BACK PAIN BLOG...

According to a recent study published in Medical News Today, bio-cellular grafts which are used by surgeons to repair damaged tissue may be useful for treating low back pain. However, not all sufferers responded equally to the therapy.

Results reported at the 29th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine stated that at 5-24 months following treatment, patients reported changes in back pain ranging from complete pain relief to no improvement. No patient reported a worsening of pain, and no complications occurred. All subjects who experienced pain relief also reported significant improvement in activity tolerance or a reduction in pain medication use, or both.

The procedure involved injecting a concentrated form of bone-marrow cellular aspirate into lumbar discs in patients with clinical and objective evidence of disc degeneration. Donald J. Meyer, MD, PhD, the study's primary author said, "The results of our case review are encouraging," "Currently, when conservative treatment measures fail, therapeutic options are limited for individuals with back pain due to disc degeneration. Many resort to disc surgery or spinal fusion with mediocre results. Our goal is to help develop a safe, natural method to boost the body's own capacity to heal discogenic pain."

A future prospective study is warranted, the authors concluded, to examine whether biologic auto graft treatment may provide a safe and effective therapy for lumbar discogenic pain.

Magnesium is a mineral needed for health that helps turn the food we eat into energy and helps make sure the parathyroid glands, which produce hormones important for bone health, work normally.

You should be able to get all the magnesium you need from your daily diet. Some researchers and doctors believe that a low level magnesium deficiency may contribute to the symptoms of Fibro. A low level magnesium deficiency cannot be easily tested for in a blood test, so ruling this out can be difficult.

There is a very small amount of evidence for using magnesium to treat Fibro and overall the evidence is conflicting26, but it is a common supplement suggested by doctors specialising in Fibro.
It is worth noting that some forms of magnesium are more easily absorbed than others (magnesium malate or chelated magnesium are often suggested) and the less easily absorbed forms of magnesium may act as laxatives.

Taking high doses of magnesium for a short time can cause diarrhoea. If you take magnesium supplements, do not take too much because this could be harmful. However, having 400mg or less a day of magnesium from supplements is unlikely to cause any harm.

Taken from FibroAction a national UK
NHS Choices
www.nhs.uk

Monday 13th May is the start of Arthritis Care Week. With the theme of 'Something Can Always Be Done'.The aim of Arthritis Care Awareness Week is to help and educate people in a relaxed environment. 

Arthritis in the UK is very common and affects some ten million people (one in six) of the UK population, many of whom are in constant pain.

But knowledge of arthritis is very low, misunderstanding and misinformation rife, and most people think that there's nothing that they can do about it and that it's inevitable. Says Arthritis Care acting CEO Phil Baker, " We want to set the record straight during Arthritis Care Week as we believe that something can always be done".
 
There are 200 types of arthritis and making even small changes to your lifestyle and managing symptoms will help. However, the first step is always the hardest so Arthritis Care say call their free and confidential helpline 0808 800 4050 or email them for help with your condition.

ME Awareness Week takes place from 6-12 May 2013. The week aims to improve awareness of ME and raise funds for research into this painful condition. Action for M.E. is the leading UK charity for people with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.) and their carers.

M.E. is a chronic, fluctuating illness affecting 250,000 people in the UK. It may be diagnosed as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) or Post Viral Fatigue Syndrome (PVFS). M.E. symptoms may include persistent exhaustion, muscle and/or joint pain, sleep disturbance, feeling ’flu-like and having problems with memory and concentration.

Action for M.E. will provide information and support, while campaigning for better services and more effective treatments and driving and investing in research – until our vision is achieved and M.E. is overcome.

Find out more about us and what we believe about M.E.

Apart from a small grant in Scotland, we receive no government funding and are dependent on charitable donations for all of our work. Please help us to do more. Find out about ways you can help.

Between 13-17 May 2013 employees are encouraged to leave their cars at home and put national transport aside to get your blood pumping and get fit.

Walking is a great way to stay trim and helps keep your heart healthy.

It saves on petrol and bus fares, and is better for our planet.

It’s easy to fit some more walking in to your working week. Whether it’s making changes to how you travel to work, or getting out more at lunchtimes, Living Streets can help.

We're all sat at our desks long enough, so why not take the chance to stretch our legs, get fit and burn out the carbon footprint all in one go?

Many of the best writers including Charles Dickens and Wordsworth went on walks to get inspiration!

For more details head to the Walking Works Website.