The backbone is made up of multiple small bones which are connected together by a softer bone. The spine is what allows important body movements including bending and walking. The issue is, with age, the backbone also loses its elasticity and becomes rigid. Though this is a natural process with ageing, lack of exercise and sedentary lifestyle makes it worse.

Lumbar spondylosis is the medical term for this chronic, degenerative condition of the lumbar and the sacral spines (the lower portion of the backbone). This leads to chronic stiffening of the spine, affecting movement. This joint is very crucial in all bending movements and spinal movements.

Causes of Lumbar Spondylosis:

Ageing: As the condition progresses, the nerves that run through the spines can get exposed and there could be pain and irritation
Genetic abnormalities that produce a weak bone
Spinal trauma like accident or falls
Sedentary lifestyle: Sitting in front of the computer for prolonged hours also causes lumbar spondylosis
Overuse: People who are weightlifters tend to put excessive pressure on the spine, causing lumbar spondylosis
Symptoms:

Stiffness and pain in the low back
Pain with continued sitting
Numbness and tingling if nerves are getting affected
Loss of balance, leading to frequent falls
Losing control over bowel and bladder movement
Pain radiating to the lower legs
Ayurvedic remedies: This includes a combination of external applications, yoga, and food preparations including kashayas and tailas.

This condition is caused by increased Vata and Kapha. Maharasnadi kashayam, Astavarga kashayam, and Dashamoola kashayam reduce these elements.
Pain and inflammation is relieved by the use of various Guggulu including Mahayogaraja Guggulu, Simhanada Guggulu, Trayodashang Guggulu, and Dhanvantara Vati  
The affected joints can be hydrated with the use of gandha taila and dhanwantharam.
Kukkutandatvak bhasma is known to strengthen the bone.
Ashwagandha is known to lubricate the vertebral disks and joints
External treatments like Abhyanga are useful in improving joint movement. They improve circulation and help in removal of toxins so that pure blood can flow and reduce inflammation.
Vasti: This helps in improving nutrition to the joints and bones, thereby helping them repair themselves and heal.
Yogas for lumbar spondylosis: The five most effective asanas are:

Ardhakati chakrasana
Pada hastasana
Matsyasana
Ardha chakrasana
Vakrasana (sitting in a chair)
Additional measures:

Sit in a comfortable position with adequate back support
Take short breaks to avoid continued sitting
Sleep comfortably, by resting the back adequately
Strengthen the back muscles by regular exercises.
Eat healthy, avoid junk, and drink plenty of water.

Lumbar Spondylosis & Ayurveda - What To Expect

A stinging pain in the neck that makes you feel broken from the neck joint could be a reason to worry. It is often accompanied by an aching head or a throbbing shoulder joint. Neck pain, such as this occurs due to an injury in the area resulting from sudden back and forth movement of the neck. It is referred to as whiplash as the nature of the pain and subsequent discomfort resembles the snapping of a whip. The pain is more like a sprain, but not exactly so. This can affect athletes or even any person in general who has faced an accident in recent past. Whiplash is characterized by a tearing of ligaments and tendons that connect one bone to another.

Causes of whiplash:

1. Sports that involve contact- any extracurricular activity involving collisions or other forms of physical contact can cause neck injuries. Football and rugby players frequently suffer from whiplash.

2. Road accidents- public transport has a host of disadvantages. Reckless driving can make the tendons of your neck tear. Auto accidents cause immense strain on your neck; it can also lead to whiplash.

3. Any kind of physical abuse- if you have gotten into a violent fight with someone your neck could suffer from a whiplash. Instances of physical abuse where the neck is jerked or punched at can also result in neck strains. Domestic violence often leads to instances of neck strains.

Symptoms related to this condition:

1. You may or may not suffer from tinnitus. Tinnitus is a physical disorder where you hear ringing sounds. It is quite distracting.
2. Your vision might get blurry.
3. You can experience irregular sleep patterns.
4. You can find it hard to concentrate on any one thing for more than a while.
5. You can grow irritable at the drop of a hat.
6. Your memory may fail you. You might find it next to impossible to trace back a day's activity.

Some of the other direct symptoms are:

1. Your neck might turn stiff preventing you from moving it left, right, up or down.
2. Pangs of pain can be felt in and around your shoulders.
3. Your upper arms can grow numb and tender.
4. Your head can spin repeatedly or you could feel dizzy.
5. Whiplash can also result in serious fatigue.

