Ventura Spinal Care Center » elbow pain http://www.myventurachiropractor.com Get Your Life Back! Tue, 27 Jul 2010 18:59:22 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 Chiropractic Ventura: Did You Know That Excessive Cell Phone Use Can Cause Elbow Pain? http://www.myventurachiropractor.com/elbow-pain/excessive-cell-phone-use-can-get-on-your-nerves http://www.myventurachiropractor.com/elbow-pain/excessive-cell-phone-use-can-get-on-your-nerves#comments Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:06:59 +0000 admin http://www.myventurachiropractor.com/venturachiropractorblog/excessive-cell-phone-use-can-get-on-your-nerves chiropractic Ventura knows that excessive cell phone use can literally get on your nerves and cause elbow pain:  We all know how “irritating” it can be when someone is talking loudly on a cell phone (as long as that person isn’t us!). Honestly, doesn’t it seem as if you can’t even take a quiet walk along the beach or in the park without someone walking by shouting into their cell phone? You could say, in fact, that nowadays the excessive use of cell phones has become a pain in our psyche. Well, the detrimental effects of excessive cell phone use apparently doesn’t stop with “pain in the brain.” A new report outlines the prevalence of “cell phone elbow,” an affliction in which users experience pain and numbness in their elbow due to extensive cell phone use. The idea is similar carpal tunnel syndrome, and the effect on the muscles and tendons concerned is essentially the same except a different nerve is pinched. Instead of being located in the wrist, cell phone elbow (”cubital tunnel syndrome”) cell phone elbow originates in the elbow region and results in pain or numbness in forearms, as well as tingling in pinkie and ring fingers. According to a study from the Cleveland Clinic, doctors are seeing more and more individuals experiencing these symptoms.

What exactly produces the problem? Holding a cell phone to the ear causes the elbow to bend, thereby stretching the nerve between muscles and tendons. When the arm is bent for long periods of time, the nerve gets inflamed. “Repetitive, sustained stretching of the nerve is like stepping on a garden hose,” said Dr. Peter J. Evans, director of the Cleveland Clinic’s Hand and Upper Extremity Center. “With the hose, you’re blocking the flow of water. With the elbow, you’re blocking the blood flow to the nerve, which causes it to misfire and short circuit.” The first symptom of cell phone elbow is usually pain just below the elbow in the forearm. This is usually followed by the sensation of pins and needles in the pinkie and ring finger. In the most severe case those fingers can curl up and become difficult to use.

The good news is that the condition is easily preventable and treatable. Users are simply encouraged to avoid holding their phone in one position for too long in order to reduce the amount of strain on the affected muscles. For those who are already feeling strain, it is advisable to do simple stretches in order to help prevent some of the damage.

And, of course, a quiet walk in the park or along the beach with your cell phone turned off or, better yet, left behind, would not only go along way in reducing cell phone elbow, but it might do a lot to improve the health of your psyche as well!

This study was published in the May issue of the Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine.

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]]> http://www.myventurachiropractor.com/elbow-pain/excessive-cell-phone-use-can-get-on-your-nerves/feed 0 Chiropractic Ventura on Elbow Pain Relief http://www.myventurachiropractor.com/elbow-pain/elbowpain http://www.myventurachiropractor.com/elbow-pain/elbowpain#comments Sat, 22 Nov 2008 15:14:10 +0000 admin http://www.myventurachiropractor.com/?p=91 chiropractic Ventura offers expert elbow pain relief. Here’s what you need to know about elbow joint injury:  Tennis Elbow, the typical name for elbow pain beginning on the outside, or lateral side, of the elbow occurs when one or more tendons of the forearm muscles become irritated or inflamed. These tendons attach to the bony protuberance approximal to the elbow joint, called the lateral epicondyle, ergo the medical name, “lateral epicondylitis,” signifying inflammation of the epicondyle. When the inflammation occurs on the inside, or medial side, of the elbow, the condition is often called “Golfer’s Elbow” or medical epicondylitis. Golfer’s Elbow, however, is not as prevalent as Tennis Elbow.

Tennis and golf are not the only activities that may cause epicondylitis. Any activity that demands repetitive gripping of objects can bring about the problem. Some individuals develop “tennis” or “golfer’s” elbow from other activities such as prolonged carrying of heavy bags, knitting, chopping food, and/or computer work using improper wrist and arm posture. Using inappropriate techniques when initiating any sport, testing out new rackets or clubs, or adding to the intensity or duration of an activity or exercise can also cause the condition.

Epicondylitis can occasionally begin farther up the arm or even in the neck. The nerves that give movement to the forearm muscles may become irritated because of a disc condition or spinal subluxation, thereby producing tense muscles and putting marked strain on the tendon attachment(s). When this happens, it predisposes a person to elbow pain from any of the above-mentioned causes. Complications such as further subluxations and arthritis can arise if the problem is left untreated. Assessment and treatment by a qualified chiropractor, such as your Ventura Chiropractor can remedy the affliction and assisting in avoiding future complications.

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