Knee pain is one of the most common and painful ailments that can limit mobility. Injuries can result in cartilage or meniscal tears or sprains too. Obesity is another reason because of which knee pain is on the rise. Also, regular wear and tear of ligaments and tendons around the knees due to old age is another cause. These days, with reduced physical activities and sedentary lifestyles, the rate at which knees are wearing out has also become accelerated. Whatever the reason, a correct diagnosis followed by prompt treatment can help. Over the years, physiotherapy has been playing an important role in treating knee injuries. Whether to supplement the various drugs to reduce pain and inflammation or to avoid surgery, physiotherapy has helped many and its popularity is growing every day. Here are some ways that physiotherapy can help reduce pain.

Improve flexibility of tendons: The knee cap is an area where there are lot of tendons and ligaments, coordinating to enable movement. Careful exercising can ensure that the flexibility of tendons and ligaments is improved, thereby making your knee movement easier and less painful.
Improves blood supply: As we all know, proper movement requires good blood supply. Exercising with special focus on the knee ensures that blood supply is improved, and thereby the supporting ligaments and tendons function optimally.
Enhances the knee cap function: The knee cap is that portion which joins your thigh bone to your calf bones. This is prone to slip out of place, especially with arthritis and injuries. This can be painful and limit movement to a great degree. Focused exercises aimed at improving knee cap function will ensure that the knee cap has a wider range of function, and does not slip out of its socket easily.
Reduce rigidity: Once you start physiotherapy, you will feel your knees getting more flexible. The rigidity that had set in as a result of injuries and/or old age will also reduce over a period of time.
Slow down the wear and tear: When you start physiotherapy after knee damage, continuing the exercise routine, of course with expert guidance, can reduce the pace at which further damage might happen. A word of caution though. Be sure to consult an experienced physiotherapist before you begin. Exercising in a bad manner can do equal or more harm than the original injury or old age itself.

Knee Pain and Physiotherapy

Heel bone spur is a form of calcium deposit that causes a bony protrusion under the heel bone. An X-ray can reveal up to a half inch elongation under the hill. Without image report, this condition is commonly known as heel spur syndrome. Heel spurs are mostly painless but reports of pain in not uncommon. They are often related to plantar fasciitis. The latter is an inflammation of the connective tissue that stretches through the foot bottom connecting the heel bone and the football.


What causes heel spurs?
Heel spurs are a result of prolonged calcium deposit. This condition can result from the heavy strain on the muscle of the foot and ligament, stretching of fascia and wear and tear of the heel bone membrane. These injuries are frequently observed among athletes who are involved with activities such as jumping and running. 


What are the risk factors?
1. Walking abnormalities that involve putting more than normal stress on the bone, nerve and ligament in and around the heel.
2. Running on surfaces that are hard in nature
3. Shoes lacking arch support
4. More than normal body weight 
5. Spending too much time on the feet
6. Too flat or too high arches
7. A person suffering from diabetes
8. In case the protective pad of the heel is fading away due to old age or other bone disorder
Non-Surgical treatment
Unlike common belief, only rest may not be the best way to treat heel bone spurs. On the contrary, a patient might feel sharp pain immediately after sleep. This happens when he tries to walk and the plantar fascia elongates all of a sudden. The pain decreases with more walking. Some treatment methods that work for 90 percent of the sufferers includes wearing the right shoe, stretching exercises, wearing orthotic devices inside the shoes and physical therapy. Over the counter medicine such as Aleve, Tylenol and Advil can be consumed to reduce the pain and for improving the overall condition. Corticosteroid injection also tends to give relief from the inflammation.


Surgical treatment
If heel spurs persist for more than 8-9 months, surgical options should be explored by the patient. There are two angles on which a doctor works, either removing the spur or release the plantar fascia. Pre-surgical exams are necessary to ensure that a person is eligible for surgery and all non-surgical avenues are explored. Post-surgical activities are equally important for the process of healing. Usage of bandages, crutches, splints and surgical shoes is a mandate to avoid complications such as infection, numbness, and scarring. Possible side effects should be discussed with the surgeon well before the surgery. The estimated healing time from this procedure is close to 8-12 weeks.

Heel Bone Spurs - Causes and Risks Associated with it?

