CHIROCARELA.COM: Blog

Do you feel an ache on one side of your lower back? Does your hip feel stiff, or like it can’t support your weight? Lower back pain is unfortunately common and has a variety of causes. But at ChiroCareLA in Glendale, Dr. Jack Alajajian and his staff are equipped to not only diagnose patients’ problems and treat them noninvasively, but also to help them prevent relapses. Today we’re going to take a closer look at one of the most common causes of lower back pain: sacroiliac joint dysfunction.   Although the name sacroiliac joint dysfunction might sound complicated, it’s really just a description of the joint that is being affected. The sacrum is a structure made up of fused vertebrae that dangles beneath our lumbar spines and connects to the pelvis. The connecting part of the pelvis is called the ilium, of which there is one on each side, and it includes the bony crests at the top of the pelvis. The sacroiliac joint is a shock absorber, but it doesn’t normally have very much mobility. Th...

As the days get longer, we have more opportunities to get out in the sun. And in addition to boosting our moods and encouraging us to exercise, more sunlight is especially good for our bones. At ChiroCareLA in Glendale, we don’t just treat symptoms. We help our patients maintain holistic wellness, and that means educating the public about the connection between sunlight, Vitamin D, and preventing hair fractures in the vertebrae.   Our bones require calcium as their basic building material, and our muscles need calcium to function properly. However, an excessive amount of calcium can be harmful, so our bodies are only able to absorb it when they receive a chemical signal from Vitamin D. This vitamin is produced in our skin when it is exposed to sunlight, so we need sunlight in order to build our bones and muscles. Bones are constantly breaking down and rebuilding, but without enough calcium, they can’t rebuild fast enough to keep up with their rate of resorption, and become brittle. Whe...

Of all the things we can do to maintain total body wellness, one of the most important is keeping our cores strong. This isn’t just a matter of liking the way we look or being in competitive athletic shape; our core muscles provide critical support to our spines and hip bones. At ChiroCareLA in Glendale, Dr. Jack Alajajian and his team are committed to helping our patients sustain wellness over the course of their lives, and for that, it’s necessary to understand some basic aspects of the core and how to care for it.   The muscles of our abdomen are made up of several layers that are all shaped differently. The deepest core muscle is the transverse abdominis, which wraps around our visceral organs in horizontal bands. The internal and external oblique muscles are on the sides of the trunk and are involved with rotating it and bending the spine. The rectus abdominis muscle is the one on the front that forms the “abs” and connects to the sternum. It helps to stabilize the trunk, but keep...

If you’ve ever had pain in your leg, you may have tried adjusting your posture in a way that also put strain on your lower back. But the connections between our legs and the lumbar region go deeper than that. ChiroCareLA.com in Glendale offers a variety of complementary therapies for reducing pain in a holistic, safe manner, so to help our patients understand why we use them, we wanted to take some time to discuss some of the ways in which the back and legs are connected.   The nerves that lead to our legs emerge from the spinal cord in the lower back. They exit the lumbar vertebrae through small holes called foramina and weave through the muscles and bones of the pelvis. Compression in these nerves could cause a shooting pain, tingling, or numbness down the leg, which are the symptoms of sciatica, but the pressure causing the pinch could have several origins. Swelling from a dislocated facet joint or herniated disc, or a back muscle stretching over a spinal spur, could compress nerves...

Have you ever accidentally contorted your body in a strange way that resulted in a sharp pain that decreased mobility in your neck or arm? You might have experienced a pinched nerve. Pinched nerves can occur anywhere along the spine, including the upper, mid, and lower back. They can even happen in any joint of your body. Dr. Alajajian and staff know all about the dreaded pinched nerve and how painful it can make doing the simplest tasks. Sometimes the nerve can move back into place naturally. However, if the pinched nerve is severe enough, you will need spinal adjustments to correct it. Symptoms of a pinched nerve include: - Lower back pain - Numbness, tingling, or burning sensation in your arms, legs, fingers, or toes - Pain radiating along your spine - Severe headaches or migraines - Pain that shoots down your arm or leg - Neck pain A pinched nerve can be caused by subluxation, disc degeneration, osteoarthritis, or disc herniation. These are silent afflictions in their beginning st...

When there’s something wrong with your hip, you may feel it in your back. Not only can pain radiate, it can also cause a person to adapt an unhealthy gait that will further strain their muscles and joints. Although there are many potential causes of lower back pain, we at ChiroCareLA.com in Glendale are able to devise safe treatments for patients suffering from joint dysfunction, including those with problems in their sacroiliac joints.   The sacrum is a structure made up of fused vertebrae at the base of the spine. The iliac bones are the crests at the top of the pelvis, and they connect to the sacrum on both its sides. Inflammation in this region is known as sacroiliitis, although dysfunction does not always cause inflammation. Most injuries to these joints are the result of wear and tear, with acute injuries likelier to happen during pregnancy or after a woman gives birth.   Sacroiliac joint dysfunction is unlikely to compress a nerve, but it can still cause a throbbing pain throug...