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Therapeutic massage has been used for many thousands of years as a natural pain relief approach. We use massage therapy in our Estero, Bonita Springs office, as it works great in conjunction with the chiropractic care that Dr. Green provides. Massage treatment does much more than just feel good. It also offers many health benefits as well. Some are physical and others are psychological, and here are some of the proven benefits:

• Pain reduction (back, neck, shoulder, legs, arm, and headache pain)
• Increased range of motion and flexibility
• Improved cardiovascular function
• Improved immune system function
• Enhanced sports performance
• Decreased depression and anxiety
• Increased levels of energy
• Decreased levels of fatigue
• Improved sleep
• Easier labor and delivery for expecting mothers
• Reduced stretch marks
• Less scar tissue

We Can Help Clients Find Comfort From Neck Pain and Headaches with Massage Therapy

Advantages such as these have been discovered to be extremely helpful for individuals who suffer with chronic conditions such as arthritis and asthma. Massage has also proven advantageous for burn injury patients, people with higher than healthy blood pressure, and women who suffer from premenstrual syndrome. Even preterm infants have shown benefits with massage therapy as they have improved levels of weight gain.

To learn more about the massage therapy services we offer in Estero, Bonita Springs, give our office a call today at (239) 495-1166.

Knee pain is a common issue for people in our Estero, Bonita Springs chiropractic office, and Dr. Green has happily provided many of these folks relief. This is mostly because chiropractic care has been found to help with many types of knee pain.

For instance, some individuals encounter pain in and around the knee area due to osteoarthritis. Research has shown that this condition responds very well to chiropractic--and rather quickly, too. In fact, one paper published in The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association found that individuals with osteoarthritis in their knees felt considerable pain relief and improved function after just two weeks of chiropractic care.

If your knee pain is caused by a medial meniscus sprain, chiropractic could likely help with that as well. One case found that combining chiropractic with soft tissue therapy, rest, ice, and compression on the affected knee helped lower the intensity of the pain.

Of course, sometimes a knee replacement surgery is required in order to rectify the issue, and if that's the case, chiropractic care can also help improve the outcome. How?

Research Supports Chiropractic Helps With Knee Injuries

Research has shown that patients with low back pain often have less positive results after knee surgery. Therefore, dealing with your back pain through chiropractic prior to having a total knee arthroplasty can assist with your post-surgery recovery.

No matter what your knee issue, Dr. Green can likely help. Call our Estero, Bonita Springs practice today and find out what we can do for you!

Resources

• Pollard H et al. (2008, December). The effect of a manual therapy knee protocol on osteoarthritic knee pain: a randomised controlled trial. The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association;52(4):229-42
  Boyle J et al. (2014, March). Influence of low back pain on total knee arthroplasty outcome. Knee;21(2):410-4
• Jarosz B & Ames R. (2010, December). Chiropractic management of a medial meniscus tear in a patient with tibiofemoral degeneration: a case report. Journal of Chiropractic Medicine;9(4):200-8

We see a considerable number of people with headaches in our Estero, Bonita Springs office, and Dr. Green has been able to assist many of them. Indeed, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that one half of all adults deal with some manner of headache problem, so this certainly isn’t shocking. One of the most prevalent kinds of headaches that our patients have problems with is cervicogenic headache which, fortunately, chiropractic can usually help.

Cervicogenic Headaches Explained

A cervicogenic headache is one that originates from a problem in the cervical spine. It can be because of a condition with either the spine itself (specifically, the vertebrae, joints, or discs), or it could be brought on by a problem in the muscles and tendons of your neck. This problem in your spine produces constriction or irritation of the spinal nerves, which can generate headache pain.

How can you find out if the headache you are enduring is a cervicogenic headache? Other than obtaining a diagnosis from a healthcare expert, a typical symptom of cervicogenic headaches is tenderness or pain in your neck. This is sometimes accompanied by pain in the back of your head or between your shoulder blades.

How Chiropractic Helps with Cervicogenic Headaches

Because cervicogenic headaches will not go away until whatever issue is initiating them is remedied, it is important to get treatment instead of just trying to "wait it out." Chiropractic care is an excellent solution, and one that can provide a considerable amount of headache pain relief.

In one study circulated in Chiropractic & Osteopathy, specialists looked at 80 people who had frequent cervicogenic headaches. Fifty percent received chiropractic care and the other half engaged in light massage therapy. Each participant was assessed 12 and 24 weeks after the procedures and it was discovered that chiropractic offered the optimum outcomes.