Arthritis is a disease usually associated with elderly people, but it can also affect children. When arthritis affects children, it is known as juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. This disorder affects the musculoskeletal structure of a child and can cause pain, stiffness and swelling in the muscles, joints, ligaments and bones. In some cases, it can also affect the internal organs. With medication and therapy, the symptoms of this disorder can be managed and the quality of the child s life can be improved.

Hence, it is important to recognise the signs and symptoms of this disease. Some of the symptoms to look out for are:

Pain: Complaints of pain in the joints or muscles on waking up from bed can be a sign of juvenile arthritis. This may affect a child s jaw, neck, hands, knees and feet. For most children, moving around helps relieve some of the pain. Unlike the pain triggered by an injury, this kind of pain develops slowly and affects both symmetrical joints.

Joint stiffness: Children affected by this disorder may complain of stiff joints which hamper normal movement and activities. As with pain, this stiffness is usually worst in the morning and improves with movement.

Swelling: Redness and inflammation of painful joints is another symptom of this disorder. The joint may also feel warm to touch. This swelling may come and go or persist for several days. The joints of the hands, feet and knees are most susceptible to swelling.

 Fever: Frequent fever accompanied by fatigue can indicate juvenile arthritis. These fevers usually come on suddenly and are relieved after a short time. Also, they do not exhibit any signs of respiratory or stomach infections.

Rashes: Rashes that are symptomatic of this disorder appear commonly over the knuckles, nose bridge or on the trunk, arms and legs. This often takes the form of a faint, pink rash that persists for weeks but unlike other rashes, it does not itch or ooze.

Weight loss: Drastic weight loss and an unexplained loss of appetite can also signal this disorder. In such cases, the child may also appear fatigued and showcase symptoms of associated malnutrition disorders.

 Eye problems: Persistent troubles with eyesight such as pain, blurred vision and redness of the eye can be a sign of juvenile arthritis. In some cases, this disorder also causes the iris and uveitis as well as the middle layer of the eye to appear inflamed. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a rheumatologist.

Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis - 7 Signs Your Child Is Suffering from It!

Lower back pain can be one of the most physically debilitating things that can affect you and limit your mobility. Even if the pain isn t that acute, it could still signal something deteriorating in your lower back. While oral medications, topical creams or sprays can help in reducing pain, there are other effective remedies you can try on your own. These will be handy when you have no medications at hand. One of these is the hot and cold therapy.

Heat therapy for lower back pain

Heat works well with lower back pain as it can dilate blood vessels and improve circulation within the tissue. This will help in circulation and also result in lowering the pain. Heat therapy will also loosen up other muscles in the area and help soothe sore areas which have been taking the burden along with the lower back muscles. Some of the techniques that can be applied are:

1. All day heat wraps: These are specially manufactured belts or wraps which wrap around your abdomen and keep tightness and pressure on your lower back as well as supplying heat.

2. Electric heating pads: These are mechanized heating pads which generate heat with electricity. You can place them under you back and then either sit or sleep with it positioned behind you. However, ensure that you don t keep these for too long as they could burn your skin.

3. Hot Compress with towels or hot water bags: Use a clean towel and heat it over a conductive surface and apply it on your lower back. You can also use hot water bags for the same purpose.

Cold therapy for lower back pain

Cold therapy uses the principle of constriction of blood vessels as well as slowing circulation. This will help numb the area and thus help relieve the pain. Some of the ways these can be administered are mentioned below.

1. Ice towel: In this method, soak a towel in ice cold water, wring it to dry it and then apply on your lower back. This will numb the pain without transferring the sting of the cold or damaging your skin.

2. Ice packs: Put about half a kg of ice in a plastic Ziploc bag and pour water over the ice to just about cover it. Push out the air out of the bag and then lock it. Use this ice pack with a towel to ensure that you back doesn't get wet.

3. Ice gel packs: These are ready made packs, which can be bought from medical stores and kept frozen to be used whenever you need it in order to relieve lower back pain.

Treating Lower Back Pain Using Hot and Cold Therapy

The spine plays a very crucial role, both from a person s movement and sensation point of view. It carries the nervous supply for a lot of internal organs and the lower body. By virtue of its structure, it also helps in movement through the disks. Due to various reasons, spinal injury is common, causing pain along the back, lower extremities, neck etc.

