Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
What is OsteoArthritis?
OsteoArthritis: I thought was Arthritis in the joints.
Definition
By Mayo Clinic staff
Osteoarthritis, sometimes called degenerative joint disease or osteoarthrosis, is the most common form of arthritis. Osteoarthritis occurs when cartilage in your joints wears down over time.
While osteoarthritis can affect any joint in your body, the disorder most commonly affects joints in your:
* Hands
* Hips
* Knees
* Neck
* Lower back
Osteoarthritis gradually worsens with time, and no cure exists. But osteoarthritis treatments can relieve pain and help you remain active. Taking steps to actively manage your osteoarthritis may help you gain control over your symptoms.
Degenerative changes in the spine means this is OA of the spine. The term Degenerative means Arthritis.
Definition
By Mayo Clinic staff
Osteoarthritis, sometimes called degenerative joint disease or osteoarthrosis, is the most common form of arthritis. Osteoarthritis occurs when cartilage in your joints wears down over time.
While osteoarthritis can affect any joint in your body, the disorder most commonly affects joints in your:
* Hands
* Hips
* Knees
* Neck
* Lower back
Osteoarthritis gradually worsens with time, and no cure exists. But osteoarthritis treatments can relieve pain and help you remain active. Taking steps to actively manage your osteoarthritis may help you gain control over your symptoms.
Degenerative changes in the spine means this is OA of the spine. The term Degenerative means Arthritis.
Chronic Sacroiliitis
I asked my Dr:
"If you were talking to another dr about what I have, what would you call it?" Chronic Sacroiliitis. so I looked it up.
It is:
Health Information, Tips, Community and More at HealthCentral.com
http://www.healthcentral.com/chronic-pain/c/17554/24814/sacroiliitis/pf/
ChronicPainConnection.com
* FREE email newsletters
See all of our health sites at www.HealthCentral.com
Thursday, September 09, 2010
* Chronic Pain Home >
* SharePosts >
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* Ravin >
* Sacroiliitis
Sacroiliitis
by Ravin
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Sacroiliitis: The sacroiliac joints (SI joints) connect the spine to the pelvis and lower skeleton. These joints provide minimal movement; approximately two to four millimeters with weight bearing activity, unlike that of the hip or knee. The SI joint's main function is to provide shock absorption for the spine through a gliding-type motion. Sacroiliitis (inflammation of the SI joint) is commonly caused by degenerative arthritis, traumatic injury, motor vehicle accident, or blow to the buttock or pelvic region. Women are at risk for developing sacroiliitis from childbirth, as the female pelvis must stretch enough to allow birth. The ligaments around the joint, which connect one bone to another, may become inflamed or torn. Tearing of these ligaments can lead to too much motion in the joint, causing degenerative changes and chronic pain.
Symptoms: In most cases of sacroiliitis, there is a diffuse pattern of back and pelvic pain that mimic each other. Patients with SI inflammation will generally complain of low back, buttock, and thigh pain. This pain typically becomes worse when sitting for any prolonged period of time.
Sacroiliitis is commonly confused with sciatica. Many rheumatic diseases aren't limited to inflammation of the joints and extend to other organs of your body, such as your skin, blood vessels, eyes, heart, lungs, kidneys and nervous system.
Signs and symptoms of sacroiliitis may include: Pain and stiffness in your lower back, thighs or buttocks, especially in the morning or when sitting for a long period of time. Pain affecting your hips and shoulders. Pain that worsens with walking because the swinging motion of your hips strains your sacroiliac joints. Inflammation in one or both of your eyes (uveitis or iritis). Psoriasis, an inflammatory skin condition. Bloody diarrhea. A low-grade fever that appears quickly.
Causes: A wide range of factors may cause sacroiliitis:
Heavy lifting, especially if you lift incorrectly or your muscles aren't prepared for the activity.
A traumatic injury or sudden impact, such as a motor vehicle accident or a fall, affecting your spine, lower back, pelvis or buttocks.
Spondyloarthropathies, which includes ankylosing spondylitis, arthritis associated with psoriasis and others.
Degenerative arthritis, also called osteoarthritis of the spine, causing degeneration of the sacroiliac joints, which can cause mild inflammation and pain.
Pregnancy, because the pelvis must stretch to accommodate childbirth. Infection of the sacroiliac joint, sometimes caused by bacteria in food (brucellosis).
Treatment: In most cases rest, anti-inflammatory medication, and physical therapy alleviate symptomology. Physical therapy should focus on mobilization (exercise and manipulation by the therapist), and stabilization (muscle strengthening).
