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Unfortunately, quite a few of our Sunnyvale & San Francisco, CA patients are familiar with the pain associated with a herniated disc all too well. Fortunately, Dr. Jamie Stern has helped many people with disc pain, and a number of medical studies have verified that chiropractic care can help patients recover from this kind of condition.

Research on Herniated Discs and Chiropractic

In one report, a group of doctors from Switzerland recruited 148 patients who were dealing with pain in their low back and legs due to a disc herniation (which was confirmed through magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI). Each individual then received chiropractic adjustments that focused on the area of his or her disc herniation.

Data was collected after the first treatment session at set intervals--namely, 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 12 weeks, 6 months, and 1 year--to ascertain what kind of short-term and long-term effects, if any, chiropractic offers when it comes to treating this particular condition. Among the information gathered was the person's self-reported changes in both lumbar and leg pain.

The authors found that, overall, the study participants reported "significant improvement" for both types of pain every time the results were collected. In fact, over 90% of the individuals stated that their pain "improved" within the first three months, with 88% still citing improvement one year after their first treatment session.

Even those people who were defined as "chronic" still claimed an improvement in pain at a rate of 89% one year beyond when treatment first began. This is the same positive effect that was found in the following case study.

Case Study Shows that Chiropractic Benefits Chronic Disc Herniation Symptoms

In this report, a 26-year-old man had presented with disc herniation symptoms such as pain in the lower back, left leg, and left groin area, along with left foot drop and muscle weakness. He had suffered with these symptoms for more than two years after sustaining a sports injury, and his disc herniation was confirmed via MRI.

After receiving chiropractic care, "The patient responded favorably and his multi-symptom complex resolved within 90 days of treatment." In addition, the patient was still experiencing relief one year after the chiropractic intervention.

Studies like these show how useful chiropractic can be when it comes to alleviating herniated disc pain and treating the symptoms they bring about. So, if you are suffering from back pain caused by a herniated disc and want to find some relief, chiropractic might be an effective solution.

Don't suffer from chronic herniated disc pain. Give our Sunnyvale & San Francisco, CA office a call today at (415) 308-7636 for a consultation or appointment.

References

• Leemann S, Peterson CK, Schmid C, Anklin B, Humphreys BK. Outcomes of acute and chronic patients with magnetic resonance imaging-confirmed symptomatic lumbar disc herniations receiving high-velocity, low-amplitude, spinal manipulative therapy: a prospective observational cohort study with one-year follow-up. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 2014;37(3):155-163.
• Polkinghorn BS, Colloca CJ. Treatment of symptomatic lumbar disc herniation using activator methods chiropractic technique. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 1998;21(3):187-196.
  

We see many people with back pain in our Sunnyvale & San Francisco, CA office, and Dr. Jamie Stern has been able to help a lot of them find relief through various chiropractic techniques. At the same time, dealing with back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to make a choice between chiropractic care and medical care, as many people utilize both types of care with great results.

Research Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Treatment Work Well Together

In a study published by the journal Spine experts¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who reported both acute discomfort and limited function due to back symptoms. Some of the study participants received treatment via standard medical therapy, while the remainder were given chiropractic adjustments in addition to standard medical care, as researchers wanted to see which patients fared better.

The authors observed that the patients who got standard medical care along with chiropractic care scored "significantly better" than the patients who received medical care alone; 73 percent reported positive benefits compared to just 17% of the medical treatment only group who indicated the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at two and four weeks.

Accordingly, integrating these two forms of treatment can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering advantages when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic and medical approaches can work together, chiropractic offers some distinct advantages over medical treatment.

Where Chiropractic Care Pulls Ahead

Although it may seem as if each method plays a 50/50 role, there is one major benefit that chiropractic has over medical treatment and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, a piece of research from UCLA² that was published in the American Journal of Public Health reports that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than patients undergoing medical care.

According to the experts, the main factors that patients liked over medical treatment were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors commonly spend much more time consulting with their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as explaining more carefully what to expect from chiropractic.

Chiropractic Offers a Holistic Approach

Without a doubt, the methods associated with chiropractic are quite different than those available with medical treatment, but a great deal of the difference is the fact that chiropractic is a natural approach to health and well-being. In contrast to focusing on only relieving the symptoms, chiropractic means searching for the primary cause of your pain, which often results in greater improvement as you are tackling the problem at its source.