Medicines and exercise are the first line of treatment for most spinal injuries. The issue, however, is that these only provide relief from the pain and the medicines, but do not actually  rectify  the underlying problem. Whether it is a herniated disk or a pinched nerve, the medicines and exercise can relieve the symptoms, but the disk continues to be herniated and the nerve continues to be pinched. Definite treatment is in the form of surgery, and with recent advancements in the field of spinal surgery, there are minimally invasive surgical options, which provide complete cure with minimal recovery time. Some of the benefits of this are listed below-

Smaller incision compared to traditional surgical procedures, where only the injured area is accessed

The surrounding tissues are untouched, unless they are injured and require repair

Lesser bleeding compared to earlier techniques

Lesser painful procedure

Reduced hospitalization period

Quicker recovery and return to normal activities

The question, however, is whether this is indicated in everybody. A detailed discussion with your surgeon keeping the below points in mind will help identify the answer for this. The main driver should be the answer to the question   will the surgery be able to effectively relieve you of the pain and symptoms? Additionally, the following factors help in getting better results out of a minimally invasive spinal surgery.

Presence of symptoms relating to nerve compression, including pain from the spine down the leg.

Recent onset of symptoms, with pain starting days to months before seeing the doctor. This indicates the condition is relatively new and so damage is minimal, indicating favorable outcome. Chronic pain conditions take slightly longer time compared to recent injuries.

People with active lifestyle who engage in regular physical exercise are likely to have better benefits from the minimally invasive procedure.

Smoking reduces blood flow to the spine, leading to disk degeneration and weakening of bones. Healing is highly slowed down and recovery is overall delayed.

Excessive weight puts strain on the back, and so healing can be delayed or badly affected with more complications. It is not a contraindication, but be prepared for a longer recovery period.

Talk to your doctor keeping these points in mind, and you can bid farewell to your back pain forever.

Is Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Right For You?

Facial paralysis is when there is a loss of voluntary movement of the face on one or both sides. The following are the most common causes of facial paralysis.

Bell s palsy, the most common cause of facial paralysis
Stroke is another major cause of facial paralysis, could be combined with right side arm/leg paralysis
Tumours, affecting the facial region can exert pressure on the nerves and lead to paralysis
Infections such as herpes zoster infections cause paralysis
Symptoms:

Difficulty in speech, eating and drinking
Closing eyelids, movement, and expressions become difficult
Loss of sensation, which may be temporary or permanent
Ayurveda believes in not just correcting the paralysis but improving overall health so that there is no recurrence and other areas are also prevented from being affected. According to it, increased vata causes paralysis and so treatment includes correction of it plus prevention of vata accumulation through diet and lifestyle changes.

Dietary and lifestyle changes:

Avoid cold and sour foods like curd, buttermilk, ice creams, cold foods like cucumber, banana, watermelons, etc.
Avoid fermented foods as they aggravate Vata
Reduce or avoid pulses like dal as they can worsen gas accumulation
Substitute rice with wheat
Substitute cow s milk with buffalo milk
Avoid smoking and alcohol completely
Diet must be easily digestible and simple with lot of green leafy vegetables
Avoid foods which can cause constipation
Ayurvedic remedies:

Beejband or country mallow: This has nerve stimulating properties and so useful in paralysis of any sort
Kali Mirch or black pepper: Used as a water gargle, it is beneficial in correcting paralysis
Lavanga or cloves: People with Bell s palsy were given water to which some drops of clove oil were added, and they showed remarkable benefits.
Mulethi or licorice: This is proven to be effective in stopping the progression of paralysis. People with Bell s palsy, in whom there was involuntary tearing, had a stoppage of the symptom.
Ashwagandha capsules: They treat paralysis and also reduce anxiety and stress and depression. It helps by calming and rejuvenating the entire nervous system. It also helps control muscle and joint pains and reduces stiffness. It also helps control insomnia and allows for improved blood pressure.
Curcumin: This is very beneficial in Bell's palsy patients. With its rich antioxidant content, it reduces free radical release and helps control inflammation and reduces oxidative stress.
Nirgundi oil: It also cures the imbalance between Vata and Kapha in the body. Massaging with this oil heals injured facial muscles and nerves and improves paralysis. It also eliminates toxins and prevents greying of hair. Its anti-inflammatory properties provide relief from inflammation and pain.
Pranayam, meditation is sure useful in this condition. Do start asanas, slowly begin with surynamaskar. Along with this, one can take Shastrokta medicine, that are-- 1. Ekangvir Ras vati 1 or 2 bd + Maharasnadi kashay ghan vati 2+2 during the day.

Paralyses - Can Ayurveda Treat It?

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