Approaches to Subluxations

Chiropractic is a lot more than just pushing on someone’s back to make it feel better. At ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, we believe in putting the body in the optimal position to heal itself, using minimally invasive, non-addictive means. Part of that means using spinal adjustments to treat vertebral subluxation complexes, but those are more than just regular back pain. They’re misalignments in the spinal column that could become more severe if they’re not corrected.

 

The spinal column is made up of bones, called vertebrae, that are connected to each other by facet joints in back and spongy, shock-absorbing discs between their main bodies. The bundle of nerves that makes up the spinal cord runs through a canal made up of hollow spaces in the vertebrae behind their flat parts, and the nerves to the rest of our bodies branch out of the spinal cord through small holes in the vertebrae. A vertebral subluxation complex is what we call it when an injury causes a vertebra to move out of its usual position. This could compress the nerves exiting through it, causing them to experience pain, tingling, or numbness. It could also press down on blood vessels, prompt inflammation, and distort the shape of the spinal discs.

 

A subluxation may be painful, but the body can adjust to it. However, this would not be good for the spinal column’s overall integrity, and would likely further strain its supporting muscles and allow the affected area’s blood flow to remain restricted and its nerves to have difficulty relaying messages. A chiropractic adjustment is the most simple way of dealing with this. With a controlled, gentle amount of force, a chiropractor would return the vertebra to its optimal position. This would remove the impingement on the nerve and allow the body to heal fully. But it works better when the rest of the body hasn’t experienced wear from overuse due to compensating for a subluxation.

 

If you are experiencing back pain, visit Dr. Carmelino Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355. We’ll help determine whether a vertebral subluxation complex is the cause and what your best course of treatment is.

Sunlight and Bone Strength

The summer’s long hours of sunlight are an opportunity to boost our spinal health. “How so?” you may ask. ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge is more than a chiropractic clinic; we take a holistic view of health that includes nutritional counseling. And for reasons we’ll explain in this post, getting exposure to sunlight will help our bodies to absorb the minerals they need to maintain strong bones.

 

One of the main components of bones is calcium. As living tissue, bones are constantly breaking down and rebuilding. But our bodies don’t produce calcium on their own; they have to absorb it from food. And when they aren’t getting enough calcium, the bones can’t regrow fast enough to keep pace with their natural resorption. This results in them becoming honeycombed, which is the condition known as osteoporosis. When vertebrae are honeycombed, they can easily fracture, leading to them slowly collapse and causing a person to stoop over.

 

Too much calcium is harmful, so our bodies’ absorption of it is regulated by Vitamin D. And in order to make Vitamin D, our skin needs to be exposed to direct sunlight. About fifteen minutes three times per week is enough for most people, although people who are older or who have darker skin may need a little more. Vitamin D and calcium are also commonly used to fortify foods such as dairy products, breakfast cereals, and orange juice. However, food may not be a sufficient source of Vitamin D and calcium, and getting sunlight in the summer months is also an opportunity for healthy exercise. With proper nutrition, osteoporosis doesn’t have to be inevitable, and peoples’ bones may remain strong throughout life.

 

We offer nutritional counseling as well as musculoskeletal pain relief. For a nutritional analysis, visit Dr. Carmelino Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Weightlifting Safety

Weightlifting is an excellent way to strengthen your musculoskeletal system. As a certified sports physician and chiropractor, ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge’s own Dr. Carmelino Caratozzolo has overseen many athletes and patients using weightlifting as a way to maintain their muscle tone, as well as the density of their bones. When done properly, weightlifting allows the muscles to support a person’s spine and joints and makes them more resilient to injury. But weightlifting needs to be done correctly for maximal benefit and to avoid accidents, and while we recommend that everybody considering it get a personal trainer, there are some general safety tips to keep in mind.

