Ankylosing Spondylitis

What is ankylosing spondylitis?

Ankylosing spondylitis is a form of chronic inflammation of the spine and the sacroiliac joints. The sacroiliac joints are located in the low back where the sacrum (the bone directly above the tailbone) meets the iliac bones (bones on either side of the upper buttocks). Chronic inflammation in these areas causes pain and stiffness in and around the spine. Over time, chronic spinal inflammation (spondylitis) can lead to a complete cementing together (fusion) of the vertebrae, a process referred to as ankylosis. Ankylosis leads to loss of mobility of the spine.
Ankylosing spondylitis is also a systemic disease, meaning it can affect other tissues throughout the body. Accordingly, it can cause inflammation in or injury to other joints away from the spine, as well as to other organs, such as the eyes, heart, lungs, and kidneys. Ankylosing spondylitis shares many features with several other arthritis conditions, such as psoriatic arthritis, reactive arthritis, and arthritis associated with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Each of these arthritic conditions can cause disease and inflammation in the spine, other joints, eyes, skin, mouth, and various organs. In view of their similarities and tendency to cause inflammation of the spine, these conditions are collectively referred to as "spondyloarthropathies." Ankylosing spondylitis is considered one of the many rheumatic diseases because it can cause symptoms involving muscles and joints.
Ankylosing spondylitis is two to three times more common in males than in females. In women, joints away from the spine are more frequently affected than in men. Ankylosing spondylitis affects all age groups, including children. The most common age of onset of symptoms is in the second and third decades of life.

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANKYLOSING SPONDYLITIS?                                         Seventy-five percent of patients with ankylosing spondylitis most commonly complain of lower back pain. 

Although lower back pain is a common complaint overall and can be caused by many other factors, back painassociated with ankylosing spondylitis is unique in part because of the following features:

-       Disease starts in early adulthood, often before 40 years of age.

-       Gradual onset of symptoms rather than a history of sudden onset such as after an injury

-       Symptoms persist for three months or longer.

-       Pain is worse after rest or prolonged sitting, such as pain upon waking in the morning.

-       Pain improves with activity and exercise. 

-       Rib cage pain; especially while taking a deep breath or coughing.

-       Stiffness or decreased movement of the back and neck. Ordinary tasks such as putting on sock and shoes may become difficult and painful. AS is an inflammatory process that involves other  areas of the body in addition to bones, including the eyes and spinal cord. 

Eyes — Uveitis, or inflammation of part of the eye, occurs in 25-40% of patients with AS. Symptoms of uveitis include sudden onset of severe eye pain, blurring of vision and difficulty tolerating bright light.  Uveitis requires immediate medical attention and treatment.

Spinal Cord — Vertebrae, or bones of the spine, serve as the structural support to protect the spinal cord and nerves, and they provide motion, and function to the skeleton.  Patients with AS often develop fused vertebral spines. 

Fused vertebral bones increase the chance of damaging the bones and place-increased stress on surrounding structures such as ligaments, tendons, and muscles.  A fused spine creates not only pain but loss of motion, and can become more brittle with mechanical stresses.  If vertebrae become fractured and dislodge, there is an increased risk of damage from impingement of surrounding spinal cord structures and nerves.  Damage to the spinal cord, roots and nerves cause symptoms such as changes in sensation, strength and movement below the level of injury.  For example, decreased leg strength with numbness and tingling in a patient complaining of back pain may be a sign of spinal nerve compromise.  If symptoms such as these occur, immediate medical attention should be sought.  Other symptoms that should prompt emergent medical attention include saddle area numbness and/or new changes in bowel and bladder habits (e.g. constipation, loss of continence).

RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS

A joint is where two bones meet to allow movement of body parts. Arthritis means joint inflammation. The joint inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis causes swelling, pain, stiffness, and redness in the joints.

