July 2021 Healthy News from Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka

Osteoarthritis in the knee and hip are known and growing concerns as our society gets older…around the world. Currently in 2021, Canada is evaluating the “Good Life with Osteoarthritis in Demark” (GLAD) program for knee and hip osteoarthritis. The program incorporates manual therapy, exercise and patient education. (1) In one GLAD study in which patients attended 2-3 patient education classes and 12 supervised exercise sessions in 8 weeks, patients’ pain intensity improved 26-33%, walking speed got better by 8-12%, chair standability improved 18-30%, and joint-related quality of life improved 12-26%. (2) (Another study utilized MRI to guage the thickness of knee joint cartilage after knee joint distraction to document that it thickened with treatment resulting in significant short- and long-term cartilage regeneration up to 10 years after treatment. (3) This was done with young people, but it is hopeful!) Back in 2017, a Canadian chiropractor described the benefit of his utilization of Cox® flexion-distraction-principle-based distraction to the osteoarthritic knee, and the success he has seen in his patients. Overall (acute and chronic patients combined), patients reported a mean visual analog scale score drop from 7.7 to 1.8 in 3 weeks and 5.3 visits. Acute knee OA patients’ scores decreased from 8.1 to 1.1 in 4.8 treatments in 2.4 weeks. Chronic patients’ scores dropped from 7.5 to 2.2 in 3.3 weeks and 5.4 treatments. (4) Chiropractors like yours at Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka are ahead of the curve with their modified Cox® Technic principles-based-flexion-distraction-approach to knee osteoarthritis. Novel protocols for use in hip OA are also in development. Talk with us today about how distraction treatment may help your Sitka osteoarthritis of the hip and knee!

 

HOPE FOR DEGENERATED DISCS: Chondroitin Sulfate

Back pain treatment approaches be they surgical, exercise, nutrition, and/or manual therapy based flourish while back pain endures. Injecting hyaluronic acid hydrogel is demonstrating some promise as it seems to suppress the loss of disc height, promote tissue hydration for disc repair, and lower inflammation and innervation to prevent more disc degeneration. (5) The nutritional approach continues to hold hope for back pain sufferers as the disc matrix components are known, two central ones being chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan and hyaluronan. Making chondroitin sulfate available to the disc in addition to controlling the hydrostatic pressure of the disc is advantageous. (6) Cox® Technic is documented to decrease intradiscal pressure, so mixing it with chondroitin sulfate may be, too. Are you taking yours? Consider including a disc supplement containing chondroitin sulfate to your routine after we talk. Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka is ready!

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he discusses the part chondroitin sulfate plays in the health, degeneration and possible regeneration of the intervertebral disc and in the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management.

CONTACT Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka

Schedule your next Sitka chiropractic appointment with Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka. See you then!