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In many cases, spine surgeons working with obese patients considering lumbar fusion surgery will suggest that they first undergo bariatric weight loss surgery. This recommendation is based on a general understanding that obesity leads to serious health issues, and that a patient with a lower Body Mass Index is healthier and better able to tolerate…

The experience of lower back pain can be truly excruciating, and something that is hard to understand for anybody who hasn’t gone through it themselves. The goal of healthcare professionals in providing care for patients suffering from this type of agony is to solve the problem that’s causing the pain while also providing relief. A…

If you’ve been experiencing relentless lower back pain with tingling or burning in your legs, you’ve probably done enough internet research to know there’s a good chance you may have lumbar spinal stenosis. The condition is a narrowing of the spinal canal or of the small openings that are on the sides of the vertebrae,…

Here’s a question for you: how many hours can you get into your work day before you start rolling your shoulders and arching your neck, trying to get rid of back and neck pain? If you set up a hidden camera aimed at the cubicles in almost any American office, you’d see plenty of people…

Back pain is awful no matter what time of year it hits, but there’s an extra level of misery that comes when it strikes during the summer when you want to be outside. Unfortunately, summertime is when a lot of people end up hurting themselves, as they rush outside and engage in injury-prone activities. You…

Do you ever wake up with a stiff or aching back? More importantly, do you find it difficult to find a comfortable sleeping position as a result of your already-existing back pain? Pain is one of the most common reasons for insomnia, and insomnia represents a huge health problem. Getting enough sleep each night is…

Anybody who has experienced intense lower back pain will tell you that just trying to get through the normal activities of daily living can be excruciating. So imagine what it must feel like to endure back pain while performing a strenuous, even athletic magic act. That is exactly what 70-year-old Raymond Teller of Penn and…

The statistics are jarring: back pain is something that will affect 8 out of 10 people at some point in their lives, representing the vast majority of people in the United States. Though some pain is fleeting, for many it becomes chronic and relentless, driving them to the use of powerful painkillers, including opioids. As…

When people seek medical help for neck or back pain, they have several different possibilities in the back of their minds. Some are hoping for a diagnosis that sets all worries aside, telling them that their discomfort will abate in a matter of days with the addition of ice, rest, and perhaps some medication. Some…

Walking. Swimming. Zumba. Lifting. Your back is killing you. What’s the first thing you think of to do to help yourself feel better? Is it: Go lay down on the couch Go to the gym and exercise If your answer was “A”, you’re likely doing yourself more harm than good. If your answer was “B”,…