 

Anytime you work out, you should start with a warm-up of at least five minutes of aerobic exercise. These may include dynamic stretches, but not ones you do while holding a muscle still. You’ll also need to do at least five minutes of cooldown exercises at the end of the workout. It’s important to build strength throughout your body and to avoid overuse, so work each set of muscles twice a week, no more, and don’t work the same set two days in a row. You’ll also need to have someone else present when you lift heavy weights, although you’ll be working your way up to those gradually.

 

A fitness instructor will help you to determine your goals and the proper form for each lift, and sticking to that will keep your workouts efficient as well as safe. But for each lift, you need to avoid turning your head and keep your back as straight as possible. Inhale as you lower a weight, and exhale as you lift or press. Stop doing anything that hurts, and come to our office if you experience back or neck pain. Weightlifting is part of a healthy lifestyle, but like any form of exercise, comes with risks that can be mitigated by following gym and trainer rules.

 

For assistance with workout recoveries and relief from joint and back pain, visit Dr. Carmelino Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Electric Muscle Stimulation

When you’ve suffered an injury to your joints or muscles, you don’t necessarily need invasive procedures to recover. At ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, we take a holistic approach to wellness, providing complementary treatments that are meant to take advantage of the body’s innate potential for healing. Among the most versatile of those treatments is electric muscle stimulation, or EMS. Since a few of our treatments involve electricity and patients often benefit from multiple approaches, we wanted to explain a bit about why EMS works and what it’s for.

 

EMS forces muscles to rapidly contract. This causes them to produce natural painkillers called endorphins, and to push out waste-filled blood and let fresh blood flow in. Inflammation is one of the body’s natural responses to injury; it helps to restrict the flow of blood that potentially carries pathogens and makes cellular walls more permeable to antibodies. But since prolonged inflammation can lead to weakness and is painful, using EMS to reduce it will allow for faster recovery times and ease patient comfort.

 

Most people describe EMS as pleasant or tingly. The way it works is that a small electric pulse is generated in a vibrating machine and delivered into the body by wires attached to sticky pads. The pads are placed over the part of the back or limb that is sore. EMS is commonly used to treat people with subluxations in their backs or shoulder pain, but can also be used on people who have suffered strokes to help their muscles relearn how to respond to electric signals from the brain. Although it is not recommended for people with pacemakers or who are pregnant, it’s easy on the patient and often done along with other therapies.

 

Don’t wait any longer to get treatment for back or shoulder pain. If you’re interested in EMS, visit Dr. Carmelino Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Proper Workplace Posture

At ACT Wellness Center, we advise our patients to practice good posture at work. While back injuries aren’t always preventable, years of bad posture may have taken a toll on your back. Over time, putting unnecessary strain on your back adds up and can increase your back pain by up to 50%. You are doing a great disservice to your back and your body when you have poor posture.

When possible, we encourage our patients who work at a desk job to get up and stretch every half hour so your back stays loose and your muscles don’t tighten up. While at work remember to not slouch in your chair and to have your feet on the floor and your back pressed firmly against the chair. Your computer screen should also be in direct line with your eyesight so your neck strained from moving up and down all day.

Our doctors are specialized in spinal manipulation and can help treat your back pain. Remember, your health is the most important thing to us!

If you dealing with back pain it might be because of poor work habits. Our staff can help to provide you with pain relief and help you properly sit at work. Please contact ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, VA. You can set up an appointment with Dr. Carmelo F. Caratozzolo both online and over the phone. Schedule online at our website, www.actwellness.com, or call 703-491-9355. 

Chiropractic Treatments for Migraines

If you are suffering from migraines, our doctors at ACT Wellness Center encourages our patients to seek chiropractic care. Migraines can occur in any part of the head or in one location. Symptoms of migraines include blurred-vision, nausea, and light-headedness. While over the counter drugs are available to treat migraines, frequent migraines are a cause for concern.

Some possible causes of migraines are stress, diet, poor posture, anxiety, and your environment. Certain foods such as cheese and wine are known to trigger possible migraines and others can foods can be just as sensitive.

