Natural Analgesics
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Bruising and swelling typically occur after a soft tissue injury of a ligament or tissue depending on the significance of the injury. The amount of pain is typically proportional to the severity of injury and swelling. The best way to control the pain is by controlling the swelling. This is one of the reasons for the wide-spread of the use of the Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation (RICE) treatment. The problem is that pain control is obtained but healing is sacrificed.
There have been over 20 reports on the use of natural analgesics called proteases and their usefulness in recovery after injury. Proteases are natural enzymes that are needed for any living organism to survive. They encourage soft tissue healing by reducing the viscosity of extracellular fluid. This increases nutrient and waste transport from the injured site, reducing swelling or edema. Some of the natural proteases include bromelain from pineapple and papain from the papaya fruit.
Protease administration offers a much safer option than NSAIDs for the pain of acute soft tissue injuries. It can reduce most of the symptoms of the injury while promoting healing. If taken in sufficient quantities, proteases can: Rapidly decrease swelling, Can result in a 50 percent quicker healing time with proper administration, Symptoms of inflammation (pain, swelling, heat, and redness) are usually much reduced.
These results, however, can only be achieved if certain criteria are met.
First, and foremost, supplementation must be initiated as soon as possible after an injury occurs. The protease supplements must be ingested on an empty stomach; otherwise they will be used for digesting food, if taken with food. Using multiple proteases at one time seems to increase the effect. An increase in the typical dose is given after an injury and is continued until the injury is healed.
If pain medication is needed, generally Tylenol or Ultram is given. These do not affect inflammation like the anti-inflammatories. If the pain is unbearable, a short course of narcotic medication, such as codeine, is given.
Other Treatment Modalities These other treatments all increase blood flow to the injured area by various means, just as Prolotherapy does, but not to the same degree.
Heat Treatments Heat, along with exercise, has a significant effect on increasing blood flow to the treated area. Heat can be in the form of exercise, hot packs, ultrasound, or whirlpools. It does not matter which one you choose, they all increase blood flow. Heat is also a wonderful analgesic. It helps relax muscles, yet increases nerve conduction to an injured area. Applying heat to an area also helps prevent the formation of scar tissue by helping the collagen tissue become more pliable. Heat can also help break up any congealed blood that may have coagulated after an injury.
Treatments such as magnetic therapy, acupuncture, chiropractic, electrical muscle stimulation, massage, physical therapy, and a host of other treatments are all beneficial and help healing. All of these treatments should be individualized for a patient's specific problem. Since Prolotherapy depends upon blood flow to help heal the area, all of the treatments can aid the Prolotherapy. The RICE protocol, cortisone shots, and anti-inflammatories have the opposite physiological action and cannot be done in conjunction with the Prolotherapy. High-velocity chiropractic treatments in an area treated by Prolotherapy are also prohibited. This is because the high-velocity techniques could theoretically tear some of the newly formed tissue. Other chiropractic techniques are extremely helpful such as soft tissue massage, myofascial release, and strain-counterstrain.
Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis (or degenerative joint disease (DJD)) is the most common form of arthritis, affecting nearly the entire elderly population. Osteoarthritis is described as a generally progressive loss of articular cartilage accompanied by sclerosis of subchondral bone and, in many instances, the formation of subchondral bone cysts and osteophytes. The osteophytes are the overgrowth of bone that make joints look big and are the abnormalities that physicians see on x-ray showing arthritis in the joints.
This decrease in cartilage and the overgrowth of bone causes the person with arthritis to have restrictions in motion, joint pain, crepitus with motion, joint effusions, and obvious joint deformities.
Warning signs: Soreness and aching in the joint and surrounding tissues generally accompanies development of osteoarthritis. A grating sensation is frequently heard with movement of the joint. Osteoarthritis commonly occurs in the knees, hips, spine, and ankles, as well as the shoulders and at old fracture sites that have occurred within joints. The latter is particularly true with ankle and wrist arthritis. This is because osteoarthritis forms anywhere that joint instability exists.
"Standard Treatments": The standard medical treatment for osteoarthritis involves the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
Unfortunately, however, it has been recently shown that these medications may actually promote further deterioration of the joint. Therefore, although these medications may be helpful in reducing pain, they may not be beneficial in the long run. At the minimum, everyone would concur that they do nothing to help the repair process of the soft tissue injury.
Things that may help at the health food store: Over the past several years additional information has accumulated in regards to the use of glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, and collagen II. These products are available without a prescription from health practitioners or the local health food stores. They have been shown to be effective in pill form or via injection. Glucosamine can be extremely helpful in reducing pain from osteoarthritis and can also help prevent further deterioration of the joint.
As good as some of the treatments are for pain; (in our opinion) nothing comes close to the effectiveness of Prolotherapy. Prolotherapy can stimulate the regrowth of the injured tissue. Prolotherapy can tighten the ligaments around a joint and can also be quite helpful in reducing joint pain immediately, through direct injection into the joint. Proper exercise can then be resumed in order to bring the strength and flexibility of the surrounding muscles to a normal level. The muscles then help to protect the joints from any further injury.
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