Red. Swollen. Hot. Painful. Signs of inflammation that no Southern New Hampshire back pain patient desires. New Hampshire Spine and Sport offers chiropractic services to decrease back pain by identifying and dealing with any related inflammation.
INFLAMMATION AND BACK PAIN RELATED
How can you tell if there is inflammation? Like anything else, researchers look for a means to measure it. To measure inflammation, researchers try to find inflammatory biomarkers, biological markers like tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), C-reactive protein (CRP), and interleukin-6, interleukin-1β, that showed an increase. Researchers have uncovered that chronic inflammation increased cytokine production and stimulated pro-inflammatory pathways that may lead to non-specific low back pain. (1) Researchers observed systemic inflammation in chronic LBP and may affect transition from acute to persistent low back pain. Specifically, CRP was discovered to be elevated in acute low back pain patients and not in control patients. TNF was greater in back pain patients especially in patients with depression. (2) Since researchers have already recorded that inflammation is linked to back pain, New Hampshire Spine and Sport knows that inflammation must be reduced to help in reducing Southern New Hampshire back pain.
HOW TO STOP INFLAMMATION
Well, first, know what inflammation does. Researchers used lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to create intervertebral disc degeneration in experiments. They set out to figure out what might potentially reduce the generated back pain that comes with it and/or even avert the degeneration in the first place so we humans do not have to suffer low back pain at all! That’s a tall order though, New Hampshire Spine and Sport understands. But consider this: researchers utilized LPS to create the degeneration that preceded low back pain. They discovered that procyanidin B3 (PRO-B3) seen in our diets blocked the production of inflammatory markers - tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-Α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and nitric oxide – associated with disc degeneration. It also prevented the loss of the disc’s gelatinous nucleus pulposus cells and structural damage of its anulus fibrosus (outer rings of disc). What’s all this signify to researchers looking for a way to prevent degenerative disc degeneration (DDD)? PRO-B3 may be looked at as a treatment agent for intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD). This is a welcome note for those 80% of us adults who are on track to have IVDD, a major cause of low back pain. (3) Another recent paper explained that the p38 MAPK inflammatory pathway may be able to delay DDD using the tyrosine kinase inhibitor, Genistein. (4) That is hopeful in the treatment of Southern New Hampshire back pain and inflammation.
Vitamin D FOR INFLAMMATION
Research states that vitamin D deficiency is associated with low back pain that is stronger in younger women and in those with more severe deficiency. (5) Vitamin D deficiency is linked to lumbar disc disease and more severe low back pain in postmenopausal women. (6) Let’s talk about your vitamin D intake at your next Southern New Hampshire chiropractic appointment.
CONTACT New Hampshire Spine and Sport
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Sarah Murrow on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson. In this episode, Dr. Murrow and her patient present how the Cox® Technic System alleviated back pain due to disc bulges.