Causalgia, algodystrophy, shoulder-hand syndrome, Sudeck’s atrophy: these are some of the names complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) was called since the late 19th century as each generation of physicians get a better understanding of the disease. Until the end of World War II, CRPS was called “causalgia,” stemming from the
It wasn’t hard to find Kris Leong among the crowd outside of the Amsterdam Centraal Station on my first visit to the Netherlands on a cloudy day in April 2018. She rolled toward me on her red scooter—her “Batmobile”—wearing a gray and white checkered coat and a gray fuzzy hat.
I remember a client from a few years ago who told me that he had chronic hip pain and low back pain for almost a year, and his physical therapist had told him that it’s likely because his left leg is “longer” than the other leg. His previous massage therapist attempted
No matter which type of hip flexor pain you have, they all can be unpleasant and limit your ability to move, even if you’re just getting out of bed. Hip flexor pain can be a burning sensation or a sharp pain near your groin, lower abdominals, somewhere along the front
While the Beighton score is a “standard” assessment to diagnose whether you have joint hypermobility or Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) and similar disorders, several researchers recently questioned its validity and reliability of the scoring system. In 2020, British and South African researchers found inconsistencies of the “hands on floor” part of
Pain Society of Alberta (PSA) will be hosting its first official World Pain Summit next month virtually from Oct. 15 to 17. This event highlights the importance of self-compassion and how psychological and environmental factors affect physical health and chronic pain with psychologist Kristin Neff and Dr. Gabor Maté as
Connective tissues disease refers to the pathology of tissues that link your body’s organs, joints, and other structures in place. These connective tissues act like scaffolding, providing stability and allowing some degree of movement. They’re composed of elastin and collagen, which are types of protein that you can find in
A group of researchers and physiotherapists recently challenged the current diagnosis and management of sacroiliac joint pain. Led by Dr. Thorvaldur Palsson from the Department of Science and Technology at Aalborg University in Denmark, the team questioned a few common ideas among clinicians about why the sacroiliac joint is painful
Trigger point therapy is a type of massage technique that is supposed to help alleviate the symptoms or even “get rid of” trigger points. These trigger points are traditionally thought to be tiny muscle knots or tissue adhesions that cause the sore spots when you press on certain areas of
In 2015, many physical therapists and massage therapists on social media were excited about a study that concluded disc herniation and other physical “abnormalities” of the spine are “part of normal aging and unassociated with low back pain.” Published in the American Journal of Neuroradiology, the researchers found that “thirty
You may not need to stretch to become more flexible when you hit the gym or before playing a sport. Emerging research in the last two decades found that strength training is just as effective as stretching to improve your flexibility, and stretching may not be as ‘great’ or a
Active stretching is where you take a muscle group you want to stretch and contract its opposite muscle group without using external support. The objective isn’t necessarily to increase your flexibility; rather, it’s a way to prepare for the upcoming activity. For example, if you want to stretch your hamstrings,