It's important to have the right investigations to diagnose exactly what your problem is. Each different investigation has a specific purpose and is to either rule out or confirm a diagnosis. The various investigations that we use to determine a problem in the spine are set out below.
If a spinal condition is associated with a pinched nerve the pain often radiates into other areas of the body. A Neurosurgeon can often diagnose a spinal condition based on where the pain is going to more so than where the problem is actually originating.
Mindfulness, mindfulness, mindfulness. I keep seeing this word. I thought it was time I had a look into it.Mindfulness is just what it sounds like. Being more self-aware and living in the moment. The practice of mindfulness is being fully aware of your surroundings and quieting all the noise and just focusing on what is happening right then.
Dr Moloney was interviewed for an article in the Illawarra Mercury regarding the great technology being utilised for spinal surgery at Wollongong Private Hospital. Some interesting insight into back pain and spinal surgery.
What is an MRI Scan?MRI stands for Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Without getting too technical this means that the MRI machine uses strong magnetic fields and radio waves to create detailed images of tissues in the body.
A frustrating part of the workers compensation process can be how long things take to be approved before a patient can obtain treatment. The following guidelines show you the time frames that you are able to obtain certain treatments without having to have a specific workers compensation approval.
Dr Moloney has seen a lot of patients with painful backs that have gone on to have spinal surgery. More often than not he advises his patients to lose weight and do some core strengthening exercises. If you have a strong core you have a lot less strain on your spine and it helps considerably with back pain.
Opiates - The Blurry Line Between Pain Relief and Addiction
Many of the patients who come to see Dr Moloney have been taking opiate medication for a period of time before we see them. Opiates commonly prescribed for pain in Australia include Endone, Targin to name just a few.
You’ve hurt your back and you just want to know how bad is it? So it’s straight to Dr Google you go. We all do it. It’s just so easy these days but how accurate is Dr Google? I think sometimes you can get a bit of an idea of what is going on by comparing notes with other people online. It’s basically hit and miss though.What Dr Google doesn’t do is ask you the questions about your back pain that to you and me seem not that important and perhaps irrelevant to your problem. To a specialist spinal surgeon who know exactly what they are looking for it's another story. If they are good they have probably worked out exactly what the problem is before you get to the end of your story.