All About Whiplash

Arthritis is inflammation of one or more of your joints. Pain, swelling, and stiffness are the primary symptoms of arthritis. Any joint in the body may be affected by the disease, but it is particularly common in the knee.

Knee arthritis can make it hard to do many everyday activities, such as walking or climbing stairs. It is a major cause of lost work time and a serious disability for many people. There are 2 types of arthritis the knee joint in the human body can get afflicted with. They are:

Osteoarthritis 

The form of arthritis which, with increasing pain, slowly wears down the joint cartilages is called osteoarthritis. This form of arthritis usually affects people after the age 40. The symptoms of osteoarthritis include:

Severe pain in the knee joints
Pain after walking up the stairs and it subsiding once you are on rest
Severe pain after the movement of joints for a long time
Pain that becomes worse in rainy days
Joints becoming stiff after waking up in the morning but they improve in the latter part of the day
Pain which also occurs in the thighs and the genital regions coupled with joints swelling and joints getting stiff after rest.
Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic form of arthritis caused because of the knee joint inflammations. This form of arthritis can occur at any age. Being an auto-immune disease, its symptoms include, but are not limited to:

Severe pain in the morning
Mild fever accompanying the pain
Joints suddenly becoming swollen, red and warm causing, immense pain
Sudden stiffness of the joints
Pain that increases in cold weather
Mild fever, extreme tiredness and weakening of the muscles
Doctors are still doubtful about what exactly causes the disease; but the deformation of the immune system might cause the damage of the joints, causing people who are already suffering from obesity, smokers, and women, in general, more prone to this disease.

When the knee pain is diagnosed as a form of arthritis, the following treatments are suggested:

If you are overweight or obese, losing some of those extra pounds can go a long way in reducing the pain.
Muscle-stretching exercises are effective in keeping the knee joints flexible.
Dry needling, cupping, taping can help to control the pain and keep the joint supported.
Prescribed dosage of anti-inflammatory drugs such as Tylenol, Motrin, and Advil or injections of hyaluronic acid might relieve your pain.
If regular treatments do not work, you might opt for knee-replacement surgery and osteotomy (the process of cutting a bone with the help of surgery) which might better the alignment of the knee by transforming the bone shapes.

Physiotherapy for knee arthritis

Physiotherapy treatment is aimed at improving the symptoms of the disease (i.e. knee pain, swelling, stiffness), and you should begin to notice a positive difference within one or a few physiotherapy sessions. The main goals of physiotherapy for your knee arthritis are:

Reduce your knee pain and inflammation.
Normalise your knee joint range of motion.
Strengthen your knee: esp quadriceps (esp VMO) and hamstrings.
Strengthen your lower limb: calves, hip and pelvis muscles.
Improve your patellofemoral (knee cap) alignment and function.
Normalise your muscle lengths.
Improve your proprioception, agility and balance.
Improve your technique and function eg walking, squatting.

How Physiotherapy Helps To Manage Arthritis?

Aches and pains are typical signs of fatigue, but sometimes these aches are constant and can affect your day to day life. Fibromyalgia is not a disease, but a syndrome that affects the muscles and soft tissues of the body leading to chronic pain, tiredness and insomnia among other symptoms. Though this syndrome cannot be cured, it is not life-threatening and can be managed without causing permanent damage. One of the ways to manage fibromyalgia is through massage therapy.

Massage therapy is one of the oldest forms of healthcare. It aims to improve circulation thereby, improving the flow of nutrients through the body and aiding in the elimination of waste material. When it comes to fibromyalgia patients, a massage not only calms tired muscles but also reduces heart rate, improves the range of motions possible in joints and increases the body s production of natural painkillers.
Most fibromyalgia patients benefit from deep tissue massages. During the treatment, a therapist may use his or her elbows, forearms and feet along with their palms and fingers. He or she will typically use long strokes while kneading the muscles in deep circular patterns. Your therapist will also be able to address specific tender points and ease muscle knots.
Massage therapy can be customised as per your requirements and sensitivity. Fibromyalgia patients are very sensitive to touch and hence, to benefit from a massage, it is essential, to be honest with your therapist and tell him or her the level of pressure you can handle.
Massage therapy not only helps deal with fibromyalgia-related pain, but can also help treat insomnia that accompanies it. After a massage, you are more likely to have a restful sleep that does not make you wake up feeling tired. Having a good night s sleep is important for fibromyalgia patients as it is during this time that the body restores and rebuilds itself.
Massage therapy can also help manage the stress and anxiety that results from fibromyalgia pain. As the therapist addresses the various pressure points on the body, stress, anxiety and depression are relieved. Some theories also suggest that a massage blocks pain signals from reaching the brain while others suggest that a massage can stimulate the release of serotonin or endorphins.
Though a massage may feel like a simple procedure, the wrong massage can cause worsen your pain. Hence, it is important to work with a professional masseuse to treat your aches and pains. Following a regular massage schedule can also help manage your discomfort better.