Migraines limit your ability to perform everyday activities and function normally. To treat your migraines it is important that we evaluate all possible causes, and begin treatment options. Studies have shown spinal manipulation to improve migraine headaches and provide long-term relief.

If you dealing with frequent headaches or migraines, we can help. Please contact ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, VA. You can set up an appointment with Dr. Carmelo F. Caratozzolo both online and over the phone. Schedule online at our website, www.actwellness.com, or call 703-491-9355. 

Why is My Back Stiff?

Nobody likes having a stiff back, and yet, back pain is one of the most common health complaints people have. Although there are several things that can cause the back muscles to be underdeveloped or overused, most of them are preventable with the right knowledge. At ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, we can provide noninvasive, nonaddictive treatments for all sorts of musculoskeletal problems, but to help our patients maintain their wellness, we wanted to discuss some of the most common reasons why people’s lifestyles cause them to develop excessive wear and tear.

 

In many people’s cases, back pain is the result of overusing some muscles and underusing others. A sedentary person who maintains any one position for a long time is going to suffer from a weak core, and some positions make particularly inefficient use of the back’s supporting muscles. Hunching forward toward a computer monitor or slouching backwards will cause the back muscles bearing all the upper body’s weight to tighten up. But a person who engages in exercise without properly warming up or strengthening their core could also be over relying on their back muscles to compensate for weak hamstrings and hip muscles. Eventually, the weakened back muscles will no longer be able to keep the spinal column aligned, allowing the lumbar vertebrae to become subluxated.

 

Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo is certified as a chiropractic sports physician and extremity practitioner who can educate patients on better posture and form, in addition to providing chiropractic adjustments. Our diagnostics will also help us to determine whether their spinal discs are suffering from dehydration and whether a skeletal abnormality is putting excess pressure on certain muscles. ACT Wellness Center offers a variety of wellness services, including nutritional counseling and customized orthotics, to help patients maintain the strength and balance of their musculoskeletal systems.

 

If you’re trying to improve your back’s strength and flexibility, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

 

Hip Labral Tears

Have you felt stiffness in your hip or heard a locking sound coming from the top of your leg when you move? If so, don’t dismiss that as a normal part of aging. You may be suffering from a treatable condition called a hip labral tear. At ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, we believe everyone can achieve a healthy lifestyle, and are committed to providing noninvasive solutions for pain. Our own Doctor Carmelo Caratozzolo is a certified chiropractic extremity practitioner, meaning he can assist people experiencing problems in their lower limbs.

 

The hip joint is a ball and socket, with the ball at the top of the femur fitting into a socket called the acetabulum. The acetabulum has a ring of cartilage, called a labrum, that secures and cushions the femoral head. But the labrum can be torn by an acute injury or degenerate over time, and if a person develops a bony spur over their joint, their femoral head may become impinged and not be able to move fully. Tears in the labrum may result in pain, swelling, and locking of the joint, which may be worse when a person engages in repetitive movements or subjects their hips to extended pressure.

 

Diagnosing a labral tear will require imaging and range of motion tests. Typically, labral tears are accompanied by other injuries, but they may be mild or not result in symptoms at all. Patients will need to temporarily reduce their activity and then work back to normalcy through physical therapy designed to improve their hip flexibility and strength. They may also require chiropractic extremity adjustments to their hips or joints further down their legs to correct for imbalances that may have been contributing to wear and tear, and they may benefit from low level laser therapy to improve blood flow and reduce inflammation.

 

To stop hip pain before it becomes debilitating, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

 

What is Tendonitis?

Chiropractic isn’t just about keeping your back strong and healthy. It’s a way to optimize wellness by ensuring the parts of the musculoskeletal system are working in harmony and reaching their full potential. At ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, our Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo is a Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician, meaning that he is able to provide assistance to people suffering from tendonitis. This dysfunction of the connective tissue between muscles and bones is one of the most common sources of pain, so let’s take a closer look at what it is and how it is treated.

