insurance Archives - Chiropractor in Centurion | Dr Vicki Ferreira Chiropractor

Sciatica and Lower Back Pain

chiropractorpta.co.za — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 16:26:13 +0000

Sciatica Lower Back Pain this is a term often used and that most people have experienced at one time or another. Sciatica is the term given to pain that starts in the lower back and buttock area and refers down the back of your leg. The pain could be due to compression of or injury to the sciatic nerve in the buttock area. It is usually felt as quite a sharp and shooting kind of pain that can be localized in the buttock area or spread down your leg to your knee or foot. Lower back pain is a common reason to see your chiropractor and is one of many pain issues dealt with in the practice. Whether you’re a pregnant mum to be, or noticed that you’re developing pain in your lower back, book an appointment with a professional chiro and let us work on the problem.

What is lower back pain?

Lower back pain is common in patients from all walks of life and can happen as a sudden onset or occur as a result of something else. Sometimes repetitive movements can cause strain. For example, overstretching, lifting heavy objects and bad posture.

Read our latest blog: How Much Does a Chiropractor Cost? A Complete Guide to Pricing

Things that could compress, injure or irritate the sciatic nerve and cause sciatica could be:

Tight piriformis muscles: The sciatic nerve runs through a muscle called the piriformis muscle. This muscle is v-shaped to allow passage of the sciatic nerve. If this muscle is contracted and in spasm it could cause the sciatic nerve to be compressed, causing the sciatic pain.
Sitting on your wallet: Men are usually guilty of this. Sitting on your wallet not only causes your pelvis to be in an awkward position, but it also compresses the sciatic nerve directly. This could also result in a leg length discrepancy, where one leg becomes functionally shorter than the other.
Spinal degeneration: Things like a disc protrusion/herniation or osteophyte formation could cause compression or irritation to the spinal nerves that make up the sciatic nerve. This will then not only cause the pain in you buttock and leg, but could also cause other neurological symptoms such as weakness, numbness or pins and needles.

Some causes of lower back pain include:

Pregnancy in women
An injury
Poor posture
No lumbar support when seated for long at a computer
Damage to intervertebral discs
Nerve compression
Deformity
Trauma
Herniated disc

If you suffer from sciatica or sciatic pain, there are chiropractic treatment options available to give you the relief you want. These treatment options are surgery-free and involve spinal manipulation, myofascial release, dry needling and stretching. If your pain is due to anatomical causes, chiropractic will only be able to provide symptomatic relief, depending on the severity of your disc protrusion/herniation. With osteophyte formation, surgery could be an option to remove the pain causing osteophytes.

Common symptoms of lower back pain include but are not limited to:

A dull aching pain
Pain that radiates down the buttocks and legs
Increased pain when sitting for too long
A relief of pain when changing position
Pain seems worse in the lower back after having slept and woken up

How does a chiropractor help with Lower Back Pain?

A doctor of chiropractic has many years studying and learning more and more about how to help patients cope with lower back pain and improve their lives. Chiropractic treatment includes spinal manipulation, as well as manual manipulation. Mobilisation also allows specific stretches to help with range and increase flexibility. Chiropractic is safe during pregnancy and doesn’t require OTC drugs or chemicals to enhance its benefits. It is beneficial for babies and older patients. If you need more information or would like to book an appointment speak to a chiropractor in Centurion. Your chiro will work out a chiropractic treatment plan to suit your needs.

Lower back pain can be tricky, and sometimes unnoticeable. It can occur slowly or gradually with time. Some patients find that the pain worsens with time and sometimes seems reoccurring.

Give us a call today to get relief from your sciatica. Find us on Facebook Dr Vicki Ferreira Chiropractor

Injuries To The Wrist And Hand

chiropractorpta.co.za — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 07:56:26 +0000

Sports men such as cricketers suffer from many wrist and hand injuries. The impact of the cricket ball on the player’s hand can cause finger dislocations and fractures. Those out on the field who have to chase a ball and catch it out of the air are at risk as well as the bowler if the batsman returns the ball directly back to him.

The fingers, wrist, and palm all have a number of bones that can be injured during sports matches. Rugby and soccer players also suffer from wrist and hand injuries when the ball hits the hand at a wrong angle.

