Back Pain
How Safe Are Topical NSAIDs Like Voltaren Gel?
When the FDA allowed drug companies to sell NSAIDs over the counter we were concerned. That's because drugs like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, etc) and naproxen (Aleve) came with some pretty serious si…
What Are the Advantages of Voltaren Gel?
Inflammation is behind a lot of chronic disease, including arthritis. That is why nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen and naproxen are so popular among people with joint pain.…
How Do You Weigh the Benefits and Risks of Aspir…
Aspirin has been around for over 100 years. Moreover, it is one of the most versatile drugs in the pharmacy. This tablet relieves pain, lowers fever and reduces inflammation. In addition, it has anti-…
Cortisone Injections Can Have Devastating Effect…
What will the doctor offer you if you have a stubborn pain in a joint? Frequently, physicians turn to cortisone injections to ease the pain for a while. Before you agree to such treatment, make sure y…
Spinal Manipulation Can Ease Low Back Pain
Low back pain is common and debilitating. As many as 80 percent of adults experience this distressing condition sometime during their lives. Physicians often recommend nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory d…
Does Acupuncture Safely Relieve Back Pain During…
Pregnant people often experience lower back or pelvic pain during pregnancy. progresses. This poses a dilemma, since medications used to alleviate pain may not be safe for the developing fetus. An ana…
Can NSAIDs for Pain Harm Your Kidneys?
Have you taken nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like diclofenac, ibuprofen or naproxen? A study of soldiers showed that people taking high doses of NSAIDs for pain may develop kidney prob…
Is Magnesium a Miracle Mineral?
The body needs minerals to function. Without adequate levels of sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium we would perish. Doctors often encourage patients to cut back on sodium and increase calcium. P…
Should You Take Turmeric to Ease Pain?
Persistent pain can really wear you down. Consequently, when people discover something that works, they like to share the good news. Some readers report relief from months of terrible discomfort by ta…
How To Stop Duloxetine (Cymbalta) Without Withdr…
Based on what we hear from readers of our syndicated newspaper column and visitors to this website, most patients are not warned about how to stop duloxetine (Cymbalta). Perhaps the prescriber assumes…
Will CBD for Pain Make You Fail the Marijuana Te…
One lesson learned from the terrible opioid crisis of the past few years: a lot of Americans are in a lot of pain. With doctors increasingly reluctant to prescribe narcotics for pain relief, people ar…
Can Osteopathic Manipulation Ease Low Back Pain?
Anyone who has ever experienced low back pain knows how debilitating it can be. Sometimes it can make moving or even just deep breathing, challenging. Health professionals have been debating the best …
Show 1203: How Yoga Can Help You Age Gracefully
Stress is nearly ubiquitous in modern life. We all know it isn’t healthy, but we may not have a lot of tools for escaping or alleviating it. People under stress may feel they don’t have enough tim…
Show 1195: Do You Need Spine Surgery?
People who have suffered with back pain for a long time may be told that spine surgery is their last resort. But far too often, spine surgery does not relieve back pain. Sometimes, people even feel wo…
Substitute Pain Relievers Appear in Suicide Atte…
Public health authorities have been working hard to control the opioid epidemic and reduce the number of people dying from narcotic overdoses. This effort has had some success, but it has also had som…
Can SAM-e Help Ease Your Back Pain?
The pain of arthritis can be very difficult to manage. Arthritis does not take vacations. On the other hand, common pain relievers such as diclofenac (prescription), ibuprofen or naproxen can be dange…
Will Cannabidiol Relieve Chronic Pain?
People with chronic pain often have difficulties trying to get relief. Doctors used to prescribe narcotics, but the opioid crisis has made many physicians reluctant to do so. NSAIDs, either prescripti…
Are Gin-Drenched Raisins a Big Joke?
Whoever said "Getting old isn't for sissies" certainly got it right. As we age, we often accumulate aches and pains that may be attributed to arthritis. People with arthritis are faced with a horrible…
What Is the Other Drug Epidemic?
Much has been written about the epidemic of opioid drug misuse, overdose and death. With more than 130 people dying every day in this country as a result of opioid overdose, we all have a right to be …
Special Creams Fail to Fight Pain
Americans spend hundreds of millions of dollars on specially formulated topical pain creams. Medicare Part D paid more than half a billion dollars for such prescription products in 2015. Doctors may p…
Can Mindfulness Help You Manage Chronic Pain?
