There are many ways to treat pain and this includes acupuncture, several natural remedies, technological procedures and surgery. Among the different approaches for treating pain, massage therapy is an effective method.

Massage therapy is one of the earliest therapeutic processes for relieving pain for a long time as it provides ideal relief and performs recovery functions as well. In the modern day, massage therapy is a popular pain relieving remedy, which is utilized by people all over the world.
Massage therapy involves manipulation of the tissues, which is performed by special therapists. There are various types of massage therapies, which incorporate different techniques and procedures.
Long-term massage therapy is not very expensive and has no side effects on the body. With the help of massaging, there is an increased lymph flow, improved blood circulation and several positive effects on the immune system. 
Conflicting views

The current studies on massage therapy are quite conflicting and there are negative views regarding the effects of massage therapy to provide pain relief. Massage therapies are successful in treating several cases of lower-back pain. However, many experts consider massage therapy to be a relaxation technique and not a proper treatment procedure.

They say that massage provides relief to pain, but physical therapy, exercise and medicines are far superior in providing pain relief than massage therapy. Massage provides relief to neck pain, shoulder pain, headaches and carpal tunnel syndrome. However, it is considered that this relief is only temporary and not consistent enough. A single session of massage therapy does not really provide a long-term relief from pain. For better and lasting results, massage therapy should be undertaken regularly.

Multidisciplinary treatment

Massage alone will never provide ideal relief from any kind of pain and a multidisciplinary approach should be taken for pain relief treatment, where massage therapy would be one of the elements. For ideal pain relief, you should practice other measures such as physical therapy, behavioral health care, acupuncture, regular exercise and use massage therapy as a complementary relief method.

Massage therapy can never be the main treatment procedure for treating pain and it is an accompanying treatment method which you should practice along with major treatment procedures. Massage therapy combined with other therapies will provide you effective pain relief.

Massage therapy for pain provides effective temporary relief from pain. It should be performed by a trained massage therapist and for good results must be performed every day. However, massage therapy is not a primary treatment measure and should be a part of a multidisciplinary approach for pain relief. In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Massage Therapy for Pain - An In-Depth Analysis!

Lower abdomen pain can originate from a range of medical issues. In some cases, the pain disappears just like the way it came, in some cases, it takes longer medical treatment to cure the pain. Once the origin and the root cause of the pain are diagnosed, there are plenty of medical options to cure the pain. In this piece, we will briefly touch upon the causes of lower abdomen pain:

Appendicitis: This is one of the most common causes of lower abdomen pain. It typically originates from the right side of the stomach and soon diverges into the other side as well. The pain can become unbearable in a matter of hours.
Pelvic inflammatory disease: This is an infection that is caused in the reproductive system of a woman. This is often characterized by vaginal discharge, fever, weakness, intercourse related pain and pain in the lower abdomen.
Miscarriage: In case there is a loss of fetus on or before the twentieth week, the mishap is termed as miscarriage. It results in acute pain in the lower abdomen pain, vaginal bleeding, back pain, fluid expulsion from the vagina etc.
Fibroids: This is a growth in the uterus that is often non-cancerous and is commonly characterized by symptoms such as heavy periods, constipation, pain in the legs and back area, pain in the lower abdomen area, frequent urination etc.
Cancer: A cancerous growth in the lower abdomen area can lead to very sharp pain in the back and surrounding area. The pain is dull in nature and slowly spreads to other areas in a short interval of time.
Cholecystitis: This is a disorder that results in swelling of the gallbladder area. It results in a sharp pain in the lower abdomen area. A doctor needs to be immediately consulted if a person is suffering from this disease.
Intestinal obstruction: When the lower bowl gets blocked due to the contents of the lower intestine, a person can feel a sharp pain in the lower abdomen area.
Salpingitis: When a woman faces stiff pain in the lower abdomen area due to an inflammation of the fallopian tube, Salpingitis is the culprit behind it. This is a sexual disease and needs a doctor s consultation to get rid of it.
PMS: A woman can face throbbing pain in the lower abdomen area during her monthly periods. Other symptoms include cramps, weakness, fatigue etc.
Endometriosis: When there is an extension of the uterus tissue just outside the wall of the uterus, it leads to symptoms such as lower abdomen pain, cramps etc.
Polycystic ovarian syndrome: This is a disorder of the hormone and can lead to symptoms such as heavy periods, a growth of facial hair accompanied with sharp pain the lower abdomen area.

Pain In Lower Abdomen - What Could Be The Causes?

Trigeminal neuralgia is specified by the condition of a chronic pain that influences the trigeminal nerve. This nerve transfers sensation from one s face to his/her brain. If a person is suffering from trigeminal neuralgia, then a gentle stimulation of face (sourced from brushing teeth or applying makeup) might generate a fright of agonizing pain. The affected person might experience short and mild attacks initially. However, the trigeminal neuralgia might progress and generate more-frequently and longer attack of severely critical pain. Women get affected by this situation more than men get and it is more prominently occur in individuals older than 50 years.

