Something new and interesting: QR codes

Today I read an article about QR code (quick response code). I had two made to test the water and see how it works.

This is our website address.










This is to our Yelp page. Interesting!











Active Spines Chiropractic Keeps Your Spine Active and Pain Free! You can contact Dr. Shao-Hao Cheng at 425-818-0086 or info@activespines.com

Ankle sprain treatment: PRICE and more!

Ankle sprain/strain is a very common injury among athletes or the regular population. The most common ankle sprain is that your ankle rolls outward and your foot turns inward (inversion). This results in over stretching, partial tear or complete of the lateral side of ankle ligaments such as anterior talofibular lig, calcaneofibular lig. or posterior talo fibular lig depending on the severity of the injury. Grade I over stretch ligaments and Grage II partial ligamentous tear respond very well to traditional physiotherapy, manual therapy and chiropractic adjustments.

After detail examination ruling out contra-indication of conservative care, PRICE is the first step of treatment. "P" stands for protection. Protect the injury site from second injury. "R" stands for rest. Proper rest can prevent the condition from getting worse and allow the body to heal. "I" stand for icing. Ice your ankle 15 minutes on and 15 minutes off is very critical for the first 24 to 48 hours. You have to repeat 3 to 4 time at least. "C" stands for compression. Besides icing it is important to compress the injury side with elastic bandage. Don't wrap too hard. You can check your toes' circulation to make sure it is not too tight. "E" stands for elevation. Make sure your ankle is above your heart when lying down. This will help your body absorb the extra fluid due to inflammation. What else need to be done after PRICE?

1. When the swelling is going down, it's time for some active therapies to help your body healing in the right direction.
2. Besides icing and compression, it is important to use Kinesio Tape over the injury site to promote lymphatic drainage.
3. Gentle manual therapy to mobilization ankle joints is also important. This will help restore range of motion and promote healing.
4. I would also include some cross friction massage over the injury site depending on patient tolerance and conditions. One effective technique is using "Gua Sha." You can read more about this in my previous blog. Once a week for this would be sufficient.
5. Ankle stretching exercises: stretch your ankle in dorsiflexion, plantar flexion, inversion and eversion for 10 seconds and 3 repetitions.
   
6. Chiropractic adjustment for the ankle low back and pelvis. This will help realign and balance the pelvis, and lower extremities.
   
7. Proprioception training and strength training: using a BAPS board or a vestibular disc is a good way to help patient regain balance and proprioception over the injury foot. Without proper proprioception training ankle sprain will likely to happen again.
   

The procedures above are some basic treatment protocol that we use in our clinic. Please consult your health care provider before doing these on yourself.

Active Spines Chiropractic Keeps Your Spine Active and Pain Free! You can contact Dr. Shao-Hao Cheng at 425-818-0086 or info@activespines.com

4 Effective shoulder pain treatments and related problems

A group of researchers published a study on JMPT June 2011. They did a systematic review on manual and manipulative therapy (MMT) for common shoulder pain and disorders. The result shows that it is effective to treat shoulder complaints with manipulation, soft tissue techniques, exercises and other therapy.

Personally I have found that this is quite an effective approach for treating common shoulder related issues such as rotator cuff injuries (grade I and II), frozen shoulder, shoulder impingement syndrome, poor posture( inward rotated shoulder), and other chronic soft tissue problems as well.

What to expect for the first visit? After a thorough chiropractic, orthopedic, physical and neurological check up over shoulder, neck and upper back region, we can identify the cause of the problem. From there we know if this is something we can help. Generally speaking there will be 3 phases for treatment of care. First is to decrease pain and symptoms. Second is promote pain free range of motion over shoulder, neck and upper back area. Third phase is to restore proper proprioception, stability, strengthening the shoulder girdle and proper posture.

What are the treatment protocols? First step is the mobilization and adjustment of the shoulder, neck and upper back to restore proper joint motion. Once there is proper motion over the shoulder region the next step is to relax and loosen up the tight muscles in those area. There are many techniques for that and one I found very effective is "Gua Sha". This works very well to break up adhesion and promote healing.

Third step is to start with some cervical, thoracic and shoulder joints active range of motion exercises and also stretch out major muscles around it. This has to be done at home daily to promote healing and maintain proper mobility.
The last part is to the stabilization and strengthening of the shoulder joint itself. A very effective and easy way to do is to use Thera Band for exercises. Patients can do it at home or clinic. Proper instruction and direction is needed before start doing this at home. By strengthening the rotator cuff muscles, and stabilizing the shoulder joint, it can prevent future flare up and you can enjoy life more~

Active Spines Chiropractic Keeps Your Spine Active and Pain Free! You can contact Dr. Shao-Hao Cheng at 425-818-0086 or info@activespines.com

Referrence: Manipulative therapy for shoulder pain and disorders: expansion of a systematic review.