People in chronic pain often feel abandoned by the medical profession, especially as physicians are cutting back on prescribing opioids. They may be interested in some nondrug approaches that could …
Will Yellow Mustard Ease Cramps from Statins?
Millions of people take statins to lower their cholesterol levels.Here are just a few examples of the numbers of prescription filled each year: atorvastatin= 97 million; simvastatin= 65 million; prava…
The Dangers of Diclofenac and Other NSAID Pain R…
Doctors love NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). That’s largely because they don’t have a lot of other tools in the toolkit when it comes to treating pain and inflammation. Opioids have…
Will Chiropractic Care Help You Recover from Bac…
Back pain is common, but doctors disagree about the best treatment. Often, physicians recommend that sufferers take pain relievers and let nature take its course to recovery. Patients sometimes consid…
No Study Support for Fish Oil Soothing Dry Eyes
Fish oil is one of the best sources of omega-3 fatty acids. These compounds have anti-inflammatory activity, and doctors have hoped that fish oil supplements would prove useful against a wide range of…
What Do You Really Know About Scary Ibuprofen Si…
Do you read the labels on OTC pain relievers? Be honest now. The last time you purchased Advil, Motrin IB or some house brand ibuprofen pills, did you check out the dosage instructions or the warnings…
Will Yoga Help Back Pain?
Lower back pain is common and debilitating. It is frequently treated with medications, but the American College of Physicians has issued new guidelines emphasizing nondrug approaches for acute lower b…
Will a Statin Make Your Back Sore?
People who take statins to lower their cholesterol may be more vulnerable to back disorders. Cardiologists do not all agree on whether statin drugs such as atorvastatin (Lipitor) or simvastatin (Zoco…
Can a Chiropractor Help Your Acute Lower Back Pa…
A meta-analysis of 26 clinical trials published in JAMA found that chiropractic manipulation can ease acute lower back pain. This comes at a time that doctors are striving to reduce the numbers of pai…
What Is the Best Treatment for Lower Back Pain?
The American College of Physicians has just made some important changes in its guidelines for treating lower back pain. This condition is one of the most common reasons Americans seek medical care. …
Will Yoga Ease Your Low Back Pain?
Low back pain is a common problem, affecting about four-fifths of us at some point during our lives. Sometimes the pain puts people out of action for weeks. It may also become chronic and difficult to…
How to Ease Back Pain with Natural Products
Back pain due to muscle soreness and stiffness is one of the common reasons people consult a physician. Although it is smart to rule out any unusual causes of the pain such as spinal stenosis, kidney …
Will a Mind-Body Approach Ease Your Back Pain?
Long-lasting lower back pain responds surprisingly well to either mindfulness-based stress reduction or cognitive behavioral therapy. Such a mind-body approach is not usually considered a mainstre…
Gabapentin for Pain Drove Patient to Brink of Su…
How could a medicine that is supposed to relieve pain make someone suicidal? Turns out it happens far more often than most health professionals realize. If physicians and pharmacists do not warn patie…
Physical Therapy Eases Low Back Pain as Well as …
Lumbar spinal stenosis, a condition in which narrowing of the spinal column crowds the spinal cord causing serious pain, is frequently treated with spinal surgery. Spinal stenosis is not unusual as pe…
Women Whose Feet Roll In as They Walk Are More P…
Flat feet used to keep men out of military service. New research suggests that women who roll their feet inward as they walk are 50 percent more likely to suffer lower back pain. There were 1,930 peop…
Lower Back Pain Responds Just as Well to Saline …
People with lower back pain often receive steroid injections to ease inflammation and suffering. The number of steroid shots you can get is limited, however, because cortisone-type drugs can slow woun…
Osteopathic Treatment Eases Back Pain
Another controversial treatment has also been shown to offer benefit. Osteopathic manipulation is considered a complementary approach to lower back pain. A study of more than 400 people with chronic l…
Arthritis Drug No Help for Back Pain
People with chronic back pain are willing to do just about anything for relief. Before they sign up for surgery some undergo spinal injections of corticosteroids. Sciatica, pain in the back and leg ca…
Glucosamine No Help for Low Back Pain
A popular arthritis supplement has failed again. Several previous studies of glucosamine have found it lacking when it comes to relieving mild to moderate arthritis pain. In the current study, Norwegi…