For pain relief, fluoroscopic guided injections into the joint may be warranted. The SI joint is located deep in the buttock region and is covered by thick muscle. The fluoroscope uses X-rays to help visualize the SI joint. This visualization allows the physician to see on screen the exact placement of the needle into the joint. Cortisone is typically injected into the joint to calm the inflammation and reduce pain.
Procedures: Spinal Injections: Spinal injections are used to diagnose and treat spinal conditions. With most spinal injections, a local anesthetic (numbing medication) is injected into a specific area of the spine. The anesthetic is fast-acting, but the effects wear off within about two hours. A strong anti-inflammatory steroid medication, such as cortisone, is usually injected with the anesthetic to reduce inflammation in the affected area. Cortisone is long lasting and can be slow releasing in order to give the best possible benefit of pain relief. Cortisone may take several days to start working, but the effects may last for months.
Several of the injections given at our office under fluoroscopic guidance include:
Epidural Steroid Injections - Good for reducing radicular pain caused by nerve root irritation from herniated discs and spinal stenosis. The patient may require a series of several epidural injections over a period of a few weeks.
Transforaminal Injections - Selective injection around a specific nerve root and into the spinal canal. This is more effective for nerve compression with sciatica.
Facet Joint Injections - Used to localize and relieve low back and neck pain caused by arthritic facet joints.
Sacroiliac Joint Injections - Used for pain from an inflamed sacroiliac joint.
Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). These medications include sulfasalazine (Azulfidine) and methotrexate (Rheumatrex). Doctors prescribe DMARDs to limit joint damage. Taking these drugs at early stages in the development of a joint condition is especially important to slow the disease and save the joints and other tissues from permanent damage. Because many of these drugs act slowly - it may take weeks to months before you notice any benefit - DMARDs typically are used with an NSAID or a corticosteroid. While the NSAID or corticosteroid handles your immediate symptoms and limits inflammation, the DMARD modifies the disease itself.
Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors. These therapies, which include etanercept (Enbrel) and infliximab (Remicade), block a cell protein (cytokine) that acts as an inflammatory agent. Blocking the TNF cytokine may help reduce pain, stiffness and tender or swollen joints.
Physical therapy Treatment may also involve physical therapy and rest to help manage pain and stiffness. Your doctor or physical therapist can help you learn range-of-motion and stretching exercises to maintain joint flexibility, and strengthening exercises to give your muscles additional stability.
Complications: Delayed treatment of sacroiliitis - either because of an incorrect diagnosis or because you've put off going to your doctor - can cause serious harm to your sacroiliac joints. Sacroiliitis may be part of a larger inflammatory arthritis condition known as ankylosing spondylitis. Ankylosing spondylitis is one of many forms of inflammatory arthritis, the most common of which is rheumatoid arthritis.
Complications of ankylosing spondylitis can be very serious, including difficulty breathing, spine deformities, lung infections and heart problems.
"If you were talking to another dr about what I have, what would you call it?" Chronic Sacroiliitis. so I looked it up.
It is:
Health Information, Tips, Community and More at HealthCentral.com
http://www.healthcentral.com/chronic-pain/c/17554/24814/sacroiliitis/pf/
ChronicPainConnection.com
* FREE email newsletters
See all of our health sites at www.HealthCentral.com
Thursday, September 09, 2010
* Chronic Pain Home >
* SharePosts >
* Living With It >
* Ravin >
* Sacroiliitis
Sacroiliitis
by Ravin
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Sacroiliitis: The sacroiliac joints (SI joints) connect the spine to the pelvis and lower skeleton. These joints provide minimal movement; approximately two to four millimeters with weight bearing activity, unlike that of the hip or knee. The SI joint's main function is to provide shock absorption for the spine through a gliding-type motion. Sacroiliitis (inflammation of the SI joint) is commonly caused by degenerative arthritis, traumatic injury, motor vehicle accident, or blow to the buttock or pelvic region. Women are at risk for developing sacroiliitis from childbirth, as the female pelvis must stretch enough to allow birth. The ligaments around the joint, which connect one bone to another, may become inflamed or torn. Tearing of these ligaments can lead to too much motion in the joint, causing degenerative changes and chronic pain.
Symptoms: In most cases of sacroiliitis, there is a diffuse pattern of back and pelvic pain that mimic each other. Patients with SI inflammation will generally complain of low back, buttock, and thigh pain. This pain typically becomes worse when sitting for any prolonged period of time.