Fibromyalgia Pain - Can Massage Therapy Reduce It?

Pain in the joints continues to bug mankind till this very day. There are different types of joint pains, which might occur all of a sudden, with no signs of receding. The most common of them all are arthritis, tennis elbow, frozen shoulder, back pain and repetitive muscular strain. These joint pains are sometimes impossible to diagnose properly by the regular modes of diagnosis. In those cases, resorting to the homeopathic mode of medication might be a good idea as it is a medication based on treating the actual cause of the disease and sustained use might result in complete remission of the pain.

Some commonly used homeopathic medications for pain in the joints are as follows:
1. Rhus Tox: This is the most commonly used in homeopathic preparation for severe joint pains, the symptoms of which include severe pain after relaxation, pain triggered by slightly wet weather and pain after walking or running for a long time.

2. Arnica Montana: When the symptoms are pain in every joint of the body resulting in body aches and pertaining injuries due to accidents, Arnica Montana serves as the perfect medication.

3. Actea Spicata: This medicine is primarily used as a remedy for pains in the small joints of the hands. The symptoms for which the medication can be implemented are rheumatoid arthritis in the joints of the finger and swollen wrists after usage of the hand.

4. Colchium: This medicine can be used in case of Rheumatoid Arthritis (inflammatory and chronic form of arthritis).

5. Bryonia Alba: This medication can work wonders if the symptoms include severe pain in the knee joints while walking, severe swollen joints and osteoarthritis (affects the flexible tissues present at the bone ends).

However, it is always advisable to take medication as prescribed by your doctor, as the potency and frequency can only be decided by your doctor.

Homeopathic Treatment for Pain in the Joints

A broken bone is medically termed as a fracture.Fractures are linked with age as bones tend to become weak as one ages, so, the chances of a fracture occurring also increases. Fractures are usually classified into four types-
1. Closed fracture - In this type of fracture, the breaking of the bone does not result in an open wound
2. Open fracture- The opposite of closed fracture, the bone breaks through the skin. This may result in infections
3. Non-displaced fracture - in this type of fracture, the bone cracks but is not shifted out of its regular position.
4. Displaced fracture - A displaced fracture occurs when the affected bone is shifted out of its natural position.

Causes
Fractures can be caused by a number of factors, they are
1. Road accidents
2. When someone falls from a height
3. When the bone is directly exposed to a strong blow
4. When the bone is exposed to a repetitive force from activities such as sprinting
5. Osteoporosis, which is a condition where the bones become weak
6. The bones in the body tends to weaken with age, so at this time they become highly susceptible to fractures

Symptoms
1. Swelling in the area accompanied by pain
2. Limited movement of the affected joint
3. Muscle spasms
4. The affected area may also become numb

Diagnosis
The first step to diagnose a fracture is the knowing about the medical history of the patient and conducting a physical exam. The diagnosis is further confirmed by using imaging tests such as -
1. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) - In this procedure, images of internal body parts are taken with the help of a magnetic field and pulses of radio energy. MRIs can pick up signs of fractures very quickly, that is within the first week of injury. It is also easier to distinguish fractures from other related injuries in case of MRI.
2. X-rays -X-rays are a procedure that involves sending x-ray particles through an area to detect a fracture. Signs of a fracture may take several weeks to show up in x-rays.
3. Bone scan - In bone scans, some radioactive material is put inside the body through intravenous methods. These material tend to accumulate in the fractured area which then shows up in the images as a bright spot. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult an Orthopedist.

How Is A Fracture Diagnosed?

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