 

Skeletal muscles bundle into fibrous bands, called tendons, before inserting into bones. Tendons, unlike muscles, have poor blood supply, but they share being prone to fraying when overused or when they rub against a protrusion. Their fraying causes them to become weak, a condition known as “tendinosis,” and breakdown of tissue may trigger the body’s inflammatory response. An inflamed tendon is said to be suffering “tendonitis,” and if the lubricated sheath of synovial tissue surrounding it around it is inflamed, we call that “tenosynovitis.” An inflamed tendon will be sore, swollen, and stiff, and may continue to break down.

 

When a patient incurs tendonitis through overuse, we can help them to reduce inflammation through soft tissue therapies such as application of cold laser and electric stimulation. We may also perform extremity adjustments to restore subluxated joints in the limbs, addressing the underlying cause of wear by reducing the stress on tendons. Therapeutic exercise can increase the strength and flexibility of the soft tissues, making them less vulnerable to fraying in the future and increasing their blood supply, allowing them to heal faster.

 

Tendonitis may get worse on its own, but is highly responsive to uninvasive, non-addictive treatments. If you’re experiencing soreness in your limbs, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

 

Upper Crossed Syndrome

When people hunch over, they tend to develop an ache in their backs, necks, and shoulders. And when they continue to hold that position, they may end up weakening some muscles and overdeveloping others. “Upper Crossed Syndrome” is a term chiropractors use to describe a particular pattern of deformity in the upper body that usually results from poor posture. At ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, we provide treatments for this condition that will help a patient return to health, but they’ll have to continue maintaining good posture to avoid a relapse.

 

The trapezius and levator scapula are muscles that connect from the vertebrae to the bones of the shoulders. When a person hunches forward, those muscles get stretched and swollen, while the muscles in front of the chest become tight. In contrast, the muscles on the sides of the neck and lower in the shoulder become small and weak. When seen from the side, a line drawn between the tight muscles and a line drawn between the weak ones would form an x. The practical consequence of this is that the neck will be curved too far inward and the upper back too far outward, resulting in pain from the head to the ribs.

 

There are many strengthening exercises a person could do to restore the alignment of their neck and upper thorax, although we encourage patients to ask our chiropractor, Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo, for professional guidance on proper form. We can also determine whether a patient has incurred subluxations from the pressure being exerted on their vertebrae, and our chiropractic adjustments can help to gently stretch or relax their muscles in addition to realigning their spines.

 

Upper Crossed Syndrome is usually reversible, but treating it often requires lifestyle changes.  For help restoring upper body musculoskeletal health, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

 

Back Pain in Teen Athletes

As children become teenagers, those who are athletic tend to become more competitive and push themselves harder. At ACT Wellness Center, we’re happy to see our patients engaged in healthy exercise. Occasionally, teens getting accustomed to work-outs are also at risk for overuse injuries, and since our own Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo is a Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician, we wanted to supply some information about the most common musculoskeletal ailments.

 

It’s not unusual for teenagers to strain their back muscles. In most cases, only ice and a few days’ rest is needed, but if the pain recurs, they may benefit from low level laser therapy and electric muscle stimulation. These treatments will loosen the swollen muscles, allowing nutrient-rich blood to flow more freely. But there may also be a subluxation of the spinal column in play, including a fractured facet joint, spondylolisthesis (in which one vertebrae has slid forward over another), or a herniated disc. These patients may require a chiropractic adjustment to relieve pressure on the surrounding muscles, allowing them to recover more comfortably.

 

An examination will be required to determine whether the spinal column is misaligned. Disc herniation is less likely in teenagers than in adults, but they are at greater risk for spondylolisthesis. Female athletes, in particular, are vulnerable to osteoporosis if they don’t get adequate nutrition. ACT Wellness Center also offers vitamins and supplements to be taken under expert guidance, as well as recommendations for physical therapy.