In addition, while medication is sometimes helpful for managing certain conditions, many health issues respond well to natural forms of treatment like chiropractic. This means fewer negative side effects from drugs and more permanent results.

You don't have to struggle with back pain or other health issues. Give our Sunnyvale & San Francisco, CA office a call today at (415) 308-7636. We'll do everything we can to help you get and remain free from back pain.

References

1. Goertz CM, Long CR, Hondras MA, Petri R, Delgado R, Lawrence DJ, Owens EF, Meeker WC. Adding chiropractic manipulative therapy to standard medical care for patients with acute low back pain: results of a pragmatic randomized comparative effectiveness study. Spine 2013;38(8):627-634.
2. Hertzman-Miller RP1, Morgenstern H, Hurwitz EL, Yu F, Adams AH, Harber P, Kominski GF. Comparing the satisfaction of low back pain patients randomized to receive medical or chiropractic care: results from the UCLA low-back pain study. American Journal of Public Health 2002;92(10):1628-1633.

If you live in Sunnyvale & San Francisco, CA and you've been in a car wreck, you need to know that you don't have to suffer from chronic symptoms.

Research Proves Chiropractic Helps With Chronic Pain after an Auto Injury

We work with several auto injury sufferers in our Sunnyvale & San Francisco, CA office, and several of these folks are suffering from chronic pain caused by an old collision. In fact, research shows that a significant proportion of rear-end accidents result in pain and disability even ten years after the original trauma.

Dr. Jamie Stern is here to help you avoid developing chronic pain by helping to restore the natural function of your spine soon after a motor vehicle accident.

The most frequent causes of chronic problems are reduced mobility of your spinal column and the development of scar tissue in your spine. The ligaments of your spine can easily be injured during a collision, and chiropractic care works by decreasing inflammation and restoring normal movement.

We Can Help With Chronic Pain and Auto Injury Recovery

If you're nearby our Sunnyvale & San Francisco, CA office, and you've been injured in a crash, don't wait to get care. Dr. Jamie Stern is here for you. Give us a call today at (415) 308-7636 for an appointment or for more information.

Jaw or TMJ pain is a fairly common problem reported by many people after a car crash, and it can be hard for some health practitioners to identify the root of the problem. Complicating the matter, very often you won't develop TMJ symptoms until many weeks or months after the accident.

Dr. Jamie Stern has helped many individuals with jaw pain after an injury, and the medical research explains what causes these types of problems. During a collision, the tissues in your spine are commonly stretched or torn, causing ligament, muscle, or nerve injury. This can obviously cause pain in the neck and back, but since your central nervous system is one functioning unit, inflammation of the nerves can cause pain in other parts of your body.

For example, with radicular pain, irritation of a nerve can cause prickling or numbness in the arm and hand. Similarly, it can affect parts of your body above the injured area, like your head and jaw. Headaches after a collision are very common because of neck injury, and the jaw works the same way. Dr. Jamie Stern sees this very commonly in our Sunnyvale, CA office.

Research Proves Chiropractic Lessens TMJ Pain After an Auto Accident

Research shows that the source of many jaw or TMJ symptoms starts in the neck and that treatment of the underlying neck problem can fix the secondary headaches or jaw symptoms. The key to resolving these symptoms is simple: Dr. Jamie Stern will work to restore your spine back to health, alleviating the inflammatory reaction, treating the injured tissues, and removing the irritation to the nerves in your spine.

Dr. Jamie Stern has found that jaw and headache issues often resolve once we return your spine to its healthy state.

If you live in Sunnyvale, CA and you've been injured in a crash, Dr. Jamie Stern can help. We've been working with auto injury patients since 2006, and we can most likely help you, too. Give our office a call today at (415) 308-7636 for an appointment or consultation.

Ciancaglini R, Testa M, Radaelli G. Association of neck pain with symptoms of temporomandibular dysfunction in the general adult population. Scandinavian Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine 1999;31:17-22.

Brantingham JW, Cassa TK, Bonnefin D, Pribicevic M, Robb A, et al. Manipulative and multimodal therapy for upper extremity and temporomandibular disorders: a system review. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 2013;36(3):143-201.