Sacroiliitis is commonly confused with sciatica. Many rheumatic diseases aren't limited to inflammation of the joints and extend to other organs of your body, such as your skin, blood vessels, eyes, heart, lungs, kidneys and nervous system.
Signs and symptoms of sacroiliitis may include: Pain and stiffness in your lower back, thighs or buttocks, especially in the morning or when sitting for a long period of time. Pain affecting your hips and shoulders. Pain that worsens with walking because the swinging motion of your hips strains your sacroiliac joints. Inflammation in one or both of your eyes (uveitis or iritis). Psoriasis, an inflammatory skin condition. Bloody diarrhea. A low-grade fever that appears quickly.
Causes: A wide range of factors may cause sacroiliitis:
Heavy lifting, especially if you lift incorrectly or your muscles aren't prepared for the activity.
A traumatic injury or sudden impact, such as a motor vehicle accident or a fall, affecting your spine, lower back, pelvis or buttocks.
Spondyloarthropathies, which includes ankylosing spondylitis, arthritis associated with psoriasis and others.
Degenerative arthritis, also called osteoarthritis of the spine, causing degeneration of the sacroiliac joints, which can cause mild inflammation and pain.
Pregnancy, because the pelvis must stretch to accommodate childbirth. Infection of the sacroiliac joint, sometimes caused by bacteria in food (brucellosis).
Treatment: In most cases rest, anti-inflammatory medication, and physical therapy alleviate symptomology. Physical therapy should focus on mobilization (exercise and manipulation by the therapist), and stabilization (muscle strengthening).
For pain relief, fluoroscopic guided injections into the joint may be warranted. The SI joint is located deep in the buttock region and is covered by thick muscle. The fluoroscope uses X-rays to help visualize the SI joint. This visualization allows the physician to see on screen the exact placement of the needle into the joint. Cortisone is typically injected into the joint to calm the inflammation and reduce pain.
Procedures: Spinal Injections: Spinal injections are used to diagnose and treat spinal conditions. With most spinal injections, a local anesthetic (numbing medication) is injected into a specific area of the spine. The anesthetic is fast-acting, but the effects wear off within about two hours. A strong anti-inflammatory steroid medication, such as cortisone, is usually injected with the anesthetic to reduce inflammation in the affected area. Cortisone is long lasting and can be slow releasing in order to give the best possible benefit of pain relief. Cortisone may take several days to start working, but the effects may last for months.
Several of the injections given at our office under fluoroscopic guidance include:
Epidural Steroid Injections - Good for reducing radicular pain caused by nerve root irritation from herniated discs and spinal stenosis. The patient may require a series of several epidural injections over a period of a few weeks.
Transforaminal Injections - Selective injection around a specific nerve root and into the spinal canal. This is more effective for nerve compression with sciatica.
Facet Joint Injections - Used to localize and relieve low back and neck pain caused by arthritic facet joints.
Sacroiliac Joint Injections - Used for pain from an inflamed sacroiliac joint.
Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). These medications include sulfasalazine (Azulfidine) and methotrexate (Rheumatrex). Doctors prescribe DMARDs to limit joint damage. Taking these drugs at early stages in the development of a joint condition is especially important to slow the disease and save the joints and other tissues from permanent damage. Because many of these drugs act slowly - it may take weeks to months before you notice any benefit - DMARDs typically are used with an NSAID or a corticosteroid. While the NSAID or corticosteroid handles your immediate symptoms and limits inflammation, the DMARD modifies the disease itself.
Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors. These therapies, which include etanercept (Enbrel) and infliximab (Remicade), block a cell protein (cytokine) that acts as an inflammatory agent. Blocking the TNF cytokine may help reduce pain, stiffness and tender or swollen joints.
Physical therapy Treatment may also involve physical therapy and rest to help manage pain and stiffness. Your doctor or physical therapist can help you learn range-of-motion and stretching exercises to maintain joint flexibility, and strengthening exercises to give your muscles additional stability.
Complications: Delayed treatment of sacroiliitis - either because of an incorrect diagnosis or because you've put off going to your doctor - can cause serious harm to your sacroiliac joints. Sacroiliitis may be part of a larger inflammatory arthritis condition known as ankylosing spondylitis. Ankylosing spondylitis is one of many forms of inflammatory arthritis, the most common of which is rheumatoid arthritis.
Complications of ankylosing spondylitis can be very serious, including difficulty breathing, spine deformities, lung infections and heart problems.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
My new Sealy Mattress for my Back
I tried a Memory Foam roll-out, but all it did was 'accentuate' the coils in my mattress. I really need a new mattress. Dr Jeff Kotulski, Osteopath, recommended a Sealy Mattress because he has one and hasn't had any back trouble. I worked with my insurance company to get the mattress. I've really noticed the difference! I'm sleeping 8-hrs a night, now! It is like SLEEPING ON A CLOUD!! (see the picture.)
