Peripheral Neuropathy in Cancer Patients

Identifying the causes of peripheral neuropathy in cancer patients can be difficult. There are many common causes of peripheral neuropathy in cancer patients. Neuropathic pain is defined as pain caused by a lesion or disease of the somatosensory nervous system. Peripheral neuropathies arise from disorders associated specifically within the peripheral nervous system. Symptoms of peripheral neuropathy can include numbness, tingling, pins and needles sensations, sensitivity to touch, or muscle weakness. There are multiple causes of peripheral neuropathy in patients with cancer, identifying the culprit may be complicated by a plethora of etiologies. The peripheral neuropathy can originate from the cancer…
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Chronic Pain Patient: Let’s Talk Pain

I was told September is “Pain Awareness Month.” Pain is strictly an individual concept, especially for chronic pain patients. Medicine uses a blank line that is 10 centimeters long, numbered 0 to 10 with smiley faces to crying faces, as well as other methods to measure pain. None of these methods are really appropriate for measuring pain across all patients. Or have been shown the ability to cross reference to another person’s pain. There is no consistent way to deal with an individual’s chronic pain, because what can be an 8 to one person is a 3 to another. Pain,…
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Pain Causing Dermatomes

What are Dermatomes? A dermatome is an area of skin in which sensory nerves derive from a single nerve root. These nerves can cause pain within the dermatome area. The body is divided into specific regions called dermatomes. A dermatome refers to the part of the embryonic somite. The spinal cord is broken up into 31 dermatome segments. Each segment has a pair (left and right) of ventral (frontal) and dorsal (posterior) nerve roots; which relays motor and sensory nerve sensations, including pain. Combined on each side of the body the anterior and posterior nerve roots form the spinal nerves…
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Myofascial Pain What to Know

myofascial pain trigger points Skeletal muscles primarily function our way of moving by attaching to other muscles and joints. When those muscles get knotted up, like when you sleep on your neck wrong, or have a back spasm, trigger points develop causing the muscle to shorten and become dysfunctional. Myofasical trigger points prevent normal muscle function, not allowing the muscle to contract or relax as it should. These highly sensitive trigger points in the muscle can cause sensory, motor, and autonomic symptoms. When myofascial trigger points are not treated early, they can cause stress in the dysfunctional muscle fibers and…
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Cervical Nerves

In addition to the seven cervical vertebrae, cervical anatomy features eight cervical nerve roots (C1-C8). These roots branch from the spinal cord and control motor and sensory abilities for different parts of the body. From there each cervical nerve is named based on the lower cervical vertebra that it runs between. As an example, the C6 nerve root runs between the C5 vertebra and the C6 vertebra. Cervical Nerve Functions Each level of the cervical spine actually has two nerve roots—one on each side—that branch off from the spinal cord. Keeping with the aforementioned example at the C5-C6 level, each…
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Types of Arthritis That Cause SI Joint Pain

Pain in your lower back can be caused by many things including muscle pain, soft tissue pain, or joint pain. The sacroiliac (SI) joints can also be a cause of lower back and arthritis pain. Similar to the knee, the SI joint contains cartilage which degenerates over time. Saroiliac pain can cause different forms of arthritis including: osteoarthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, and gout. When you feel pain in your lower back or hips, the pain can originate from muscles, soft tissues like tendons and ligaments, or joints. But it’s not just the joints of the spine or the large…
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Fracture Risk and Spinal Osteoarthritis

Many health factors can effect whether or not fractures are a risk in spinal osteoarthritis. Spinal osteoarthritis, osteoarthritis in general is more prevalent in women, is more common in women over 50; but can occur in men. OA related fractures in the spine may be an under-diagnosed result of spinal osteoarthritis. Fractures that do occur as a result of spinal OA can cause pain, changes in posture, and even limit independent function. Talking with your doctor about symptoms you experience related to osteoarthritis could help diagnose whether or not fractures are a risk. Spinal Osteoporosis and Fracture Risk Factors Due…
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Leg Pain and Foot Pain Causes

Leg and foot pain can originate from other chronic conditions such as lumbar back pain. The nerves that control muscle functions in the legs are located in the lower back, and that’s where symptoms of leg pain can instigate in some cases. Symptoms of leg pain caused by the lower back conditions can include numbness, tingling, shooting pain, or foot drop. Degeneration in our vertebral spine happens as we age, resulting in lost disc flexibility, and can cause pain to radiate down the leg during movement. Leg and foot pain can be symptoms of lumbar degenerative disc disease, along with…
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Neuropathy And Chronic Back Pain

Neuropathic pain originates in the nerves; and can be thought of as similar to static on a telephone line. Neuropathy happens when nerves become damaged or dysfunctional because of an injury or trauma. It's considered a chronic condition. Neuropathic pain is distinct from other types of pain. If a person breaks a bone, pain signals are carried via nerves from the site of the trauma to the brain. With neuropathic pain, however, pain signals originate in the nerves themselves. How Neuropathic Pain Develops In many cases, the nerves become damaged or dysfunctional after responding to an injury or trauma, causing…
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Neuroinflammation of Patients with Sciatica

A study by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators has found, for the first time in humans, that patients with chronic sciatica - back pain that shoots down the leg - have evidence of inflammation in key areas of the nervous system. In their paper published in the May issue of the journal Pain, the research team reports finding that average levels of a marker of neuroinflammation were elevated in both the spinal cord and the nerve roots of patients with chronic sciatica. Additionally, the study showed an association between neuroinflammation and response to anti-inflammatory steroid injections, with levels of neuroinflammation differing…
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