Of the over 2 million rear-end accidents in the US every year, a substantial number of people end up suffering from chronic pain and disability. Some research indicates that about 20% of people are still in pain 12 months after a crash.

Dr. Jamie Stern sees many accident cases in our Sunnyvale, CA location, and we regularly see people who have been hurting for many years and have not been able to find relief. Dr. Jamie Stern has great success in treating these patients.

What Causes Chronic Pain after a Crash?

During a crash, the tissues of your spine can be sprained or torn. The injured area becomes swollen and inflamed and transmits pain impulses to the spinal cord and central nervous system.

Pain tells your nervous system that something is wrong, which tells the muscles in the damaged area to contract to shield the area from further trauma.

If the damage isn't treated right away, a negative cycle develops. The damaged area keeps sending pain signals and each time, your central nervous system reacts. This brings about a feedback loop in your nervous system that experts refer to as "central sensitization." Your nervous system actually becomes oversensitive to any kind of stimulation, causing chronic pain.

Dr. Jamie Stern is able to help this kind of condition, as chiropractic care is a proven way to restore your nervous system's healthy functioning. Studies show that adjustments are effective at relieving pain from auto injuries and shows that chiropractic in fact has positive effects on the pain centers of the brain.

If you live in Sunnyvale, CA and have been in a crash, you don't have to suffer with chronic pain. Give Dr. Jamie Stern a call today at (415) 308-7636 for a consultation or appointment.

• Ferrari R. A prospective study of the 1-year incidence of fibromyalgia after acute whiplash injury. Rheumatic & Musculoskeletal Disease 2015; doi:10.1136/rmdopen-2014-000007.
• Stone AM, Vicenzino B, Lim EC, Sterling M. Measures of central hyperexcitability in chronic whiplash associated disorder - A systematic review and meta-analysis. Manual Therapy 2012;18(2):111-7.

We see a large number of patients with back pain in our Sunnyvale, CA office, and Dr. Jamie Stern finds that quite a few cases of back pain stem from the sacroiliac (SI) joint. Research has revealed that roughly one quarter of all back pain originates in the SI joint, and now new research ratifies what we have noticed in our office: chiropractic is an effective way to treat this pain.

In the study released in the Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 32 women with sacroiliac joint syndrome were split into two groups and asked to take part in one of two treatment therapies. The first group received a chiropractic adjustment only at the sacroiliac joint, and the other group was given an adjustment to the sacroiliac joint and the lumbar spine.

Specialists found greater improvements in both pain and movement immediately after treatment, two days post-treatment, and 30 days after for the group who underwent high-velocity low-amplitude manipulation to both the sacroiliac joint and the lumbar spine. This suggests that chiropractic treatment applied to these two areas offers both short term and lasting benefits for sacroiliac joint pain sufferers—even with only one treatment session.

Therefore, if you are dealing with sacroiliac joint pain, or have back and leg pain and would like to know whether your sacroiliac joint is the cause, a visit to our Sunnyvale, CA office could be the first—and best—step towards feeling better. Give our office a call today at (415) 308-7636.

Kamali F, Shokri E. The effect of two manipulative therapy techniques and their outcome in patients with sacroiliac joint syndrome. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies 2012;16(1):29-35.

Approximately 2.3 million people are injured every year in automobile accidents in the U.S. While some people are able to heal from their injuries relatively quickly, others are left to deal with chronic pain and disability. We see many of these patients here in our Sunnyvale, CA office. Thankfully, Dr. Jamie Stern is here to help you heal from your auto injury.

The science confirms what we see in our office: A British study was carried out on 28 men and women diagnosed with chronic whiplash pain. Each participant received chiropractic treatment and 93 percent of them experienced pain relief following their adjustments, even though 43 percent of whiplash sufferers overall usually never find relief. This confirms that chiropractic is a great way to avoid long-term pain after an auto injury.

It's important to note that studies have also found that putting off care after a car crash can adversely affect recovery time, so getting in to see Dr. Jamie Stern immediately is key to having a speedier recovery.

Dr. Jamie Stern has helped many auto injury patients, and we're here to help you, too. Call our Sunnyvale, CA office today for more information or an appointment.