Trigeminal neuralgia does not mandatorily mean that you need to experience a lifelong pain. Various types of treatment alternatives are available and so doctors can usually handle the particular condition effectively by taking help of injections, medications or surgery. Various types of triggers might cause the pain regarding trigeminal neuralgia, such as eating, drinking, shaving, brushing teeth, touching face, smiling, washing face etc.

Symptoms

The symptoms of trigeminal neuralgia might comprise of one or more patterns and some of these are described below:

Sequences of serious, jolting or shooting pain that might generate as an electric shock
Spontaneous pain attacks or attacks stimulated by different activities like face touching, speaking, chewing, or brushing teeth. Pain attacks last from a few moments to some minutes.
It is not a comprehensive list because Trigeminal neuralgia hosts various other symptoms as well. If a person feels facial pain, specifically recurring or prolonged pain or if the person does not get relief through the utilization over-the-counter pain relievers, then that person must consult a doctor.
How does Radiofrequency Ablation treat Trigeminal Neuralgia?

Trigeminal Neuralgia is a chronic and painful condition that involves the trigeminal nerve. There are two separate trigeminal nerves on both sides of the face, which carry the sensations like pain from the face to the body. Each nerve has three branches- forehand, midface and chin and trigeminal neuralgia can cause intense pain in any of these areas.

Causes-

This occurs when the trigeminal nerve functioning is disrupted. When the blood vessel/artery and the trigeminal nerve at the base of your brain come in contact, it puts pressure on the nerves and causes pain.
It also occurs as a result of ageing or multiple sclerosis
A disorder that damages the myelin sheath protecting the nerves can trigger pain
Sometimes pain occurs from tumors, which compresses the trigeminal nerves
Surgical strokes, facial trauma or strokes can also be the root cause of excruciating pain
Triggers-

Shaving
Touching your face
Eating and drinking
Putting on makeup
Brushing
Washing your face
Symptoms-

The pain can be mild and for a shorter duration or it can happen frequently for longer durations. Some experience the pain in cycles where it can come and go for days or even for weeks. Gradually the intensity of the pain lessens.

Cure by Radio-frequency Ablation

The treatment of trigeminal neuralgia is often a challenging process in clinical practice. When medicines do not prove as effective, surgery is the desired option.

Procedure-

After applying local anaesthesia, the Pain Specialist carefully inserts a needle through the corner of your mouth to reach the trigeminal nerve
The doctors then wake up the patient after stimulating the nerves and ask them to feel the stimulation at the same place where they undergo pain. This confirms their targeted location
Once you fall asleep again, the Pain Specialist uses radiofrequency heat to injure the nerve enough to create numbness and removes the pain
How Effective is Radio-frequency Ablation?

The pain is cured almost in 98% of the patients. 50% of patients report a recurrence of pain after about two years. Hence the procedure can be repeated in the same patient if necessary.

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult a specialist & get answers to your questions!

Trigeminal Neuralgia And Radio-Frequency Ablation - What Causes It?

Vertebroplasty means shaping the backbone i.e. vertebra for backbone and plasty is related to shape. This is an outpatient procedure done to treat compression fractures of the spinal cord. The backbone is made up of multiple small bones which are stacked one on top of the other with a filling material in between that is known as vertebrae. The stack of bones are held in place by the soft, elastic vertebral material. 

Vertebroplasty & similar procedure called kyphoplasty is a non-surgical procedure where collapsed vertebrae is brought back to shape by injecting medical bone cement under fluroscopy / image intensifier in OT, thereby relieving pressure on the spinal cord or spinal nerves with special canula directed to the core of vertebral body. Indicated in osteoporotic vertebrae, spinal fracture, metastatic tumour or primary tumour of spine. This technique has replaced major surgery done earlier to reshape & fix vertabrae.

Technique: Bone cement, in a semisolid state, is injected into the weakened or fractured bone space. Once this solidifies, it provides additional support to the spine, enabling normal movement. It also helps in reducing the pain significantly and improves the overall mobility.

Procedure:

In what takes about an hour, the following steps are done. Earlier, a few decades ago, this would be an open surgical procedure. However, with advance technology, now it is done using a small incision

Local anesthesia is given in the area that needs to be operated
A biopsy needle is inserted into the fractured space with the help of an X-ray
The acrylic bone cement is injected into the bone space with a needle to fill up the space, once it solidifies, it stabilizes the vertebral space
The needle is removed and the incision is covered with a bandage
Usually the patient is sent home in an hour s time unless the overall condition is really bad
There could be some soreness at the site where injection is given, but one can notice a significant reduction in pain from the day of the procedure
There is also improvement in mobility while doing daily chores
The pain relief can last up to 3 years after the procedure
Returning back to normal activities takes about 3 to 4 days after the procedure
When to use this procedure?