I love it!
Santa Peanut
My little boy, Chunky Peanut Butter, Peanut, in new clothes. I got the idea to dress him in clothes from my friend Amy Hummel. Usually, I enjoy going to Walmart to search for new clothes for him, but my backaches are so strong its hard to Travel. I love the clothes she picks out for him, they are so cute!
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Maranatha singers sing
Maranatha! Music began as a non-profit outreach of Calvary Chapel in 1971. The Jesus People of the late 1960s and early 1970s began to write new hymns and worship songs with a folk-rock style. Maranatha! (means "come Jesus")
MaranathaMusic.com
In His Time, by the Maranatha! Singers Ecclesiastics 3:11
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gTQvpMeh1A&feature=related
Their music, with words so we can sing along, is a blessing to me to sing along, a great worship songs, for me.
MaranathaMusic.com
In His Time, by the Maranatha! Singers Ecclesiastics 3:11
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gTQvpMeh1A&feature=related
Their music, with words so we can sing along, is a blessing to me to sing along, a great worship songs, for me.
Friday, June 18, 2010
Best Friends
Peanut, Sadie and Abby are best friends. When our dogs became friends it led us to become friends. Pretty soon, the three of us were like sisters. We had to walk our dogs daily, me as much as 4xs a day. We were: Vicky, Amy 'n Chuck, and me. When I first moved here, I didn't know anyone except my sister and parents. I didn't know anyone in the Apartment complex. It was just my daughter and me.My daughter found friends from school, and I found Gator. Gator was a 'biker chick'. I enjoyed talking to her about Motorcycles. She became my best friend. When she'd see me outside, she'd rush right over and we'd talk. I enjoyed sitting outside on the lawn and watching the cars and trees, but when Gator was around, I'd just listen to her. She had a speech impairment and talked very fast. If you were quiet, you could understand her. I tried to slow her down a few times, and she felt bad that I couldn't understand her.
March 26, 2008: Our last conversation was she had come down to see me on Wednesday, (I don't want to remember the date), we watched a movie every Wednesday together, she showed me bruises on her legs she said were from her boyfriend. I told her to stay away from him, but she said she had no one else. No one seen Gator the next few days, and on Friday her boyfriend came here to talk to her and got the office to open her door. They found Gator. They said she had died that Wednesday night. I remember hearing a knock on the door, sounded like from a cane, which she used and I peeked out the peep hole and saw no one. Vicky said she heard the same knock. I knew that Vicky knew Gator, I didn't know that Amy did. I soon found out that Gator had both Vicky and Amy. I'm glad. Gator was very special to us. She was cremated. She had told me that she legally changed her name from Sandy Schutte to Gator Schutte, because her dad always called her Gator. Amy 'n Chuck helped Vicky move to Harris, MN in August, 2009. After Vicky was moved, we didn't hear from her again. We've been worried about her. Her depression was very strong when she lived here. So strong that she cut herself off from us; we'd go to her apartment to get her to walk with us and she wouldn't answer her door. Or she'd have Amy take Abby out. She told me that she was depressed because she didn't have a house. I didn't believe that. A person can get saddened because they aren't in a house, but Depression is a disease, not just sadness. For me, it happens even when I should be happy about something, I'm still feeling sad inside where it matters. So she bought a house and left. I've been concerned about her ever since because she cut off her ties with us. I sent her a Christmas card to cheer her up and used the one she and Amy bought for me. But I haven't heard anything. Vicky almost died from shutting herself off from the world. Her kidneys had shut down and she couldn't move. When Amy came to me and ask my opinion I said to call 9-1-1. Emergency was eventually called and she died on their table 3 times before becoming stable. It was a long week without Vicky. She was in intensive care in Mankato. We called Vicky's sisters so they could go see her, and thats when the decision came to move closer to them. I hope all is well with her.
Chuck died in September, 2009. That was horrible! I feel so bad for Amy; I try to be the best-est friend I can be and help when I am able; she helps me too, especially when I am depressed, we've been through a lot together. When Vicky left we bonded with a stronger friendship. It's just us two left and I'm not going anywhere, my family is here.
I guess this blog is a little sad, but it shows why I am sad. I have lost a good number of friends. The smart knowledge is: these people would have moved or died whether I knew them or not. My heart is happy that I knew them, in the little time we had together.
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