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that causes chronic inflammation of the joints. The inflammation of rheumatoid disease can also occur in tissues around the joints, such as the tendons, ligaments, muscles as well as in other organs in the body. Autoimmune diseases are illnesses that occur when the body's tissues are mistakenly attacked by their own immune system. The immune system encloses a complex organization of cells and antibodies designed normally to "seek and destroy" invaders of the body, particularly infections. Patients with autoimmune diseases have antibodies in their blood that target their own body tissues, where they can be associated with inflammation. Because it can affect multiple other organs of the body, rheumatoid arthritis is referred to as a systemic illness and is sometimes called rheumatoid disease.
While rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic illness, meaning it can last for years, patients may experience long periods without symptoms. However, rheumatoid arthritis is typically a progressive illness that has the potential to cause joint destruction and functional disability.

In some people with rheumatoid arthritis, chronic inflammation leads to the destruction of the cartilage, bone, and ligaments, causing deformity of the joints. Damage to the joints can occur early in the disease and be progressive. Rheumatoid arthritis is a common rheumatic disease, affecting approximately 1.3 billion people in India according to current research. The disease is three times more common in women as in men

Latest Invention in Cartilage Re-Growth and Pain Management !!

After the successful invention of Phyto-Medicines by Dr.A.K.Ganguly, Pain Management and Biotechnology companies will require to thrive in for new advancements for the era of personalized medicine to recover and re-grow damage parts in our body. This revolutionary invention by a renowned doctor has opened doors for billions to live a pain free life for the first time in their life.

        

      The overall environment of healthcare's move toward a more individualized approach has begun to help, but more investment in biotechnology would create a more competitive arena and complement the rapid advances for the industry. As per a renowned health care company called AG Herbs Pte. Ltd, Singapore who are the founder of Phyto-Medicines with the help of which you can re-grow your cartilages, tissues and strengthen your muscles and mobility (e.g: Fibromyalgia, Arthritis, Slip-Disc, Varicose Vein, etc.). The company runs its patented medical therapy centers under the name of OPTM Health Care, New York (USA) which has been operating and has successfully treated Millions of people for the past 30 years. According to the Chairman & CEO of the company Dr.A.K.Ganguly, they can treat diseases starting from Arthritis to Varicose Veins without operation, oral medicines, injections, tractions or any other painful methods and since it’s a permanent solution, you can see the changes over an X-Ray or MRI report during the recovery phase, before and after treatment.

     For the 840 million people who are suffering from osteoarthritis, slip-disc, varicose-vein, arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, sinus, etc. the current treatment available in the market consists of an increasingly strong regimen of pain medication, operation, injections and other conservative treatments like physiotherapy, acupuncture, etc. which has no permanent cure thus the improvement can’t be seen or shown over a medical report like X-Ray and MRI.

   For the first time you can now take advantage of these Phyto-Therapeutic Procedure which can help you to recover from not only the above mentioned disease but also from many others and all through by just applying these Medicines externally over your skin.(Tropical Application Only)

   

  Steroids, pain-killer, injections, operations, etc. are a risky and prolong methods, without much success but only with negative side-effects. When opting for either of the above mentioned process the doctors gets rid of nerves, tissues, muscles, etc which causes the pain or the medication blocks the pain signal to reach the brain, thus resulting in a permanent damage to the body without healing the cause of the pain. In due time the pain starts spreading because the missing nerves, tissues and muscles are not being able to carry the digested food to the other parts of the body which in due time make the part weak, painful, immobile and slowly the surrounding area starts drying off too due to lack of food. Once a patient takes any of the above mentioned steps or process, the pain starts spreading through-out the whole body slowly and steadily.

      Ag Herbs has created a niche market for itself with its patented medicines and therapeutic methods which can now heal and make you feel better. These Phyto-Medicines, uses live enzymes of plant cells, which when applied externally on the skin, enter through the pores of the skin and is carried with the help of bloody to the affected areas. Once the human cell and plant cell come in contact with each other they share the properties of either re-growing or healing a damage part in our body naturally. These products have no chemicals or preservatives and thus are 100% safe to be used even on a new born baby to a pregnant women and also works for ages above 90 years. It is a unique invention of its type has the company has already been able to heal millions through-out the world. This is the only medication available in the market which can help you get rid of your pain for ever.

