Currently viewing the category: "rehabilitation"

Chiropractic Rehabilitation for Motorcycle Accident Leads to Rapid Recovery

By On · Add Comment · In balance, Cedars Sinai, chiropractic, fractures, motorcycle accident, neuromuscular reeducation, orthopedics, physiotherapy, proprioceptive work, rehabilitation, surgery

This summer I was honored to be contacted by a dear friend who had just been involved in a horrible motorcycle accident. He was just coming out of his fifth surgery to repair a fractured femur (thigh bone) and tibia/fibula (shin bones) of his left leg. Through a combination of outstanding orthopedics and plastic surgery, the staff at Cedars Sinai had my friend patched up sufficiently to start a rehab program at my office. You can read his story here to get more of the fascinating details.

The program which I designed to get my friend back up and moving was a combined chiropractic, physiotherapy and neuromuscular reeducation, including extensive proprioceptive work to return balance and sense of position. We worked intensively for three months.  In that time we moved my friend from using crutches, to using a walking stick, to walking without assistance, to climbing stairs. Watch the video below to see his incredible recovery. You can see what is possible with the right care and the right frame of mind.

Rehabilitation following an automobile or motorcycle accident can return one to function and living a normal life. Watch the video to see evidence of this. I have marveled at the rapidity of recovery myself.

Balance Training with a Rocker Board

By On · Add Comment · In athletic training, balance training, Beverly Hills sports chiropractor, bosu ball, core strength, motor coordination, proprioception, rehabilitation, rocker board, wobble board

Last month I showed you the second step in a balance training regimen–the one-legged balance.  You’ll want to practice this on its own, as well as with a little challenge, to stimulate your proprioceptive system enough to prepare you for the third step–the rocker board.

Rocker boards can be purchased online or from your local neighborhood (Beverly Hills) sports chiropractor.  A rocker board is a flat surface sitting on top of an angled fulcrum (30 degrees usually).  It creates instability in one plane, either forward/backward, diagonally or side-to-side depending on how the board is turned relative to the person.  Each plane adds a unique challenge to the balancer, and mastering all three planes, both with two legs and on single legs, is necessary to move onto the next level–the wobble board.

Once again, it’s important to have a friend challenge you by tossing an object (ball, chainsaw, feral cat) back and forth with you as you balance.  Not only is balancing on one leg a phenomenal challenge, but transitioning from one leg to the other should also prove demanding.  Once you sufficiently master the rocker board, you can graduate to the wobble board or Bosu ball which are unstable in every plane, and thus significantly more difficult.

Proprioceptive training is not only for balance but also for motor coordination, proper weight distribution and core strength; it helps elderly people to prevent falls (which can lead to fractures and even death); it’s great athletic training; and it’s imperative for rehabilitation from serious injuries.  I encourage everybody to take on a balance training regimen for health and function.

Watch the video below for a demonstration on using the rocker board, as well as tips on how to challenge yourself while balancing.  Keep rocking!

Beverly Hills Chiropractic: Gluteus Medius Exercises

By On · Add Comment · In gluteus medius, hip abductions, hip muscles, pelvis, rehabilitation, sports injury, subluxations

A few posts ago, I showed an excellent exercise to strengthen the gluteus maximus muscles.  Another gluteal muscle that tends to get weak, or lazy is perhaps a better way to say it, is the gluteus medius.  This hip abductor is located on the outer edges of the pelvis, and it functions to hold the pelvis upright as we stand and walk.

When the gluteus medius gets weak, it can leave you susceptible to pelvic subluxations, low back pain and even knee pain.  A recent sports injury and rehabilitation study showed that knee pain and problems in runners could be helped by strengthening the hip muscles, particularly the gluteus medius.

Watch the video below to learn the best exercise–hip abductions–to strengthen the gluteus medius hip muscles.

West Hollywood Chiropractic: Exercises for Knee Pain Relief

By On · Add Comment · In inflammation, instability, knee pain, knee stretches, knee surgery, orthopedist, rehabilitation, sports injuries, torn meniscus, West Hollywood sports chiropractor
Got a call from an old friend the other day, said he tweaked his knee pretty badly.  He said he was trying to avoid surgery, but his doctor thought it might be necessary because he probably tore his meniscus.  I asked what tests and diagnostic imaging the doctor had done and he said, “None–I just showed her where the pain is.”

“Listen, I’m not saying you don’t have a torn meniscus, because I wouldn’t know that without seeing you and doing some tests to make that evaluation; but by the way you’re describing it, it might not be,” I told him.

He asked if there were any stretches one could do to rehab a knee.  My response was that seeing a doctor that understands sports injuries was the probably the wisest thing to do, and preferably an orthopedist or West Hollywood sports chiropractor; but I told him I would cut a video showing some preliminary stretches that would be part of a knee rehab regimen.

I want to caution anybody watching this video that doing these stretches with a recent knee injury is not advised without the supervision of a doctor.  However, saying that, once inflammation has been controlled and any instability stabilized, stretching the muscles I show in the video should do wonders to open the knee joint up, preserving the knee.

Finally, these stretches are good for non-injured people too, so if you are looking for an excellent knee-opening regimen, try the stetches in the video; I guarantee with a little diligence, you’ll be truckin’ like an old pro.  There ya go, Pauli.