 

If your teenager is having recurrent bouts of back, hip, or shoulder pain, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Golf Injuries

Golf is a welcome reprieve for many people, and at ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, we’re happy when our patients get exercise and sunlight. But if you weren’t staying limber while practicing social distancing, you may not be quite ready to play at full strength yet. Golf is a sport that puts a great deal of stress on the lower back, so we wanted to address how players can protect themselves from developing degenerative conditions, or experiencing a relapse if they already have one.

 

When you twist your lower back to complete a swing, you’re subjecting it to a great deal of force. The vertebrae of the lower lumbar region are able to rotate more freely than those in other parts of the spinal column, and they, and the muscles and ligaments surrounding them, are more vulnerable to wear and tear. Consequently, the muscles may become tight and swollen as they fray, and people whose discs are already degenerating are at risk of herniating them. If you suffer an injury, begin resting and icing it; don’t attempt to play through the game, or you risk further rupture.

 

We offer minimally invasive, non-addictive solutions to lower back pain. Among them are electric muscle stimulation, chiropractic adjustments, and low level laser treatments. But to prevent injuries, you’ll need to warm-up before each game and stretch every day. Our doctor, Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo, is a Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician and can help patients to develop a regimen of core strengthening exercises that will ease the burden on their spinal columns and allow them to stretch more freely without their muscles and tendons fraying.

 

If you’ve been bothered by lower back pain while practicing your swing, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Leg Pain and Back Problems

If you’re interested in learning about chiropractic, you’ve probably heard of sciatica. This condition is caused by compression of one of the sciatic nerves, which travel from the lower back to the leg. In fact, there are several connections between the back and legs running through the pelvic region, and as experts in musculoskeletal health, we at ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge want our patients to understand why noninvasive treatment of the lower back may be the best thing for their leg pain.

 

Nerves emerge from the lumbar, or lower back region, of the spine through small holes called foramina. The nerves could be constricted at their point of origin if a person is suffering from inflammation due to a damaged spinal disc or facet joint, if a person’s vertebrae have slipped out of position, or a nearby muscle is being stretched tightly over a bony spur. The nerves could also be compressed further down in the pelvis if there is a problem in one of the piriformis muscles, which connect the lumbar spine to the top of the leg.

 

Not all leg pain is due to nerve compression. There are several other muscles in the pelvic region that could tighten, pulling on the lower back, and some of them pass over and compress bursae. If we determine that a patient’s pain is due to a musculoskeletal problem, we have several treatment options for reducing inflammation. Those include chiropractic adjustments to fix subluxated spinal joints, extremity adjustments to restore leg and foot joints, and low-level laser therapy to accelerate healing. We will also help patients devise therapeutic exercises that will reduce the risk of their muscles cramping again and help them to ease the burden on the spine.

 

If you’ve suffered from pain, tingling, or numbness in your lower back or one of your legs, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Occipital Adjustments

If you’ve felt ringing in your ears, a tense jaw, and pain in your shoulders, the problem may be originating from in between them. “Cervicogenic” is the word we use to describe pain that radiates from the neck. Although it may sound scary, Dr. Caratozzolo at ACT Wellness Center is specially trained to perform occipital adjustments, allowing him to remove pressure in the neck. If this sounds like it could be the solution to your problems, read on.

 

Many nerves emerge from the spinal cord in the cervical region. The nerves leading to the arms branch out in the lower section, while the trigeminal nerve, which leads to the face and top of the head, branches from the top. When a person suffers whiplash, the soft tissues in their neck will likely become swollen from being frayed, and the person may even suffer a herniated spinal disc. This could compress one of the nerves at their root, or the other injuries may be painful in their own right.

 

Occipital adjustments use gentle, controlled force to adjust the top of the neck, where it meets the base of the skull. This will help to loosen the soft connective tissues, allowing blood to flow more freely and reducing swelling. Adjustments can also be done on the lower part of the neck to take pressure off the spinal discs and move them back into place. As the patient recovers, we will teach them neck flexibility exercises that will help them to prevent a relapse, and better postural techniques if we determine that something in the patient’s lifestyle may have strained their necks and made them more vulnerable to whiplash or chronic inflammation.