         

       In 2010, about 500,000 knee replacements were performed. According to the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), this number will rise to about 3.5 million by 2030. Given that the growing older population wants to remain mobile later in life, the demand for joint replacements will only grow with it. As per Dr.A.K.Ganguly "These procedures can be very painful and maximum number of time un-successful-- with long recovery periods, loads off side effects, etc. -- so there's substantial opportunity there". Ag Herbs along with OPTM Health Care has a burgeoning number of new products and protocols which are expected to enter the market over the next few years, due in part to important strategic alliances within the industry that have allowed for their development and expansion of the company.

Different Types of Pain

What is pain?

Pain is “An unpleasant sensory and emotional experience arising from actual or    potential tissue damage or described in terms of such damage”.

Pain has the dubious distinction of being the commonest symptom for which a person approaches medical care.

There are many sources of pain. One way of dividing these sources of pain is to divide them into two groups, nociceptive pain and neuropathic pain. How pain is treated depends in large part upon what type of pain it is.

Nociceptive pain

The body's nervous system is working properly. There is a source of pain, such as a cut, a broken bone or a problem with the spine. The body's system of telling the brain that there is an injury starts working. This information is passed on to the brain and one becomes aware that they are hurting.

Neuropathic pain

The body's nervous system is not working properly. There is no obvious source of pain, but the body nonetheless tells the brain that injury is present.

What are types of nociceptive pain?

Most back, leg, and arm pain is nociceptive pain. Nociceptive pain can be divided into two parts, radicular or somatic.

Radicular pain:

Radicular pain is pain that stems from irritation of the nerve roots, for example, from a disc herniation. It goes down the leg in the distribution of the nerve that exits from the nerve root at the spinal cord. Associated with radicular pain is radiculopathy, which is weakness, numbness, tingling or loss of reflexes in the distribution of the nerve.

Somatic pain:

Somatic pain is pain limited to the back or thighs. The problem that doctors and patients face with back pain, is that after a patient goes to the doctor and has an appropriate history taken, a physical exam performed, and appropriate imaging studies (for example, X-rays, MRIs or CT scans), the doctor can only make an exact diagnosis a minority of the time. Research has shown that most back pain that does not go away after conservative treatment usually comes from one of three structures in the back: the facet joints, the discs, or the sacroiliac joint. The facet joints are small joints in the back of the spine that provide stability and limit how far you can bend back or twist. The discs are the "shock absorbers" that are located between each of the bony building blocks (vertebrae) of the spine. The sacroiliac joint is a joint at the buttock area that serves in normal walking and helps to transfer weight from the upper body onto the legs.

Fluoroscopically (x-ray) guided injections can help to determine where pain is coming from. Once the pain has been accurately diagnosed, it can be optimally treated.

What is acute pain?

Acute pain begins suddenly and is usually sharp in quality. It serves as a warning of disease or a threat to the body. Acute pain might be caused by many events or circumstances, including:

•             Surgery

•             Broken bones

•             Dental work

•             Burns or cuts

•             Labor and childbirth

Acute pain might be mild and last just a moment, or it might be severe and last for weeks or months. In most cases, acute pain does not last longer than six months, and it disappears when the underlying cause of pain has been treated or has healed. Unrelieved acute pain, however, might lead to chronic pain.

What is chronic pain?

Chronic pain persists despite the fact that the injury has healed. Pain signals remain active in the nervous system for weeks, months, or years. Physical effects include tense muscles, limited mobility, a lack of energy, and changes in appetite. Emotional effects include depression, anger, anxiety, and fear of re-injury. Such a fear might hinder a person’s ability to return to normal work or leisure activities. Common chronic pain complaints include:

•             Headache

•             Low back pain

•             Cancer pain

•             Arthritis pain

•             Neurogenic pain (pain resulting from damage to nerves)

•             Psychogenic pain (pain not due to past disease or injury or any visible sign of damage       inside)

Chronic pain might have originated with an initial trauma/injury or infection, or there might be an ongoing cause of pain. However, some people suffer chronic pain in the absence of any past injury or evidence of body damage

What is the difference between acute and chronic pain?

•             There might be no known cure for the disease (such as arthritis or phantom pain) that is causing the chronic pain.

•             The cause of chronic pain might be unknown or poorly understood.

More articles on Pain Management are coming soon.

