Be a good patient? To help a doctor properly diagnose you, it’s important to be thorough in the description of your symptoms. The more details, usually the better. A good practice to adopt is to write symptoms down along with information about when they started. Then, when you are at your appointment, you’ll be able to provide detailed, accurate information. Any and all symptoms should be recorded. Sometimes what may seem insignificant to you could be the information that leads your doctor to make a diagnosis. However, there is a difference between being a good patient and attempting to do your doctor’s job for them. While recording and properly identifying your symptoms is good practice, attempting to diagnose yourself is not. Record and monitor symptoms but do not begin jumping to conclusions about your condition. You can share concerns, fears or opinions with your doctor, but showing up with WebMD results does not a good patient make.

The most common cause of back pain ? When back pain is chronic (i.e. lasts three months or more and occurs frequently), there is likely a more serious underlying issue that needs to be addressed. A disc problem is one of the most common causes of chronic lower back pain in adults and usually appears as a herniated disc in the lumbar or is caused by a degenerative disc disease. When a lumbar disc herniates, the inner portion of the disc breaks through the tough outer portion causing severe pain in the lumbar spine. The pain is caused by irritation of the nerves in the back, usually as the herniated disc creates swelling in the nerve roots. A degenerative disc disease occurs when the invertebral discs in the back begin to dehydrate over time. This causes the discs to wear down and become more susceptible to injury. Too much force on dehydrated discs can tear, weaken and become painful, often leading to a herniation.

MIS Surgery, also known as MISS, is back surgery that relies on smaller skin incisions to reduce blood loss and reduce the risk of muscle damage since there is less cutting of the muscle required. As compared open back surgery, patients report faster post-surgery recovery and a shortened time frame for rehabilitation, as well as a reduced dependence on pain medication during post-op healing. The goal of minimally invasive spine surgery is to re-stabilize the back, especially the vertebral bones and spinal joints while skillfully relieving pressure on the spinal nerves. People suffering from back pain related to spinal instability, bone spurs, herniated discs and scoliosis benefit most from MIS procedures and can often avoid surgery by scheduling a consultation with Dr. Yuan to assess their particular condition, as MISS is not always necessary with expert supervision. As one of the top minimally invasive spine surgeons, Dr. Yuan of Long Beach, CA has more than 15 years of successfully treating neck, back and lower back conditions and returning patients to health with and without surgery. Discover additional details on Spine Surgery Long Beach.

Southern California neck pain sufferers — Eliminate neck pain with Anterior Cervical Discectomy Fusion surgery! The cervical spine is made up of seven bones or vertebrae stacked one on top of another forming the neck. In between the vertebrae are cushions called disks. These act as shock absorbers so when they deteriorate with age, the neck can become painful and hard to move. Loss of mobility with cervical disk degeneration is common. Because the upper part of the spinal cord passes through the cervical spine, the vertebrae or cervical disk can press on it when the opening becomes too narrow. Sometimes, the body reacts to a disrupted disk by forming bone spurs, which can also put pressure on the spinal nerves, causing pain. Pushing against the spinal nerves leads to pain, numbness and sometimes weakness in the neck and extremities. When nonsurgical treatments do not provide relief, surgery is often recommended. Anterior Cervical Disectomy Fusion, or ACDF, treats nerve root or spinal cord compression through spinal cord and nerve root decompression for those who suffer from back pain in Southern California. The goal is to stabilize the surrounding vertebrae where the disk has deteriorated. In most cases, a nerve root becomes inflamed because the disk has herniated allowing the jelly-like center of the disc to bulge through and put pressure on the nerve root or because the disc has degenerated and the cushion is no longer there to protect it.

In some cases, surgery can be performed to reduce or eliminate SI joint pain. The two most common surgical approaches are SI joint stabilization and joint fusion, both of which are typically done after other therapies have failed. For the latter, minimally invasive Sacroiliac Joint Fusion systems has shown positive results in treating SI joint dysfunction. Individualized rehabilitation programs aim to treat the underlying cause of SI joint pain. By treating the underlying cause, the pain should subside and the runner can return to their routine with little modification. Sometimes bracing will be needed while a person heals. In cases where pain is severe, pain medication or steroid injections may be recommended to keep pain under control while the person rehabilitates, and when the dysfunction is very severe, surgical intervention may be required to eliminate pain and treat dysfunction and its underlying causes.

Long Beach Spine Surgery is often sought to treat spinal conditions including deformity in children and adult scoliosis, kyphosis and flatback. Dr. Yuan never recommends surgery first and guides you to many options for pain relief and quality of life. Dr. Philip Yuan is a board certified Orthopedic Surgeon and fellowship trained spinal surgeon who emphasizes non-surgical treatment first and only recommends surgical procedures when absolutely necessary to better a patient’s quality of life. Discover extra details at Spine surgery.