Decreasing the Risk of Infection After Cervical Spinal Surgery

vancomycin powder cuts rate of infection after cervical spinal surgeryInfection after cervical spinal surgery is just one possible complication of surgery to treat neck pain. Finding ways to reduce the risk of infection is important, especially as this complication can lead to failed back surgery syndrome, serious scarring, ongoing and worsening neck pain, and even paralysis or death, depending on how serious the infection becomes and how responsive it is to treatment. Read more

Unique Brain Activity in Fibromyalgia – A Cause of Neck Pain

fibromyalgia brain activity pain neck

Fibromyalgia - all in your head? Perhaps, but it isn't imaginary.

Fibromyalgia patients may be used to having people tell them that their condition is all in their head, but new research offers more weight to the theory that people with this condition have a unique response to pain due to altered brain function.

The research, published in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatology, involved 35 patients with fibromyalgia, a condition that frequently involves symptoms such as neck pain, back pain, fatigue, muscle tenderness, sleep disturbance, altered mood and cognitive dysfunction. Read more

Occipital Neuralgia – What is it?

occipital-neuralgia head and neck pain nerve blockHead and neck pain could be caused by occipital neuralgia, a non-fatal condition that involves nerve irritation or injury from a variety of causes. The prefix ‘neuro’ means nerve and ‘algia’ means pain, while ‘occipital’ describes a region of the head running from the spinal column in the neck up to the scalp at the back of the head.

There are numerous possible causes of this kind of spreading neck pain and headache resulting from injury or compression of the greater and lesser occipital nerves. Read more

TMJ, Ear and Neck Pain

jaw, ear and neck painNeck pain may occur in isolation, but often neck pain, ear pain and jaw pain co-exist, leading to pain when eating, speaking, moving the head, and even when lying down to sleep. Sometimes, this triad is a result of temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ), where the jaw joint and related bones, ligaments, and cartilage are typically swollen and painful, making it hard to open the jaw. Read more