Vertebroplasty is usually done in case of non-radicular pain that is intractable. In most cases, they do not respond to traditional therapies including physiotherapy, pain medications and even surgery. The pain could be due to:

Osteoporosis
Cancer metastasis
Myeloma
Spinal hemangiomas
Traumatic fractures
Benefits of using vertebroplasty for managing pain 

Minimally invasive
Effective way to get relief
Improves mobility
Cost-effective
Reduces need for long-term use of painkillers
Stabilizes the spine and prevents further collapse

Vertebroplasty - How It Can Help Manage Pain?

Cranial nerve palsy is one of the common culprits of causing double vision. This is all the more true for people above the age of 60. A person is more prone to cranial nerve palsy if he is suffering from high blood pressure and diabetes. This is the reason why this disease is more commonly known as diabetes palsy. Eventually, though they get better and the problem of double vision disappears.

Symptoms:

One weak cranial nerve leads to the weakness of other cranial nerves as well. In case the eyes fail to move together, chances are that the patient will have double or blurred vision. In case the sixth nerve gets affected, side to side double vision is encountered. For the 3rd and 4th nerve disturbance, there could be a vertical double vision. The lack of blood flow causes pain to the eye.

Possible Causes of Cranial Nerve Palsy?

Cranial nerve palsy can result from traumatic or congenital factors. They can also result from vascular diseases such as strokes, hypertension, diabetes, and aneurysms. It can also arise out of infections, increased intracranial pressure, migraines, and tumours. A patient's age and clinical findings help a doctor decide the right course of treatment.

Treatment:

There are no particular treatments which can speed up the recovery of cranial nerve palsy. In a case of pupil pain, doctors may prescribe anti-inflammatory drugs such as Motrin and Advil. They key to natural recovery is to ensure that the blood sugar and the blood pressure is diligently controlled. By patching the eyes, the problem of double vision can be resolved. They are typically worn over both the eyes. They are however known to slow down the process of recovery and strain the eye. There is no known exercise to fix this condition. Botulinum injections are sometimes used by doctors to straighten the eyes but the result of such a treatment greatly varies from person to person. Doctors mostly rely on watchful waiting until the phase passes within 6-8 weeks. Pain medications are recommended on a case to case basis.

Lifestyle Changes:

Managing cranial nerve palsy can be difficult for a working person. It involves many lifestyle changes till the condition fully cares. Some of the suggestions given by an ophthalmologist include resting the eye as long as one can. Reading or working on a computer should be eschewed since it puts great pressure on the eyes. The eye should not be contacted with forehands in case there is too much pain. Other basic hygiene issues include taking the medicine time to time, cleaning the eye with fresh water two to three times a day, putting the eye drops on time as prescribed by the doctor.

How To Treat And Manage Cranial Nerve Palsy?

How To Control Nerve Pain?
Nerve pain or peripheral neuropathy, as it is medically known, is characterized by pain, numbness and weakness that arise out of nerve damage. This pain is usually restricted to the feet and the hands.
What are the common causes?
Diabetes is the most common cause for this condition. However, other causes, such as injuries, infections and prolonged exposure to certain toxins can also trigger nerve pain.
How can you control nerve pain?
Nerve pain can be managed and taken care of at home taking into consideration the points that have been mentioned below:
Topical Painkillers: Certain over the counter ointments and creams can help relieve nerve pain. These medications act as local anesthetics; that is they numb the area of the pain. Capsaicin, a derivative of chili peppers, is one of the major ingredients used in these medicines. Others use botanical oils as the major ingredients.
Painkillers: There are painkillers available OTC which can curb nerve pain. However, painkillers such as ibuprofen, aspirin and acetaminophen do not really work well for severe pain of the nerves.
Supplements: The lack of Vitamin B12 is considered to be a very important cause, and at times, a catalyst for nerve pain. In a case such as this, Vitamin B12 supplements or injections might be administered. Although more research needs to go into this, but certain supplements, especially gamma-linolenic and alpha-lipoic acid can help soothe nerve pain caused by diabetes.
Acupuncture: This time honored Chinese approach is a proven alleviator of nerve pain. Acupuncture releases chemicals which numb the pain, or prevent the pain signals from travelling to the brain.
Physical Therapy and Massages: Physical Therapy can especially heal and strengthen weak muscles that can stem from acute nerve damage and pain. Though more evidence is needed, according to a few sufferers of this condition, massages can be helpful with the tremendously painful muscle spasms that can so often result from nerve pain.
Relaxation Techniques: In combination with the above mentioned approaches, relaxation techniques can go a long way in relieving debilitating neural pain. Besides being helpful with dealing and reducing a few stress phases of life which can cause nerve pain, these techniques might actually root out the actual pain itself.
Lifestyle Modifications: This one s always a winner! Eating a well-balanced diet that guarantees all nutrients in uniform amounts can never go wrong. Regular exercises for about 30-45 minutes can remedy different types of pain; nerve pain being one of them. Try and limit alcohol intake (a peg once a week won t harm one, but binge drinking can play the ultimate spoilsport and make all health plans go topsy-turvy!). Abstain from smoking or chewing tobacco as this is usually the primary contributor towards any medical condition or disorder.

Nerve Pain - 7 Ways You Can Control it 

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