Sources

• Association for Safe International Road Travel. Retrieved from http://asirt.org/initiatives/informing-road-users/road-safety-facts/road-crash-statistics
• Dies S & Strapp J. (1992, September). Chiropractic treatment of patients in motor vehicle accidents: a statistical analysis. The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, 36(3), 139-145.
• Woodward M et al. (1996, November). Chiropractic treatment of chronic 'whiplash' injuries. Injury, 27(9), 643-645.

Although some people are still skeptical about chiropractic care, even the American Medical Association (AMA) recommends that adjustments should be tried prior to surgery--the one option that should be a last resort.

Dr. Jamie Stern has seen many back pain patients in our Sunnyvale, CA office who have been suffering for years and who are worried that they might need an operation for their back pain. Dr. Jamie Stern has had great success in helping patients recover and avoid risky surgery, and the science backs up our experience.

Recently, in a study carried out on almost 2,000 Washington State workers who suffered from a back injury while at work, more than 40% who saw a surgeon first following their injury found themselves having back surgery within three years. That compares to just 1.5% of the individuals who first sought treatment with chiropractic, showing that this natural approach is very effective at keeping you out of the operating room.

There are options to risky medical procedures. Chiropractic is a proven effective and safe way to improve the function of your spine, which is the root cause of back pain. Dr. Jamie Stern has helped many patients in Sunnyvale, CA recover. Give our office a call today at (415) 308-7636 for an appointment.

Goodman DM, Burke AE, Livingston. Low Back Pain. The Journal of the American Medical Association 2013;309(16);1738.

Keeney BJ, Fulton-Kehoe D, Turner JA, et al. Early predictors of lumbar spine surgery after occupational back injury: results from a prospective study of workers in Washington State. Spine 2013;38(11):953-964.

We treat many car accident cases in in our Sunnyvale, CA office, and a common symptom we see in our patients is thoracic outlet syndrome. Let's look at the root cause of thoracic outlet syndrome after an auto collision and see how your chiropractor can help.

The thoracic outlet is a bundle of nerves and blood vessels that travel through your neck and shoulder to your arm. These vessels don't have a lot of space, so they travel underneath and through the strong bands of muscles that support your head.

In a crash, these muscle groups can be stretched and strained. If injured, the muscles become swollen and tender, and they can develop scar tissue which limits movement and puts pressure on the tissues of the thoracic outlet. Pressure on the nerves can cause tingling or pins and needles in the shoulder, elbow and even the wrist. Pressure on the blood vessels can also cause problems in the arm.

Sunnyvale, CA Thoracic Outlet Treatment

Chiropractic adjustments can be an effective way to treat thoracic outlet syndrome, as Dr. Jamie Stern will help improve mobility in your spine and restore normal nerve function in your neck and shoulder.

Dr. Jamie Stern is here in Sunnyvale, CA to help you recover from thoracic outlet syndrome. We've been helping patients since 2006 and we can probably help you, too. The first step is to get an accurate diagnosis to determine what's causing your pain and then we will determine an appropriate treatment strategy. Ready to make an appointment? Give us a call at (415) 308-7636 and we'll get you back on the road to health.

Many people experience headache pain, and tension headaches are a common problem in our busy lives. Postural problems and stress are common causes of tension headaches, and ones that Dr. Jamie Stern and the staff here in our Sunnyvale, CA chiropractic office have a lot of experience in treating.

The scientific literature verifies our results: A 2016 study from Spain managed a group of 76 patients with chronic tension headaches. The participants were divided into four treatment groups: 19 patients were treated with suboccipital inhibition (the therapist presses on the tight tissues at the top of the spine); 19 with chiropractic adjustments; 19 with both adjustments and suboccipital inhibition; and 19 received no treatment.

The authors found that the spinal adjustments were helpful at relieving pain, and that the best results were found when spinal adjustments were coupled with the suboccipital inhibition.

When we get stressed out, the nerves and tissues in the neck can be disrupted, leading to pain. Chiropractic works by removing these strains and restoring the normal nerve function to the area.

If you live in Sunnyvale, CA and suffer from any kind of headache, we're here to help you get relief. Call Dr. Jamie Stern today at (415) 308-7636 for an appointment or more information.

Reference

Espi-Lopez GV, Rodriguez-Blanco C, Oliva-Pascual-Vaca A, et al. Do manual therapy techniques have a positive effect on quality of life in people with tension-type headache? A randomized controlled trial. European Journal of Physical Rehabilitation Medicine 2016; February 29.