Thoracic Outlet Syndrome (TOS)
The thoracic outlet is a space where blood vessels and nerves leave the torso on their way to the arm. It is formed by the first rib and the collar bone. The outlet is tightly packed, and there are a number of things that can cause compression to those blood vessels, or nerves, or both. […]
Ergonomics: desk posture
Like sleep, you can spend about 1/3 of your day at your desk. Make sure your desk’s impact on your body is minimal. These pointers are for guidelines only, and I argue that sitting in even the “perfect” position all day is worse for you than moving through various “bad” postures. The points only apply […]
Stretch/articulation: cat stretch and threading the needle
The cat and needle serve a similar purpose to the figure of 8, but the movements are more exaggerated. This means that you’ll feel more of a stretch, rather than just working through the joints, but also that it’s much less focused. For this reason I generally don’t give this exercise to people with lower […]
Does Osteopathy Help with Osteoarthritis?
What is Osteoarthritis? Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, that people sometimes just call “arthritis”. For simplicity’s sake we will only cover osteoarthritis (or OA for short) in this post. Often people just accept it as a by-product of getting older, but this isn’t really the case. Previously the tagline that’s gone with […]
Cervicogenic Headaches (Biondi, 2005)
A cervicogenic headache is one that is caused by structures in the neck, such as muscles, joints, nerves, and blood vessels. It is estimated that up to 2.5% of the general population in the USA are experiencing a cervicogenic headache at any one time. Women are four times as likely to experience this than men. […]
The Sacroiliac Joint (SIJ)
The Sacroiliac joint is a controversial one. Some people maintain that it only moves in childbirth, but success in treating it has led me to believe that it does move a very small amount in the general population. Like any other joint that moves, it can be irritated, but I have yet to see evidence […]
Piriformis Syndrome: the other Sciatica
The piriformis muscle is a deep muscle in the buttock, which primarily rotates the hip. It also flexes the hip (knee to chest), brings the thigh out to the side, and stabilises the pelvis. The reason this muscle is so clinically relevant is that the sciatic nerve interacts closely with it. The piriformis and the sciatic […]
Osteoarthritis: the most common arthritis explained
Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis, which we often refer to as “wear and tear”. More recently, the more optimistic “wear, tear, and repair” has been the explanation of choice. It’s a normal age related change like grey hair or wrinkles. For a lot of people it won’t cause any symptoms, and it […]
Ankle Sprains
Ankle sprains are relatively common but typically reoccur without sufficient rehabilitation. Ligaments are damaged in a sprain, but ligaments are highly innervated and provide us with a great deal of proprioception necessary for balance when healthy and utilised. “Sprain” refers to a ligament that has been over-stretched or torn to some degree, and ankle sprains […]
Tennis Elbow and Golfer’s Elbow
Tennis Elbow Tennis elbow is the more common of the two, affecting the muscles on the outside of the forearm. The technical term is lateral epicondylitis. Although it’s commonly referred to as “tennis” elbow, it is linked to most racket sports, including squash and badminton, as inefficient technique on backhand swings can overstrain the extensor muscles […]