In particular, this study revealed that chiropractic adjustments offered patients enhanced pain relief and lowered the number of headaches that occurred. In addition to that, it also diminished the disability that resulted from these painful headaches.

To find out what Dr. Green can do for you and your headache pain, call us today. We'll do our best to get you the pain relief you deserve!

References

• Haas M, Schneider M, Vavrek D. Illustrating risk difference and number needed to treat from a randomized controlled trial of spinal manipulation for cervicogenic headache. Chiropractic & Osteopathy 2010 18(9).
• World Health Organization. (2012, October). Headache disorders. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs277/en/

We see quite a few patients in our Estero, Bonita Springs office with ankle sprains but Dr. Green has had a lot of success helping them recover more quickly. Why are ankle sprains so common and how can chiropractic care help?

According to the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), approximately 25,000 men and women in the US sprain their ankles every day. As a matter of fact, these injuries make up almost half of all sports injuries, causing people to spend time away from the activities they enjoy most.

Like any injury, there are many causes of ankle sprains. The most common is inversion, or when the ankle rolls inward. This injury can occur due to one forceful movement, or it can develop over time, and activities that increase the risk for this type of ankle sprain include running and jumping. You're also at risk if you have pre-existing ankle injuries, poor posture or balance, weak muscles, and reduced range of motion.

How Can Chiropractic Treatments and Dr. Green Help?

A paper published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics set out to identify chiropractic's role when it comes to ankle sprain recovery. Researchers recruited 33 men and women between the ages of 18 and 45 who had a history of ankle inversion sprains, who were reporting tenderness and/or pain, and had not re-injured the ankle in the previous six weeks.

18 of the participants were assigned to participate in rehabilitation and the remaining 15 patients received chiropractic in addition to rehabilitation. Each individual had five full weeks of treatments, with the rehab group receiving treatment seven days a week and the rehab plus chiropractic group receiving care six out of the seven days.

Research Proves Chiropractic Helps With Ankle Sprains

The authors found that the people who participated in both rehab and chiropractic fared the best at the 4-week mark when it came to pain and joint restriction. In addition, no negative effects were reported, showing that chiropractic is safe.

If you're near our location in Estero, Bonita Springs and you're suffering from an ankle injury, give us a call. We'll do what we can to keep you up and running... literally!

Bibliography

• American College of Sports Medicine. (n.d.). Ankle sprains and the athlete. Retrieved from https://www.acsm.org/docs/current-comments/anklesprainstemp.pdf
• Lubbe, D et al. (2015, January). Manipulative therapy and rehabilitation for recurrent ankle sprain with functional instability: a short-term, assessor-blind, parallel-group randomized trial. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 38(1), 22-34, doi:10.1016/j.jmpt.2014.10.001

If you are afflicted by fibromyalgia, you are not alone, as Dr. Green sees many patients with this particular condition in our Estero, Bonita Springs chiropractic office. As a matter of fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that roughly two percent of all adults in the United States have fibromyalgia. Fortunately, chiropractic care is one treatment option that can provide positive results.

Research Shows Chiropractic Helps Fibromyalgia

In a medical study released in mid-2015, 215 women and men with fibromyalgia were evaluated based on factors ranging from pain to quality of sleep to the levels of depression symptoms and anxiety they felt. Then they were divided into two groups with one group receiving a multi-modal therapy program for three months and the second group receiving the same approach with the addition of chiropractic adjustments (specifically, to the upper neck tissues) for the same length of time.

The individuals who received chiropractic adjustments in addition to the multi-modal treatment approach reported greater results in all areas (pain, sleep, depression, and anxiety) at 12 weeks post-treatment when compared to the study participants who received multi-modal therapy without chiropractic. In addition, those positive results were long-lasting as the patients reported continued improvement one full year later.

Fibromyalgia can greatly reduce your quality of life, both mentally and physically. If you're dealing with fibromyalgia, we might be able to help.

You don't have to suffer! To see what Dr. Green can do for your fibromyalgia pain, call our Estero, Bonita Springs chiropractic office today.

Studies

• Fibromyalgia. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/arthritis/basics/fibromyalgia.htm on November 2, 2015.
• Moustafa I & Diab A. (2015, July). The addition of upper cervical manipulative therapy in the treatment of patients with fibromyalgia: a randomized controlled trial. Rheumatology International;35(7):1163-74.

