Hyperkyphosis

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle will help you to avoid back pain later in life. You’ve doubtlessly noticed that some people hunch forward more as they age. This is called hyperkyphosis, and although we can treat people with sore backs at Kosak Chiropractic in Fairfield, we wanted to explain a bit about how it develops, and how we can work with patients to prevent it.

Hyperkyphosis is usually associated with osteoporosis. Our bones are living tissue, and are constantly breaking down and rebuilding. But when a person doesn’t get enough minerals to rebuild their bones, they are said to have osteoporosis, and their vertebrae start to deteriorate. When the vertebrae's structure has become less dense, a condition called osteopenia, they are at greater risk of incurring tiny compression fractures from ordinary activities. If a person accumulates a lot of tiny fractures, the vertebrae could begin collapsing, causing the person to stoop forward.

Usually, compression fractures occur in the body of the vertebrae. As part of our preventive care, we offer lifestyle medicine, such as diets and supplements that will help a person get enough calcium and Vitamin D to maintain their bone density. But we also recommend core-strengthening exercises, which will reduce the burden on vertebral bodies. Swimming and yoga are popular ways of building up core muscles that don’t subject the spine to impacts. Maintaining better posture while standing and seated can also reduce strain on the back muscles.

Kosak Chiropractic is located at 1252 Travis Blvd., Suite G, Fairfield, CA, 94533. To schedule an appointment, visit Kosak Chiropractic online or call 707-426-1111.

Shoulder Pain and Pinched Nerves

The spinal column is of crucial importance to the rest of the body. That’s why if you experience pain in your shoulder or arm, you shouldn’t be too surprised if the problem is in your neck. At Kosak Chiropractic in Fairfield, we’re experienced treatment providers to people suffering from pinched nerves. We offer several non-addictive, minimally invasive therapies, but to understand why they work, let’s take a closer look at how the shoulder and neck are connected.

 

Several nerves emerge from the spinal cord in the neck, which is also known as the cervical region. They bundle together in the shoulder and split off again into separate sections of the shoulder region, arm, and hand. If a nerve is compressed where it emerges, which is called cervical radiculopathy, a person may feel a lacerating pain along its length, or they may feel a throbbing pain that comes and goes. A pinched might also feel numb or tingly, but pain caused by pinching in the neck would usually only happen on one side of the body.

 

Imaging tests will help us to determine whether there is a blockage in the neck. We will also ask the patient to demonstrate how far they can bend their neck and which movements cause them pain. The problem could be caused by a disc that has degenerated or been torn, causing inflammation or for its gel to push against a nerve. Inflammation could also be caused by osteoarthritis, in which the cartilage between joints erodes and the bones rub each other. We can treat these problems by performing chiropractic adjustments, which will restore the discs and vertebrae to their right position. We can also teach the patient therapeutic stretches that will loosen the neck muscles, making them less prone to inflammation.

Kosak Chiropractic is located at 1252 Travis Blvd., Suite G, Fairfield, CA, 94533. To schedule an appointment, visit Kosak Chiropractic online or call 707-426-1111.

Common Whiplash Treatments

Whiplash is a common kind of neck injury. It can take many forms, but it is often painful, and the pain may radiate. We offer several safe, complementary therapies for whiplash at Kosak Chiropractic in Fairfield, and are available for our patients during the coronavirus outbreak. But we need you to understand why if you may have suffered whiplash, you need to take it seriously.

 

You may have heard whiplash referred to as cervical acceleration-deceleration syndrome. That is because it is characterized by the microtears the soft tissues of the neck incur when a person’s head is whipped back and forth, as frequently happens during car crashes. Small tears in the muscles, ligaments, and spinal discs will cause the tissues to become inflamed and stiffen, limiting the neck’s movement. The pain may be throbbing, or it may feel like pins and needles and come and go. It may also travel along the neck muscles into the shoulders or up to the head.

 

We will diagnose the extent of a person’s whiplash injury through imaging and range-of-motion tests. Resting injured muscles too much risks that they will further deteriorate, which is why we will use the information we learn during the diagnosis to prescribe gentle stretching exercises, instead. We may also reduce stiffness by gently adjusting the neck and administering therapeutic massages. Whiplash symptoms may take a while to develop, but they respond better to treatment when caught early. If you’ve been in a vehicular crash or similar accident, schedule an appointment with us right away.

Kosak Chiropractic is located at 1252 Travis Blvd., Suite G, Fairfield, CA, 94533. To schedule an appointment, visit Kosak Chiropractic online or call 707-426-1111.

Stiff Neck Muscles

Neck pain is scary. If you feel your neck muscles gradually becoming more fatigued, you may wonder whether you’ll be able to go about your normal activities, or whether you’re going to be in too much pain to move. Fortunately, help is available. At Kosak Chiropractic, we provide fast, non-invasive treatments for a variety of musculoskeletal problems, including those in the neck. But we also want patients to know how to avoid relapses, so let’s take a closer look at neck stiffness.

Any muscle can stiffen when it’s strained and kept in the same position for too long. The neck contains several complex muscles, but the ones likeliest to suffer from wear and tear are the levator scapulae. These muscles, one on each side, connect the backs of the upper cervical vertebrae to the back of the shoulder and are responsible for moving both. They are at particular risk for wear when a person hunches forward in front of a computer or while looking at a mobile device. They can also be overused by repetitive motions, such as swimmers turning their heads to the side with each stroke, or by a person sleeping on their front, forcing their head back and sideways.

Sometimes, neck pain is caused by a herniated disc compressing a neck muscle. Our office can assist patients with herniated discs by providing chiropractic adjustments, but for people who are simply suffering strain, we can provide therapeutic massages. We will also teach neck stretches that will restore the flexibility of the levator scapulae and other muscles. Lastly, we help patients to identify areas in which they can adjust their lifestyle to keep better posture. Remember, keep your monitor at eye level and raise your phone instead of bending your neck.

Kosak Chiropractic is located at 1252 Travis Blvd., Suite G, Fairfield, CA, 94533. To schedule an appointment, visit Kosak Chiropractic online or call 707-426-1111.

Osteoarthritic Hip Pain

Kosak Chiropractic in Fairfield treats aches and pains by taking a holistic perspective on health. If a patient is suffering from hip pain, it won’t just be their hip that’s affected, but also their lower back and legs. But by the same token, improvement in hip function can improve overall health, and we offer several non-addictive, complementary treatments for strengthening hips affected by osteoarthritis.

When a person has osteoarthritis, the cartilage that cushions the bones in their joints is eroding. This causes the bones to rub together, triggering inflammation and the growth of bony spurs. Wear and tear is a factor in osteoarthritis, and as the cartilage on the ball of the femur gets worn down, grinding between the femur and socket of the hip changes the hip’s mechanics. The muscles and ligaments surrounding the hip joint are complex, allowing the leg to move in all directions, and as they experience more friction, they become strained. The hip will often stiffen, leading to deterioration of the muscles between the leg and lower back.

Hip pain will often be worse when a person has been lying down or seated for a long time. Although it is tempting to rest for long periods, inactivity will cause further atrophy of the hip muscles. Instead, they need to be strengthened and made more flexible through therapeutic exercise. We can help by prescribing personalized work-out routines as well as providing anti-inflammatory treatments such as therapeutic massages and electric muscle stimulation. We also advise patients on better posture to reduce stress on their pelvic joints, and perform chiropractic adjustments on lower back vertebrae that are under stress due to tight muscles.

Kosak Chiropractic is located at 1252 Travis Blvd., Suite G, Fairfield, CA, 94533. To schedule an appointment, visit Kosak Chiropractic online or call 707-426-1111.