health and productivity

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