Unfortunately, many of our Estero, Bonita Springs patients know the pain caused by a herniated disc all too well. On a positive note, Dr. Green has helped many people with disc pain, and a number of medical studies have confirmed that chiropractic can help patients recover from this kind of condition.

Research on Herniated Discs and Chiropractic

In one study, specialists from Switzerland recruited 148 patients who were dealing with pain in their lower back and legs due to a herniated disc (which was confirmed through magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI). Each person then received chiropractic adjustments that focused on the area of his or her disc problem.

Data was collected after the first treatment session at set intervals--namely, 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 12 weeks, 6 months, and 1 year--to determine what type of short-term and long-term effects, if any, chiropractic offers when it comes to treating this particular condition. Among the data collected was the individual's self-reported changes in both back and leg pain.

The authors found that, as a whole, the study participants reported "significant improvement" for both types of pain every time the results were collected. In fact, over 90% of the individuals reported that their pain "improved" within the first three months, with 88% still citing improvement one year after their first treatment session.

Even those test subjects who were defined as "chronic" still reported an improvement in pain at a rate of 89% one year beyond when treatment first began. This is the same positive result that was found in the following case study.

Disc Herniation and Chiropractic: A Case Study

In this report, a 26-year-old male had presented with disc herniation symptoms such as pain in the low back, left leg, and left groin area, along with left foot drop and muscle weakness. He had endured these issues for more than two years after sustaining an athletic injury, and his herniated disc was confirmed via MRI.

After receiving chiropractic care, "The patient responded favorably and his multi-symptom complex resolved within 90 days of treatment." Furthermore, the patient was still experiencing relief one year after the chiropractic intervention.

Studies like these show how beneficial chiropractic can be when it comes to alleviating herniated disc pain and relieving the symptoms they cause. So, if you are suffering from back ache caused by a herniated disc and wish to find some relief, chiropractic may well be an effective solution.

Don't suffer from chronic herniated disc pain. Give our Estero, Bonita Springs office a call today at (239) 495-1166 for a consultation or appointment.

References

• Leemann S, Peterson CK, Schmid C, Anklin B, Humphreys BK. Outcomes of acute and chronic patients with magnetic resonance imaging-confirmed symptomatic lumbar disc herniations receiving high-velocity, low-amplitude, spinal manipulative therapy: a prospective observational cohort study with one-year follow-up. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 2014;37(3):155-163.
• Polkinghorn BS, Colloca CJ. Treatment of symptomatic lumbar disc herniation using activator methods chiropractic technique. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 1998;21(3):187-196.
  

Dr. Green sees a lot of people struggling with carpal tunnel syndrome in our busy Estero, Bonita Springs chiropractic practice. While some people think that the source of this wrist-related pain is muscular, it's really a syndrome that arises from the nerves--and not just the nerves in your hands.

Research Shows Chiropractic Helps With Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

A recent study published in the Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy evaluated 71 women between the ages of 35 and 59 who were diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome. Upon investigating the subjects' neck range of motion, the authors found that the women had reduced cervical mobility when compared to a healthy control group.

Furthermore, they also found that the level of the women's reported carpal tunnel discomfort was linked to the lateral flexion of the cervical spine. In short, the less mobility in the neck, the higher the level of pain.

This study is extremely important, as you cannot successfully resolve a problem until you fully understand its source. By recognizing that the root of carpal tunnel issues is in the neck, this means that natural approaches like chiropractic can often restore normal function, eliminating the need for risky operations.

If you are suffering from carpal tunnel pain, call our Estero, Bonita Springs location and ask how Dr. Green can help you get relief!

Studies

De-la-Llave-Rincon A et al. (2011, May). Women with carpal tunnel syndrome show restricted cervical range of motion. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy;41(5):305-10.
Simon H. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. University of Maryland Medical Center. Updated May 6, 2012. Retrieved from https://umm.edu/health/medical/reports/articles/carpal-tunnel-syndrome on November 2, 2015.

We see quite a few people with back pain in our Estero, Bonita Springs practice, and Dr. Green has been able to help a lot of them get relief with chiropractic. At the same time, recovering from back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to make a choice between chiropractic care and medical therapy, as many individuals utilize both types of care with great results.

Study Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Care Work Well Together

In a study published by the journal Spine experts¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who claimed both acute discomfort and restricted function due to back symptoms. Some of the study participants engaged in treatment via standard medical therapy, while the rest were given chiropractic care in addition to standard medical care, as researchers wanted to determine which patients fared better.