Fundamentals of PAIN ?

Receptor nerve cells in and beneath your skin sense heat, cold, light, touch, 
pressure, and pain. You have thousands of these receptor cells, most sense pain  and few sense cold. When there is an injury to your body-for example, surgery-these tiny cells send messages along the nerves into your spinal cord and then up to your brain. Pain medicine blocks these messages or reduces their effect on your brain at the same time it's like a slow poisoning for your body. They damage the nerves and the tissues completely which carries not only the signals but also our food to give us strength.
 
Thus we can conclude by saying that pain is a symptom, not a disease. That means the pain is likely being caused by something-something that can often be relieved and healed when treated by a health-care professional to a certain extend
 
What causes pain ?
Pain can have numerous causes.As explained by Dr.A.K.Ganguly  "pain is caused dueto 'insufficient flow of blood' to an affected area".
                               
What is the prescription for pain? 
First of all, medical science through out the world has got no permanent cure or solution for curing pain completely, due to lack of research and understanding ofPAIN. 
 
Beyond medication:
1.Accept yourself and your pain.  Fighting it will make it worse.  And questions like "Why me?" are pointless distractions from the life you have left to live. If you are very religious, you will find out "why you" later when god tells you    right?  So stop questioning god.  That's not your role.If you are less religious, you know that god won't answer you.  And if you are an existentialist, you know that there is no answer to that question.  You are in pain because you had a 1 in 5 roll of the dice and you lost.  And yes, that does suck.
 
2.Find the choices that you can still make.  Pain will make you feel powerless in many areas.  Don't allow it to hijack everything.  Keep as much of your life as yours as you can.  This means make decisions.  Live with intention.  Free will is a human prerogative.  When something like pain renders us helpless, we lose our humanity.  Our pain becomes metaphysical, and our suffering is magnified.Even the tiniest choices are medicine for the soul.  
 
3.Connect.  
a) Connect to yourself.  Seek what it is that you are here to do.Start doing whatever that is, and do it "with yourself." Living intentionally will help with self-awareness.  Unfortunately, the misguided shame of pain leads us to avoid   self-awareness.  Don't let it. 
 b) Connect to others.  Pain makes us want to avoid being around others.  Or to  complain or relate to others in a helpless manner.  Choose your interactions with others.  Decide who you enjoy, and cultivate those relationships in an intentional manner.Just as it can lead to avoidance, pain can also drive us toward deeper human compassion.  This is a gift to be shared. 
 
In recent years with the help of modern Science and Bio-technology an International Company Called OPTM HEALTH CARE, has founded a complete solution to disease   like : Artharitis, Varicose Vein, Spondylosis, Slip-Disc, Frozen Shoulder, Fibromyalgia, etc. Where upon without Oral Medecines, Operations, Injectsions, etc. a  patient can heal up completely and see the results over MEDICAL REPORTS (i.e. X-Ray, MRI, etc.).
                               
Next article to cover the types of Pain. We'll return soon. Drop in your feedback by contacting us through any of the mediums.

Pain Management

The English word 'pain' probably comes from Old French (peine), Latin (poena - meaning punishment or pain), and in Ancient Greek (poine - a word more related to penalty), or a combination of all three.


Pain motivates us to withdraw from potentially damaging situations, protect a damaged body part while it heals, and avoid those situations in the future. Pain is an uncomfortable feeling that tells you something may be wrong in your body. Pain is your body's way of sending a warning to your brain. Your spinal cord and nerves provide the pathway for messages to travel to and from your brain and the other parts of your body.

In Medical Science pain relates to a sensation that hurts. If you feel pain it hurts, you feel discomfort, distress and perhaps agony, depending on the severity of it. Pain can be steady and constant, in which case it may be an ache. It might be a throbbing pain - a pulsating pain. The pain could have a pinching sensation, or a stabbing one.

Operation or Pain Killers are not the solution for curing the affected area for which you have pain in your body, because they cannot re-develop your damage parts, nor can they show you results over an X-Ray or MRI-Report, that your anatomy has come back to normal. This means the main cause, for which you are getting the pain will still exist and come back within a span of 3 to 4 years. next article coming soon.