In many instances, x-rays and surgery are required but chiropractic treatment also plays a role. Any dislocated joint benefits from chiro treatment. The chiro does not only treat the sports injury, he also advises the player on exercises to strengthen the muscles that must support the injured part. Chiros do not prescribe medication or perform surgery they mechanically manipulate dislocated joints to their original position and in so doing allow the body to heal itself. Pain is present with sports injuries and pain management forms a large part of the chiro’s treatment.

Hand and wrist injuries can be very frustrating for a player. They are often out of the game for weeks while they wait for the injury to heal. Web space splitting occurs when players dive for a ball and their hands hit the ground awkwardly. Other times they reach out to catch a ball and when the catch is not done cleanly, an injury occurs. The space between the index finger and thumb is particularly vulnerable. Joint dislocations often form part of the injury.

Split webbings have a nasty habit of recurring. The scar tissue remains weak and this means that if a ball hits the same spot again, it is the same thing all over again. If the cricketer wears cloves, it will protect the injured spot but permission is required from umpires for this to take place.

The post Injuries To The Wrist And Hand appeared first on Chiropractor in Centurion | Dr Vicki Ferreira Chiropractor.

Back Pain Relief Who Can Help

chiropractorpta.co.za — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 09:12:01 +0000

If you have back pain after you have visited a doctor and after you have tried to treat it yourself (by taking medication or changing the way you move overall), you can ask for a referral to another health practitioner that might specialize in your problem and can thus more effectively sort out the problem. You will probably get sent to a physiotherapist first and then you might have to go to a hospital to get examinations, treatments and various tests. You can also choose to approach a specialist first if you know a normal doctor will not be able to help you. You can go directly to a physiotherapist, to a chiropractor or to an osteopath. However, people who try to avoid this are aware of all the extra costs involved.

To visit a specialist and get back pain relief, sessions might cost around R300 each and then you will also need to follow the program or course of treatment the practitioner gives you and this will incur many more costs. Make sure you use your national health insurance as much as possible before turning to private insurance and cash out of your own pocket. Many doctors can refer you to appropriate acupuncturists and osteopaths and can inform you about all the financial options. If you want to see a private practitioner, make sure you choose one based on recommendations or someone you trust. Ask people you know who have had back problems and had them successfully cured by a certain practitioner. However, you should be aware that your problem will never be identical to someone else’s, so you definitely need to see the practitioner yourself instead of taking the same precautions and treatments as a friend.

Make changes to your life to help the pain and try to put as little strain as possible on your spine. Reduce the stress in your back by increasing exercise, including doing yoga or Pilates. Do meditation and get more sleep. Relax fully at least once a day by listening to soothing music. Also, stop smoking, because this causes blood to have a difficult time getting oxygen to your muscles and this weakens your back.

Click here to contact us TODAY

The post Back Pain Relief Who Can Help appeared first on Chiropractor in Centurion | Dr Vicki Ferreira Chiropractor.

Chiropractor in Centurion and What To Look For

chiropractorpta.co.za — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 15:22:23 +0000

Getting treatment from a chiropractor in Centurion is not where the healing process ends. You will never fully heal if you do not prevent further or recurring injury. A good chiropractor will talk a patient through what to do after he has done treatment and give the patient tips on how to identify any other risks of strains and possible sprains. A good chiropractor will also identify problem areas in a patient’s life (for example, in their work life, their personal and sporting life). Some great chiropractors will contact the employer or the patient’s sport club to determine the conditions and make recommendations for adjustments and corrections to the patient’s everyday life. In extreme cases, the chiropractor will tell you which aids or other methods of support to purchase.

When looking for the best chiropractor in Centurion possible, you need to research what they focus on. A chiropractor in Centurion should not only look at muscles and joints, but should examine the nervous system and other strange symptoms, such as headaches, leg pains, as well as stomach and chest pain. These pains might not seem significant to you or some untrained chiropractors, but a good chiropractor will tell you how this can all play into the bigger picture of the nervous system. When a joint does not perform optimally or when muscles are in pain, there might easily be pain in other areas of the body as well. They are termed as “referred” pains. The best chiropractors will provide treatment for these as well.

The best chiropractors will do a few routine, as well as specialized tests. The specialist will test the basic movement of the affected area (the neck or back) and will feel for caught nerves. He will then look for any inconsistencies in the muscles surrounding the affected area and look at the mobility of spine joints, hands and neck. If a good chiropractor can still not find the source of the problem, he will do blood tests and possible X-rays. However, the best chiropractors know the danger of these procedures and will explain them to you beforehand. The best chiropractors will do as little tests as possible to find a solution.

Other related articles for Chiropractor in Centurion

The post Chiropractor in Centurion and What To Look For appeared first on Chiropractor in Centurion | Dr Vicki Ferreira Chiropractor.

What Happens At a Chiropractor In Centurion

chiropractorpta.co.za — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 15:18:15 +0000

“Many, many things for many different people” is the obvious answer. However, the true answer is much more complicated and will depend on each patient that approaches a chiropractic clinic. Thousands of people all over the world suffer from pain that is a direct cause of a problem in the spine. The problem is that many people do not realize this until a GP refers them to a chiropractor in Centurion – the only place that will actually be able to provide the right type of help. People who benefit from chiropractic treatment cannot be placed in a specific group. People who have sustained injuries after accidents are the most treated patients for chiropractic problems, as well as people who suffer from sports injuries and people who suffer from injuries they got on the job.

Many pregnant women have to go for chiropractic treatment at a clinic due to the pressure a pregnancy can place on the spine. You will also find that parents have to take their babies and children to pediatric chiropractors to get rid of nerve problems after births. These chiropractors can also help children in the growth process to ensure future healthy bodies. You will also find that parents of young children visit chiropractic clinics dues to the stress of picking children up puts on their back. Young mothers also use this treatment to recover after pregnancy. Teenagers are also common to chiropractic clinics due to active lifestyles and injuries that go along with that.

A chiropractor in Centurion can also offer atypical services that a chiropractor in a GP’s office will not necessarily be able to. This can include reflexology, reiki and allergy testing. Some modern clinics have started to offer Indian head massages known as Ayurvedic massages and even hypnotherapy (where the chiropractor tries to heal the mind while healing the body.) Others will offer their patients SKENAR therapy, while most chiropractic clinics will offer nutrition advice and tailor-made diets. The idea of a chiropractic clinic is to ultimately treat a very wide range of conditions and disorders while making the most of every patient’s treatment. A clinic will make recovery as quick as possible and improve overall well-being of any patient.

Other related articles on Chiropractor in Centurion

The post What Happens At a Chiropractor In Centurion appeared first on Chiropractor in Centurion | Dr Vicki Ferreira Chiropractor.

What is Chiropody

chiropractorpta.co.za — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 11:19:00 +0000

Chiropody is the treatment of foot problems. Whether they are foot problems caused by sports injuries or something as simple as an ingrown toe nail, you will be able to get the treatment you need. A chiropodist is thus, a foot doctor. The wide variety of foot related procedures that they do include cutting of toe nails, removal of corns as well as arch support where needed. They treat people of all ages and also provide general advice on how to care for your feet.

The word chiropody literally means hands and fee and is a term first coined in 1886. Despite meaning both hands and feet, chiropody now exclusively refers to foot treatments. It is a branch of medicine that is dedicated to the diagnoses, treatment and prevention of foot, ankle and lower leg related ailments. There are a number of specialities that a chiropodist can decide to focus on and these include surgery, sports, biomechanics and even primary care. Chiropody is a high paying profession because it is a rare speciality. If you are lucky, your private medical aid will pay for the treatment and very few national health insurance plans cover it.

There are a number of treatments available and these are determined by the type of problem the patient has. Also determining the treatment to be used is the patient’s age, medical history and current lifestyle. A treatment plan is developed by the chiropodist if the treatment to be used is of a complex nature. Through the treatment plan, the chiropodist can assess the progress being made by the patient. If there is any improvement, then the treatment will be continued. However, if the treatment is not leading to any changes or even making the problem worse, the chiropodist will look for alternative treatments.

You do not need to get a referral from a doctor before you can make an appointment to see a chiropodist. You can simply find out where the nearest chiropodist is in your area through the internet or the phone book and make an appointment. They work privately and have offices where you can have your treatment done.

The post What is Chiropody appeared first on Chiropractor in Centurion | Dr Vicki Ferreira Chiropractor.