Pain Relief and Chiropractic Wellness in West Hollywood

By On · Add Comment · In chiropractic, chiropractic adjustment, chiropractor, cracking bones, health, Los Angeles, nervous system, pain, rehabilitation, subluxation, wellness

Some people have no idea of what goes on in a chiropractic practice. “Cracking bones” is what the typical non-chiropractic person says a chiropractor does. But there is no truth to that. Cracking bones is not something we do, neither intentionally nor unintentionally–bones are pretty strong; I haven’t met a chiropractor, yet, strong enough to do that.

In my Los Angeles chiropractic office we focus on pain relief, rehabilitation of injured areas like shoulders or knees, and then we place a major importance on using chiropractic care in a wellness sense. By freeing up stuck spinal joints (subluxations), the nervous system is allowed to function unimpeded, with no restrictions, which allows the body to operate at its most optimal level, and thus enhancing health.

Check out the video to get a better understanding of how I use chiropractic care to help people from Hollywood stars to athletes to accountants get the most out of their bodies, their health and their lives. If you are ever in the Beverly Hills or West Hollywood areas of Los Angeles, and you need a chiropractic adjustment, please come visit my office for highest quality chiropractic care available.

Unnecessary Knee Surgeries

By On · Add Comment · In arthritis, arthroscopic, chiropractors, knee, MRI, orthopedic, pain, rehabilitation, surgery

Did you know that arthroscopic knee surgery is one of the most common operations carried out in the U.S. today? Now why do you suppose that? How about it’s quick, it’s easy and–cha-ching!–it pays. Well, the latest reports show that arthroscopic surgery for arthritis of the knee is no better than rehabilitation and medication. Hmm…can’t say I’m surprised by that.

Timing is impeccable as I’ve just written an article on the same subject, but the details are this: When it comes to relieving the pain and stiffness of moderate to severe knee arthritis, surgery is no better than physical therapy and medication. Further, that holy grail of orthopedic diagnostics–the MRI–is not the end all, be all when it comes to predicting surgical necessity. What this means–and something we know quite well in chiropractic–is that many MRIs show tears (and disc bulges) in non-symptomatic people while many with symptoms have no tears (or bulges) at all. What does this mean on a practical level? MRI results may be over-predicting the necessity of what are now routine orthopedic surgeries. And we now have the studies to prove it.

As musculoskeletal clinicians, chiropractors know quite well of this misdiagnostic and mismanagement practice. Practically every patient of mine who has walked into an orthopedists office with knee pain has been recommended a knee surgery, despite the fact that they were prime candidates for conservative rehabilitative care. The same is true for the low back pain patient with radiating pain into the leg. Many things cause radiation, but walk into an orthopods office and expect a surgical recommendation. Damn shame, considering many people still take the M.D.’s word as law. Guess what people? Arthroscopic knee surgery was a low risk money maker for your doctor. Cha-ching.

Here’s the bottom line: If you are having knee pain, stiffness and other symptoms, read this article before you make a treatment decision. It could save you an unnecessary trip to the surgeon. Many knee problems can be fixed through conservative rehabilitative care. You’ve got nothing to lose, and the surgery will always be there if you need it later.

Exercise Reverses Brain Damage

By On · Add Comment · In brain, cancer, exercise, nerve, neuons, neurological, pediatric, physical fitness, radiation, regenerate, rehabilitation, stem cells, training
How’s this for plugging physical fitness: Research shows that exercise may reverse the damage done to the brain of cancer patients from radiation, particularly in kids. That’s the latest out of the Institute for Neuroscience and Physiology at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. How’s that? Exercise for the brain!?!? Duh, yeah! According to the research, exercise causes new stem cells to develop, which in turn can form new neurons, the brain’s cellular workhorses.

Here’s how they found out. The researchers irradiated the brains of baby mice; the dose was comparable to doses given to cancer patients with brain tumors. They then let half the mice exercise on running wheels, while the other half simply hung out in cages. After a few months, all the mice were killed and their brains examined. What they found was that the mice which were allowed to run “had more precursor cells and more new neurons, and these neurons took up their places better in the brains than mice simply kept in cages.” The exercising mice had a 275% increase in the number of newborn cells that developed into neurons.

The conclusions of the study are that pediatric cancer patients can benefit from exercise. Ah, yes. And the brain damage seen to their undeveloped brains can be reversed. Yes, yes! And that physical rehabilitation should be an integral part of post-cancer radiation treatment. Bravo!

But let’s take it a step further. Physical rehabilitation should be on every post-treatment protocol, whether chemical, radiation, or surgical. Think about it: The human body was meant to move. Physical activity has neurological implications. The nervous system controls and coordinates every function of the body. It’s the master control of the system (have you read my book yet?), and it’s the structure we know the least about. But we’re learning–and studies like this extend our knowledge into this vast and fascinating territory. What might be more important is what we learn about development and regeneration in general. Not only reptiles have that ability.

Remember: The human body is an amazing self-healing, self-regulating organism. It can repair itself, and it can regenerate. We have the power to heal ourselves if we do the right things. A few of those things are regular movement, physical challenge and balance training–all of which help our bodies create new nerve pathways that allow us to adapt to our environment. So if you are not moving your body regularly, better get started–your life depends on it.

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