For a diagnosis of what’s causing your neck pain and expert occipital adjustments, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Foot Cramps

Foot cramps are certainly among the more painful musculoskeletal problems. Although they are usually brief, they may recur frequently and make a person wary of exercising. At the ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo is an expert in correcting problems in the extremities, so let’s examine what could be causing recurring foot cramps and what can be done about them.

 

Cramps are when muscles suddenly contract. They often occur in the feet when someone is lying down, asleep, although they can occur during activity. When you experience one, you can reduce the pain by pressing one end of the foot against the ground and gently pulling the other end and massaging the muscles. A person may develop cramps because their muscles are being compressed by overly tight shoes. They may also have attempted to do too much exercise too quickly, be suffering from dehydration, or lack sufficient potassium.

 

Our office performs extremity adjustments to ensure the joints off the foot are aligned and that the calf muscles are not too tight. Another one of our treatment options is a Detox Foot Bath, which further relaxes the foot muscles. Our Bio Nutrition tests can determine whether a person needs to increase their potassium, calcium, or magnesium intake, and as a certified sports chiropractic physician, Dr. Caratozzolo can help you to determine whether you are overexercising or doing insufficient warm-ups.

 

Don’t accept foot cramps as an inevitable part of life. Schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Fall Prevention

Many people are still spending more time at home, but that doesn’t mean they’re completely safe from injury. We provide non-invasive, non-addictive care for sprains, dislocation, and other musculoskeletal injuries at the ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge. But we also value prevention, and since so many knee, hip, and lower back injuries result from falls at home, we wanted to share some tips for preventing them.

 

Some simple ways to prevent falls are to keep walkways clear and well-lit. It might be a good idea to put double-sided tape on the undersides of throw rugs and to install lights that are motion-activated or controlled by clapping. There should be enough space between furniture for a person to move easily and spills should be immediately removed from the floor. People should avoid walking while wearing stockings without shoes, and should ensure their house shoes provide arch support and cushion the ankle against twists.

 

Other ways of mitigating or preventing falls are to increase core strength and hip flexibility through low-impact exercise. This will make someone less likely to lose their balance and less likely to incur overuse injuries that will cause them to adjust their gait. Our Bio Nutrition service can also help patients to ensure they’re getting sufficient Vitamin D to keep their bones strong and that they’re getting the nutrition they need for healthy eyes and unblocked circulation.

 

If you’ve suffered a dislocation from falling or want to reduce your risk, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Hip Bursitis

Last week, we discussed how pain in your legs could be related to your lower back. Another possibility is that a problem in the hip is referring pain to nearby areas. If you’ve developed bursitis in your hip, we at the ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge can help you move comfortably again. But hip bursitis and its underlying causes can be tricky to identify, so let’s take a closer look at how bursae work.

 

Bursae are small cushions that secrete lubricant. There are many of them, including some in the front of the hips, but the ones likeliest to be responsible for hip pain are located to the sides and tops of the hips. The trochanteric bursae are positioned over the bony knobs on the outward side of the top of the thigh bones, one on each side. A connective tissue called the iliotibial band stretches over each, and a hip muscle called the gluteus medius connects nearby. Inflammation in these tissues could put pressure on the bursa.

 

Hip bursitis is usually more painful when a person has been at rest, or after a repetitive motion. One of the tests for identifying it is to ask a patient to try crossing their leg over the midline of their body, which would often be difficult. Treatments include temporarily reducing activity, extremity adjustments to correct problems in the hip or knee’s alignment, low level laser therapy to reduce inflammation, and therapeutic exercise to rebuild the hip’s strength and flexibility. We can also perform adjustments on the lower back if the patient has been walking with an uneven gait to avoid putting more pressure on one hip.

