July 2021 Healthy News from Executive Chiropractic of Iowa

Osteoarthritis in the knee and hip are known and growing concerns as our society ages…around the world. Currently in 2021, Canada is evaluating the “Good Life with Osteoarthritis in Demark” (GLAD) program for knee and hip osteoarthritis. The program combines manual therapy, exercise and patient education. (1) In one GLAD study in which patients attended 2-3 patient education classes and 12 supervised exercise sessions over the course of 8 weeks, patients’ pain intensity improved 26-33%, walking speed improved 8-12%, chair standability improved 18-30%, and joint-related quality of life got better by 12-26%. (2) (Another study used MRI to determine the thickness of knee joint cartilage after distracting the knee joint to document that it increased with treatment bringing about significant short- and long-term cartilage regeneration up to 10 years after treatment. (3) This was done with young people, but it is hopeful!) Back in 2017, a Canadian chiropractor described the benefit of his treatment using Cox® flexion-distraction-principle-based distraction to the osteoarthritic knee, and the success he’s witnessed in his patients. Overall (acute and chronic patients together), patients related a mean visual analog scale score drop from 7.7 to 1.8 in 3 weeks and 5.3 visits. Acute knee OA patients’ scores reduced from 8.1 to 1.1 in 4.8 treatments in 2.4 weeks. Chronic patients’ scores reduced from 7.5 to 2.2 in 3.3 weeks and 5.4 treatments. (4) Chiropractors like yours at Executive Chiropractic of Iowa are ahead of the curve with their modified Cox® Technic principles-based-flexion-distraction-approach to knee osteoarthritis. Novel protocols for use in hip OA are also in development. Let’s talk today about how distraction treatment may help you with West Des Moines osteoarthritis of the hip and knee!

 

HOPE FOR DEGENERATED DISCS: Chondroitin Sulfate

Back pain treatment approaches be they surgical, exercise, nutrition, and/or manual therapy based flourish while back pain endures. Injecting hyaluronic acid hydrogel is showing some potential as it seems to restrain the loss of disc height, promote tissue hydration for disc repair, and decrease inflammation and innervation to ward off more disc degeneration. (5) The nutritional approach continues to hold hope for back pain sufferers as the disc matrix components are known, two central components being chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan and hyaluronan. Making chondroitin sulfate available to the disc plus controlling the hydrostatic pressure of the disc is advantageous. (6) Cox® Technic is shown to drop intradiscal pressure, so combining it with chondroitin sulfate may be, too. Are you taking yours? You may want to think about adding a disc supplement that has chondroitin sulfate to your routine after we talk. Executive Chiropractic of Iowa is ready!

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he discusses the part chondroitin sulfate plays in the health, degeneration and possible regeneration of the intervertebral disc and in the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management.

CONTACT Executive Chiropractic of Iowa

Schedule your next West Des Moines chiropractic appointment with Executive Chiropractic of Iowa. See you then!