Cranial Compliance and its Role In Chronic Pain

Since I began my journey into the world of healthcare I was taught very early on that the cranial bones were made of multple synarthrotic (fibrous immoveable) joints that fuse in early adulthood. New evidence is now emerging stating that there may be more movement in the cranial bones than originally thought. These joints are not highly moveable like, our shoulder or wrist, however there has been some postulations that the cran...

Central Sensitization: A Generator of Pain Hypersensitivity by Central Neural Plasticity

Alban Latremoliere and Clifford J. Woolf

Neural Plasticity Research Group, Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, Massachusetts

Abstract

Central sensitization represents an enhancement in the function of neurons and circuits in nociceptive pathways caused by increases in membrane excitability and synaptic ...

Somewhere at around the mile 8 marker of my 20 mile run a few weeks ago, I felt a familiar (and terrifying) sensation: My leg was beginning to cramp up and I wasn’t even halfway through my run. Having experienced this just one time before—and it ruined a marathon for me—I decided to use it as an opportunity to work on my problem-solving skills. I calmed down, increased my salt intake and used mental mantras to get myself through the run. And as soon as the run was over, I ca...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZYtAR4zUpg&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR3MXgXnOyKaRmcvvwmvqZQp69H27UhIIT4mQv3e03qoB6zL2yUHF01QxWE" target="_blank">http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZYtAR4zUpg&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR3MXgXnOyKaRmcvvwmvqZQp69H27UhIIT4mQv3e03qoB6zL2yUHF01QxWE

Please Watch this wonderful video explaining why we cant trust dermatomes as the only way for pain ...

What Is The Cause of Chronic Pain?

To answer this question, we need to understand some facts about the nervous system.

Whatever its initial cause, pain is a function of the nervous system. Say you injure your low back. Nerves around the site of the injury detect it and sends signals that travel on a highway of nerves from the injury to the spinal cord and up to the brain. Once they get to the brain, the brain processes the signals and they regist...

Upper trapezius and its referral sources

The trapezius commonly contains trigger points, and referred pain from these trigger points bring patients to the office more often than for any other problem. As you can see from the picture, the trapezius is a large kite-shaped muscle, covering much of the back and posterior neck.

There are three main parts to the muscle: the Upper, middle, and lower trapezius, and each part has its own actions and common symptoms.

One of the components of the cranial concept for practitioners who practice cranial manipulative therapy is that the bones of the head move along the sutures. The movement can be described as an expansion and compression that take place much how the rib cage moves during respiration. This idea has been highly controversial since it was first presented to the world over 60 years ago. To this day, there’s plenty of criticism that this concept is based on ‘pseudoscience.’ Many ...

Your daily cup of coffee may be doing more for you than providing that early-morning pick-me-up. The health impact of coffee has long been a controversial topic, with advocates touting its antioxidant activity and brain-boosting ability, and detractors detailing downsides such as insomnia, indigestion and an increased heart rate and blood pressure. But the latest wave of scientific evidence brings a wealth of good news for coffee lovers. Here are 10 reasons drinking coffee may be healthier fo...

This morning I woke up and was greeted with many a sneeze. Most of us living in the Ohio Valley are plagued every spring and fall by seasonal allergies. Sometimes these little nuisances come and go, other times they stay and become a problem. Especially if one has chronic sinus infections and/ OR ear infections. Our dynamic skull requires air resistance to continue to function properly in our day to day lives. If something such as a sinus infection, trauma, ear infection, or other malady is p...

Yep, you read that right. Can you have a sore throat that is caused by your SHOULDER? Well, we arent talking about a sore throat in the classical sense but a muscle that runs from your neck to your shoulder. Yep, there is one! This muscle can have referral to the anterior throat when the restriction/trigger point is at the insertion of the shoulder. Yep, that muscle is called OMOHYOID. Heres a picture below: