Skiing is a top cause of wintertime orthopedic injuries.

Common Wintertime Orthopedic Injuries

Winter is a beautiful time of year. With snow falling and ice crystals appearing on the trees, many consider it the most wonderful season. However, wet pavements, slippery snow or ice, and bitter cold increase the chance of injury. Whether you’re driving, engaging in a wintertime sport or even doing a simple task, you could experience an orthopedic injury. Prevention is the key to enjoying this time of year. To decrease the risk of winter spine injuries, here are some common red flags to be aware of so you can stay happy and healthy. Winter-Time Incidents That Lead to Injury Snow and ice can make even mundane chores more dangerous. Something as simple as shoveling snow or driving to work could result in all manner of orthopedic injuries. Some of the most common winter injuries we see include: Back injury and acute pain Neck pain and tension Sprains and strains Fractures Spine injuries Because of this, you should take caution. The following are some of the most common incidents that lead to winter orthopedic injuries. Slipping or Falling in the Ice and Snow: Walking from your car to your front door is something you do every day. So, you may not think about the added danger that ice and snow can produce. What looks like a puddle of water may actually be a frozen sheet of ice. Slick pavement leads to a terrible fall, which can potentially cause many different orthopedic injuries. Even if you don’t fall, skidding on the ice and jerking your body to prevent a spill can cause you to pull or strain a muscle in your back. Be sure to take extra precautions and look out for ice. Shoveling or Scraping Snow and Ice: Winter’s most common chore causes a surprising number of doctor visits every year. When the snow piles up, you get out the shovel and clear a path. And if it’s packed on top of your car, you have to scrape it off to get to work. However, this simple task takes a lot of physical exertion. Every year, more than 11,000 people go to the hospital with snow-shoveling injuries. Even if it needs to get done quickly, take care. Don’t over-exert yourself to the point of an injury. Driving Accidents: When the office isn’t closed because of the snow, that means we have to risk the roads to get to work. Adverse weather leads to over one million crashes every year. If you can’t stay home, practice safe driving techniques while on the road: Take it slow, learn evasive maneuvers and don’t slam on your breaks if you hit a patch of ice. Car crashes can lead to all sorts of orthopedic issues depending on the manner of the accident. And the effects of these injuries could be felt for years to come. Winter Sports: Snowboarding, skiing, sledding and ice skating are just a few of the popular activities that many people relish all winter long. Enjoying these sports with your family creates incredible memories

How to Prevent Arthritis

When it comes to arthritis, there are some widespread misconceptions about it. Many people might think arthritis is something that happens to random individuals without any rhyme or reason. There’s no preventing it, and you’ll either develop it or you won’t. Others might think it’s entirely genetic, and so the chances of developing it are deciding by our family history. Maybe you’re a long-time arthritis patient. Maybe you’re just beginning to feel stiffness in your joints, and you’re wondering if you might be experiencing the beginnings of arthritis. Or maybe you’re just curious, and you’re wondering if there are any steps you can take to prevent yourself from developing this condition in the first place. Whatever the case may be, it’s always best to be well-informed. That’s why NJ Spine and Ortho put together a guide to arthritis. Here, we’ll talk about what it is, what causes it and what steps you can take to prevent yourself from developing it, or else what steps you can take to help lessen your symptoms. What Is Arthritis? Did you know that arthritis isn’t just one single condition? Even though we often use the term generically to describe any joint pain associated with inflammation, it describes roughly 200 different conditions and diseases that affect the joints and the surrounding areas. Arthritis is a highly common condition that usually affects adults over the age of 65, but it can affect anyone. It’s so common, in fact, that 52.5 million adults report suffering from some form of it, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Some of the most well-known types of arthritis are osteoporosis, rheumatic disease and systematic connective tissue disorders, but there are many more varieties. What Are the Symptoms of Arthritis? The symptoms of your arthritis will vary widely depending on which type of arthritis you have. The patterns will likely be quite different, as will the location and the severity of the pain and the other symptoms that may accompany the pain. Despite the great potential for diversity in symptoms, however, there are four main symptoms present in almost every variety of arthritis. Pain Pain is the most common element of arthritis. The pain is usually focused in the joints, although it may spread out to other parts of the body. It may be limited to only one joint, or it may be affecting many joints throughout the body.The pain may develop gradually, or it may come on very suddenly. It may be a constant pain, or it may come and go as triggered by certain activities that over-exert the affected joint. Swelling Most types of arthritis will cause noticeable swelling to the affected joint. The skin may become red and warm to the touch. The swelling might be very significant, or it may be very minimal.This swelling may last as long as the pain, or it may come and go as triggered by outside factors. It is likely to flare up for periods of time in coordination with the

5 Ways to Tell if You Have Sciatica

Many of us have experienced shooting pains in our lower backs before. Sometimes these pains extend down the backs of the legs and into the feet. Sometimes the pain eventually passes, and sometimes it returns, worse than before. Pain without any reasonable explanation is understandably frustrating. You want to know what’s causing it and how to make it stop. It’s easy to self-diagnose and simply assume you have sciatica. But how do you go about actually diagnosing your pain? And how do you know if your pain stems from sciatica or from another, unknown cause? In this guide, we hope we’ll answer some of your questions and help you determine whether or not your pain might be sciatic in nature. Contact NJ Spine and Ortho Information About Sciatica What is Sciatica? What Are The Symptoms of Sciatica? What Causes Sciatica? Ways To Tell If You Have Sciatica Treatment For Sciatica What Is Sciatica? Did you know sciatica isn’t a condition in and of itself? Instead, it’s a symptom of several different possible conditions. The meaning of your sciatica symptoms is that there’s something else that has gone wrong with your back. The sciatica is just a side effect of the larger problem. Sciatica refers to the intense, shooting pains in the sciatic nerve. This is a large nerve that begins in the lower back and extends down the buttock and the back of the leg. Sciatic pain occurs when this nerve becomes irritated or compressed due to an underlying condition in the back itself. Sciatic pain is a relatively common problem, but it affects everyone a little differently. With some patients, the pain can reach debilitating levels that disrupt their daily lives. With others, pain levels are comparatively low and never become more than a minor nuisance. It can be confusing at times, because sciatica also has a different name. Among medical professionals, it’s sometimes referred to as Lumbar Radiculopathy. Don’t get too hung up on the names, however, as they mean the same thing. What Are the Symptoms of Sciatica? This pain often feels like it begins in the lower back, but it quickly travels down into the buttock and shoots down the back of your leg. Sometimes it might even reach all the way into the foot and toes. It’s an intense shooting, searing type of pain. Some sufferers of sciatica have even described it as an “electric” kind of pain. Others say it’s more of a dull ache. Sometimes it can be accompanied by a tingling or numbness in the surrounding areas. In other words, sciatic pain has some unifying characteristics, but it tends to look slightly different in everyone. Despite what’s commonly believed, sciatic pain is typically not the strongest in the lower back. Instead, the pain tends to be more heavily focused in the back of the leg. In addition to the pain, some sciatica patients may find it difficult to straighten their legs all the way What Causes Sciatica? It’s easy to self-diagnose

Hostility at home (and stress in general) can worsen back pain.

How a Hostile Home Can Worsen Lower Back Pain

It’s incredible the power of words. An encouraging word can see someone through the hardest experiences. Adversely, harsh or critical words can be harmful. We know negativity plays a role in our psyche. However, researchers are now finding that open hostility can harm us physically as well. When you live in a hostile home under the constant weight of criticism and negativity, stress is bound to follow. And stress can manifest as back pain. How Stress Can Cause Back Pain Stress is that feeling you get when mental or emotional strain becomes too overwhelming. We can experience it in many ways: anxiety and other mood shifts, an inability to think clearly and physical pain. When we hold stress in our bodies, it causes our muscles to tense, which can manifest as aches and pains, most commonly back pain. Sadly, stress-related pain is a vicious cycle. To relieve the pain, you need to de-stress. However, when you try to destress, the negativity of a hostile home causes the stress to recur over and over again. Unsupportive Spouse Even if your back pain is not caused by stress, having a spouse who is critical or unsupportive can cause the pain to increase. Because back pain is an unseen malady, felt only by the sufferer, spouses don’t understand what’s going on. They may think it’s not a real problem or that you should be able to snap out of it. Because of that, all too often a spouse may respond in the following ways: Dismissing your experience Criticizing Reacting with contempt The psychological repercussions of this lack of support manifest as increased back pain. The horrible conundrum is that the spouse is reacting badly to the back pain, which only causes you to have more back pain. A recent research study confirmed this by studying 71 couples where one partner suffered from severe back pain. The study found that when the spouse acted negatively, either overtly or perceived, the back pain increased and lasted for several hours. Breaking the Cycle Unfortunately, marital difficulties are common among those who struggle with chronic pain, including back pain. Even if the spouse is loving and there are no obvious marriage problems, it’s important for a spouse to show support and help you on your road to wellness. Because a hostile home is dangerous for those with chronic back pain, there are a few steps a couple can take to create an improved home life: Watch out for negativity, both in word and deed Maintain an environment free from yelling, arguing or name-calling Help those with back pain live the best life they can despite the pain Be sympathetic to the challenges those with chronic back pain face Look for ways to encourage If needed, attend support groups or couple’s therapy for added assistance If your back pain has lasted more than three months, it’s time to find the cause. It all begins with some basic information. Where your back hurts and the type of pain

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Common Wintertime Orthopedic Injuries

How to Prevent Arthritis

5 Ways to Tell if You Have Sciatica

How a Hostile Home Can Worsen Lower Back Pain

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