Congenital torticollis (congenital means "from birth") is a sustained spasm of an infant's neck muscles, which, if it lasts long enough, can cause the muscles themselves to shorten, become fibrotic, and even fill with scar tissue. Many forms of congenital torticollis are painless, but cause considerable problems with the child's ability to develop proper hand-eye coordination. If the torticollis affects the development of the skull, it may even cause learning disabilities. Torticollis is often a classical musculoskeletal condition: that is, either the muscles themselves are directly injured, or the nerves which supply the muscles are dysfunctional. Musculoskeletal conditions respond dramatically to chiropractic treatment, since the chiropractic adjustment is designed to directly affect the nervous system, the spinal column, and the adjacent muscles. After a long history of torticollis success, chiropractors have a great deal of confidence with this condition. Due to the chronic nature of congenital torticollis, it does take time to improve. Most congenital torticollis resolves after several weeks or months of care. Often, the muscles must first be relaxed before they can heal and regenerate. Johnson Family Chiropractic is pleased to provide the gentle Activator Methods adjustment. No further bending or twisting of the neck is necessary, since the Activator instrument delivers just the right amount of delicate force in just the right direction without any need for additional tension in the neck. Once the essential Activator adjustment has been delivered, stretching, massage, and repositioning (all of which you can do at home) are excellent strategies to continue the healing process in your child's neck. These are some non-invasive and non-drug ways to restore proper function. Be sure to ask Dr. Johnson if your child needs a helmet, and he will advise you on the best way to help your child's proper development.
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The word "congenital" means "from birth", so congenital torticollis describes a condition where a baby's neck muscles have been shortened since birth. Congenital torticollis differs from other forms of torticollis in that it is usually considered to be painless (no infants have been able to say otherwise) and it can cause other serious health conditions if it is not promptly corrected. Some likely causes of congenital torticollis include:
- birth injury - inadequate placental blood flow - abnormal positioning in the uterus - neck sprain - vigorous neck movements - vertebral misalignment causing neural dysfunction - trauma - bony abnormalities - infection - tumor Congenital torticollis is never the fault of the pregnant mother, and there is no way to diagnose it before birth. Prompt care is required to diagnose and treat this condition. Can you think of other causes for congenital torticollis? Your back is a very large area. It contains hundreds of muscles, millions of nerves, and dozens of bones. The malposition or inflammation of any of these structures can cause the pain you feel in your back. In addition, these might be possible causes of your back pain:
- a muscle strain or ligament sprain in the lumbar spine or sacroiliac joints - sacroiliac joint dysfunction - nerve root irritation or compression from a herniated disc - narrowing of the spinal canal by bone overgrowth or degenerative disc disease - an abnormal curvature such as scoliosis, kyphosis, or hyperlordosis - spondylolisthesis - muscle spasm - vertebral misalignment or subluxation - rib misalignment or subluxation - spinal degeneration - heavy or loose backpacks - postural syndrome - shingles - fibromyalgia - T4 syndrome - aortic aneurysm - compression fracture or other vertebral fracture - rib fracture - infection - tubercolosis - kidney stones or urinary tract infections - failed back surgery causing FBSS (failed back surgery syndrome) - pregnancy - an inflammatory arthritis such as ankylosing spondylitis - bacterial infection - bone diseases such as tumors, Paget's Disease, or multiple myeloma - women's issues such as pelvic inflammatory disease, menstrual cramping, ectopic pregnancy, or endometriosis - men's issues such as prostate disease - metastasizing cancers - digestive tract issues such as ulcers, pancreatitis, or gallbladder disease - obesity (although this may not be a direct cause) Can you think of any more causes of back pain? Woman's Day published an interesting article on some "health fallacies". Not all health advice is created equal, however, and some of the advice in this article needs to be discussed with your doctor. However, some of the points in the article were very interesting and spot-on. Some highlights:
1. Compulsively Using Hand Sanitizer If you reach for hand sanitizer any time you make contact with the outside world, you might want to take pause. Unless you’re in an especially germ-prone place like a hospital, soap and water will work just fine, says Richard Gallo, MD, PhD, chief of the Division of Dermatology at the University of California-San Diego. When you’re not near a sink, hand sanitizing gels can help, but be sure to read the label first. Recent research has shown that those containing triclosan may promote bacteria and virus resistance to antibiotic medications (this goes for antibacterial hand soaps that contain triclosan, too). Instead, choose brands like Purell, that contain at least 60% alcohol, which will kill 99% of bacteria on contact. 5. Doing Only Cardio When You Work Out It’s easy to assume that the best way to lose weight is to stick to the same cardio workout, but “if you only do cardio, your body will become so accustomed to the routine that you’ll start to burn less fat over time,” says Joseph Ciccone, DPT, CSCS, a physical therapist at ColumbiaDoctors Eastside Sports Therapy in New York. Plus, going through repeated motions on the treadmill or elliptical machine can create tight muscles and lead to injury. Trade in a few of your cardio workouts for circuit training, which involves doing a number of different strength training exercises with little rest between moves in order to keep your heart rate up while also working out your entire body, ensuring that you’ll burn the most calories—without burning out. Integrating resistance training into your routine will create muscle mass, which will help you burn more calories throughout the day, even when you’re at rest, says Jennifer Fleischer, exercise and nutrition coach and owner of Holistic Fitness in San Francisco. She also recommends revamping your cardio routine by mixing in interval training once a week. Try doing 30 seconds of high intensity motion, whether you’re on the treadmill, elliptical machine or in the swimming pool, followed by 90 seconds of recovery at a moderate pace, working your way up to 10 repetitions. The bursts of intensity followed by recovery will effectively and efficiently blast calories and fat. 9. Loading Up On Nutritional Supplements When it comes to vitamins and minerals, more is better, right? Not always, says Christine Rosenbloom, PhD, RD, professor emeritus at Georgia State University. “People often take nutritional supplements without really understanding what they’re consuming, or if they really need them.” Because so many foods are fortified these days, she notes that chances are many of us don’t have any major nutritional deficiencies. If you are already getting enough of what you need, the best case scenario is that the supplements will have no effect on you. But there are more serious side effects of carelessly popping pills: Vitamin A in large amounts can be toxic to a developing fetus, vitamin C in large doses can cause gastrointestinal distress as well as interfere with glucose readings in people on diabetes medications and too much vitamin B6 can cause nerve damage. Since a 2009 study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition concluded that in the absence of a deficiency, eating food instead of taking supplements should be the primary way to fulfill nutritional requirements and deliver health benefits, Dr. Rosenbloom suggests visiting MyPyramidTracker.gov where you can input the foods that you eat daily and the site will tell you what you need to add to your diet. If you find out that you need to up your intake of, say, calcium, “try integrating calcium-rich foods into your diet, like a glass of skim milk or a spinach salad,” before making a beeline to the supplements aisle. (read more) This morning the fire inspectors came to our office to do an annual fire safety inspection. They looked over our electrical wiring, fire alarms, fire extinguishers, furnace, and more. They were very helpful and friendly, as they advised us on ways to better protect our office from a catastrophic problem down the road.
It struck me how similar our jobs are. The fire inspectors focus on safety and prevention. They could wait until our building is on fire before trying to salvage it, but they would rather help to prevent the fire in the first place. A chiropractor can help you with pain relief once your back pain (or other problem) is in full swing. But we’d rather help you with preventing that pain in the first place. Once the spine begins to degenerate, nothing can reverse that process. But chiropractic care may help to prevent that degeneration from ever occurring at all! |
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DisclaimerUnless otherwise attributed, all content is written by Kyle Johnson, DC, of Johnson Family Chiropractic of Peoria.
All images used are under Creative Commons license. Although every effort has been made to provide an accurate description of our chiropractic care and its benefits, the information given on this website and blog is not intended to be, nor should it be interpreted as, medical advice for any condition. If you have any questions regarding your condition, you should seek the help of Dr. Johnson in person, so that he may properly assess your condition. This blog is provided by Johnson Family Chiropractic of Peoria, S.C., proudly located in Peoria, IL. |