The authors determined that the group that received standard medical care in combination with chiropractic scored "significantly better" than the patients who got medical care alone; 73 percent reported positive benefits compared to just 17 percent of the medical care only group who indicated the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at the two- and four-week marks.

Therefore, combining these two forms of care can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering advantages when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic and medical approaches can work together, chiropractic offers some unique strengths over medical therapy.

Where Chiropractic Care Wins

Although it might seem as if each method plays a 50-50 role, there is one significant advantage that chiropractic has over medical treatment and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, one bit of research done at UCLA² that was published in the American Journal of Public Health found that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than people undergoing medical treatment.

According to the researchers, the main factors that patients favored over medical care were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors frequently spend much more time consulting with their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as discussing more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic care.

Chiropractic Care Is a Natural Approach to Wellness

Without a doubt, the strategies associated with chiropractic are quite different than those offered with medical care, but a large amount of the difference is the fact that chiropractic is a natural approach to health and wellness. In contrast to focusing on only relieving the symptoms, chiropractic care means tracking down the primary cause of your pain, which often translates to greater improvement as you are addressing the problem at its source.

In addition, while medication is sometimes helpful for treating certain conditions, many health issues respond well to natural forms of treatment like chiropractic. This means fewer negative responses to drugs and longer-lasting results.

You don't have to suffer from back pain or other health issues. Give our Estero, Bonita Springs clinic a call today at (239) 495-1166. We'll do our best to help you get and remain free from back pain.

References

1. Goertz CM, Long CR, Hondras MA, Petri R, Delgado R, Lawrence DJ, Owens EF, Meeker WC. Adding chiropractic manipulative therapy to standard medical care for patients with acute low back pain: results of a pragmatic randomized comparative effectiveness study. Spine 2013;38(8):627-634.
2. Hertzman-Miller RP1, Morgenstern H, Hurwitz EL, Yu F, Adams AH, Harber P, Kominski GF. Comparing the satisfaction of low back pain patients randomized to receive medical or chiropractic care: results from the UCLA low-back pain study. American Journal of Public Health 2002;92(10):1628-1633.

If you live in Estero, Bonita Springs and you've been in a car accident, you need to know that you don't have to suffer from chronic pain.

Research Shows Chiropractic Helps With Chronic Pain after an Auto Injury

We work with many auto injury sufferers in our Estero, Bonita Springs office, and many of these folks are struggling with chronic pain caused by an old collision. In fact, research shows that a significant percentage of rear-end accidents lead to pain and disability even ten years after the original trauma.

Dr. Green is here to help you avoid developing chronic symptoms by helping to restore the healthy function of your spine soon after a crash.

The most frequent causes of chronic problems are reduced flexibility of your spinal column and the development of scar tissue in your spine. The ligaments of your spine can easily be damaged during a collision, and chiropractic works by decreasing inflammation and restoring normal motion.

We Can Help With Chronic Pain and Auto Injury Recovery

If you're close to our Estero, Bonita Springs office, and you've been injured in a crash, don't wait to get treatment. Dr. Green is here for you. Give us a call today at (239) 495-1166 for an appointment or for more information.

Each year, there are millions of auto accidents in the world, and a significant number of people get injured in a crash. While most crashes are "minor," chronic neck and back pain are still common health issues. The good news is that chiropractic is a great way to treat these kinds of injuries.

We have helped many auto accident patients in our Estero, Bonita Springs office, and Dr. Green has been treating people with these types of injuries since 2006. During a car accident, your body is subjected to powerful forces that it simply wasn't built to deal with. These forces put stress and strain on your neck, shoulder, and back, and can result in injury to the ligaments that hold your neck and back together. A crash can cause a wide range of pain symptoms.

A ligament tear in the neck can cause pain, swelling, and radicular symptoms in the arm and hand. Chiropractic care works well for these types of injuries, because chiropractic concentrates on restoring the healthy function and mobility of the injured tissues.

Dr. Green Can Help Clients Recover From an Auto Injury

Dr. Green, your Estero, Bonita Springs chiropractor, can assist by decreasing inflammation in the injured area and can help minimize the formation of scar tissue that can cause chronic pain and disability.

You don't have to suffer from auto injury pain. Discover more about how we can help you recover or call Dr. Green today at (239) 495-1166.