On a daily basis in America, neck pain affects millions of Americans. Most commonly this is coming from arthritis in a person's neck either at one particular level or it may be coming from multiple. This causes pain in the neck itself that may radiate out into the shoulders and may also cause significant headaches. Also, patients who have been in a car accident with whiplash often end up with arthritis problems in the neck.
This pain may bother an individual daily, with the analogy being the same as if you have a pebble in your shoe that bothers you every day. Surgery for neck arthritis is usually a terrible idea, and here are 5 ways to avoid it.
1. Physical therapy and chiropractic treatment- the patient has arthritis in the neck, the joints there have cartilage just like any other joint. So the theory with physical therapy is that strengthening and stretching the muscles around the neck can help unload those arthritic joints. It is been shown in research studies to work really well and so has chiropractic treatment. Arthritis can cause misalignment in the joints of the neck, and chiropractic treatment can help put those back into proper position.
2. Medications- anti-inflammatory medications along with Tylenol can be extremely helpful at alleviating neck pain. Make sure to take them according to the manufacturers recommended dosing or otherwise a person will risk injury to their liver, kidney, or get an ulcer. These medications can allow patients to concentrate better, work more, play with their kids, and avoid depression that comes with the chronic neck pain of arthritis.
3. Cervical traction- cervical traction for arthritis has an excellent track record. Unlike lumbar traction, traction in the neck has been shown to have great benefits and it can be done a couple of times a day. There is an apparatus that provides traction for the neck with a rope and pulley system going over a door, and there's also one where the patient can wear a neck brace that pumps up and separates the area of arthritis. These give temporary relief as gravity will bring the joints back down but they may provide pain relief in the meantime (that's why it should be repeated daily). There is also an intermittent traction technique called spinal decompression therapy which has also been shown in the neck to help a lot.
4. Facet injections and medial branch blocks- these interventional pain management treatments are shown to work really well for neck arthritis. One involves placing steroid medication directly into the arthritic joint. This can be repeated every few months if they're working well. Medial branch blocks are injections that do not go inside the joint but go around it in the area of the tiny little nerve endings that cause joint pain. These also can provide pain relief for months and can then be repeated.
5. Radiofrequency ablation- also called radiofrequency neurotomy, this procedure represents a revolutionary technology in pain management and one of the best procedures that exist for neck arthritis. This involves burning the tiny little nerve endings that supply pain to these joints may provide pain relief for upwards of 2 years in affected individuals. It's really impressive what this procedure can do for patients who have had no other relief or only temporary relief but the other treatments mentioned.
Surgery for neck pain from arthritis that does not radiate out into the arms from radiculopathy has never been shown to be a great idea unless there's instability of the neck from trauma or extenuating circumstances for the procedure.
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