 

If you’ve suffered a hip injury or have gradually felt it become stiffer and more painful, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Upper Back Pain

Do you frequently suffer from upper back pain? If so, you’re in good company. Although pain in the upper back isn’t as common as in the neck or lower back, it’s still one of the most common ailments. Some surveys have found that almost ten percent of men and twenty percent of women are suffering from it at any given time. The good news is that upper back pain usually responds well to safe, holistic treatments, and that the ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge provides a variety of complementary therapies and postural correction techniques.

The upper back, or thoracic spine, is made up of twelve vertebrae. They have additional joints that connect to the ribs, making them less mobile than the other vertebrae and therefore less likely to suffer acute injuries. However, they may still suffer from wear and tear, especially when the muscles near them are overused. People who make repetitive motions with their arms, such as painters, may strain their back and shoulder muscles. But people who simply sit with bad posture, such as office workers and truck drivers, also run a risk that their tendons will tighten. Swelling in the thoracic region could also compress one of the spinal nerves, which could result in pain or numbness radiating into the chest.

We offer several means of relieving upper back pain and reducing inflammation, including chiropractic adjustments, low level laser therapy, and pulsed electromagnetic therapy. But to prevent a relapse, patients will need to do therapeutic stretches and make sure they don’t sit in the same position for too long in the future.

For fast, non-addictive, and minimally invasive relief from upper back pain, visit Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

 

Stingers

Do you suffer from pain in your shoulder or arm? You may have a stinger. We don’t just provide assistance for people with back pain at the ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge. As experts in caring for the musculoskeletal system, we also provide extremity adjustments. This means we are able treat pain in the limbs without drugs or surgery, so let’s take a closer look at how stingers work and what we can do.

 

Many nerves branch out of the spinal cord in the neck. The ones that travel to each arm bundle together in each shoulder into what is called the brachial plexus. When a person’s shoulder is pushed down and their head is pushed in the opposite direction, the brachial plexus on that side is compressed. A person may feel a sensation of shock or burning down their arm, and although the pain may disappear after a few seconds, it tends to get worse and last longer with each injury. Sometimes, pain from a stinger can last for days.

 

We’ll perform physical diagnostics and imaging tests to determine whether a patient has a displaced joint in their neck or shoulder that may be compressing the shoulder nerves. A chiropractic adjustment can be performed on shoulder joints, as well as the spinal column, relieving excess pressure on the nerves and muscles. As a certified chiropractic sports physician, Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo can also prescribe stretches to restore the muscles’ strength and recommend specialized shoulder pads to keep them protected as they heal. We also offer pulsed electromagnetic therapy to reduce pain and inflammation, as well as low level laser therapy to stimulate the growth of new tissue.

 

If you’ve suffered an injury to your neck or shoulder, schedule a visit with Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

Degenerative Disc Disease

Herniated discs are a common problem, and one of the leading causes of lower back pain. Besides causing local soreness, they may pinch one of the sciatic nerves, causing shooting pain or numbness down a patient’s leg. At the ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, we provide safe, fast-acting relief for people who are suffering from herniated discs, but treatment may vary depending on whether the disc has suffered an acute injury or long-term degeneration.

 

The spinal discs function as shock absorbers and help to keep pressure off the spinal joints. They are made up of a gel-like center, called the nucleus pulposus, and an outer ring of fibers, called the annulus fibrosus. In a person with degenerative disc disease, the nucleus pulposus loses water, making the disc less effective at absorbing shocks and putting it at risk of becoming deformed. Small tears in the annulus fibrosus cause it to release proteins that trigger inflammation, and changes in the nucleus pulposus’s shape may cause it to bulge outward, compressing nearby nerves.

 

The causes of disc degeneration are not fully understood, but lifestyle modifications can ease pressure on the spinal discs. Keeping the core muscles strong will allow them to share the discs’ burden, and maintaining good posture will keep them from straining. We can provide chiropractic adjustments to spinal discs that are out of place and reduce inflammation through treatments such as low level laser therapy and pulsed electromagnetic fields. We can also provide patients with a nutritional analysis that will inform more individualized preventive treatments.

 

If you suffer from back pain or are interested in preventive care, visit Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.