Physiotherapy for pain and injury in London
The popular press is awash with neuroscience, now to the point that some authors are becoming ‘anti’. We need debate, so hats off to those contributors who rightly ask questions. We should never sit back and accept a ‘fact’ but instead, test, test, test. Despite this fresh discussion, we do accept that the brain has […]
It is useful to know where you are. Neil Burgess spends his time studying this important function by looking at the brain, the hippocampus to be specific. It would appear that the same brain cells that create our sense of where we are and recalling that information for practical use are also at play when […]
I see a number of cases of cervical dystonia (spasmodic torticollis) that features awkward posturing and movement of the head and neck. This can be painful and have consequences for normal activities. We rely upon being able to orientate ourselves to our environment by controlling our head and gaze direction and then responding appropriately. Primary dystonia has no […]
As a physiotherapist I frequently use my hands to treat the joints and tissues. It comes with the territory, everyone expects hands-on therapy and it does helps to reduce tension and pain. Most likely, the pain relief from joint mobilisation is due to descending mechanisms that include those that are powered by serotonin and noradrenaline […]
Clifford Woolf recently said this about central sensitisation: Nociceptor inputs can trigger a prolonged but reversible increase in the excitability and synaptic efficacy of neurons in central nociceptive pathways, the phenomenon of central sensitization. Central sensitization manifests as pain hypersensitivity, particularly dynamic tactile allodynia, secondary punctate or pressure hyperalgesia, aftersensations, and enhanced temporal summation. It […]
Recent research has identified biological reasons for joint pain in arthritis: Interleukin-6, a pro-inflammatory cytokine released both locally at the joint and in the spinal cord, consequently plays a role in the widespread nature of the pain via its role in central sensitisation. Sprouting of sensory and sympathetic fibres at the joint may well have […]
Pain is multidimensional. Pain is 100% produced by the brain in response to a perceived threat. The brain allocates a location using the cortical maps, hence why we feel pain in our backs or knees. The brain tries to make sense of the situation, scrutinising what is going on on the basis of past experience […]
Back pain is an enormous problem that impacts upon individuals and society. Most people will experience back pain at some point in their lifetime and a proportion will suffer continuing and recurring problems. Those who do continue to experience pain require effective treatment and strategies so that the impact and the distress that it can […]
Mindfulness has grown in popularity over recent years, and for good reason. Those who regularly practice mindful meditation and mindfulness on a day-to-day basis will tell you about their clarity of thought, their sense of ease and their good physical health. The practice is recommended by NICE for depression as well as the frequent teaching […]
The ‘Living with Dystonia’ Day, organised by the Dystonia Society, was held in London in November. This was an opportunity to talk to neck dystonia sufferers and their carers about the sensorimotor training programme that I am using in conjunction with botox treatment — see here. We have an understanding of how the brain plans and […]
Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk who has written and spoken about compassion and mindfulness for many years, talks to Oprah Winfrey. There is a great deal that we can learn from him, in particular the potency of breathing and awareness of the breath that anchors us to the present moment, the only ‘real’ […]
Here’s the New Malden Diagnostic Centre Autumn newsletter with a feature on Specialist Pain Physio Clinics: New Malden Diagnostic Centre | Autumn Newsletter 2013 The New Malden Diagnostic Centre - see here A state-of-the-art diagnostics and treatment centre situated in New Malden, Surrey. The centre offers the very latest in diagnostic imaging along with consulting rooms giving us […]