Joint inflammation is a natural process in which the body’s immune system responds to a potential or perceived threat such as an infection or a virus. This usually results in swollen and painful joints.
Let’s take a closer look at the process.
Continue reading “Understanding the Signs of Joint Inflammation”
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is one of the most common medical conditions among American adults. It can rapidly deteriorate your cardiovascular health and lead to more serious heart conditions if left unchecked.
Here are a few lifestyle changes that you can make to prevent high blood pressure.
Continue reading “3 Lifestyle Changes You Should Make to Prevent High Blood Pressure”
Did you know that neck pain is classified as one of the most common musculoskeletal ailments? It affects hundreds of adults across the United States and can even result in disability if left untreated.
If you’ve been waking up with a sore neck lately, it may be for reasons you haven’t considered. Here are a few causes of recurring neck pain.
That pillow you bought on your last visit to the supermarket may be the reason why your neck aches in the morning. If your neck has been resting on the wrong type of pillow every night, neck pain and stiffness are guaranteed. The wrong pillow doesn’t provide your neck the support it needs and builds tension in the neck muscles, resulting in an aching neck joint.
Before you lie down to sleep tonight, take a good look at your pillow. Does it support the natural curvature of your neck? Is it too thick or too thin? Ideally, your pillow should be around 5 inches thick and should be compressible enough to support your head and neck when you rest.
Experts suggest that the best position to sleep in during the night is on your back, as this allows your spine to rest easily. You can wedge a pillow under each arm or incline at a slight angle to avoid strain on your neck.
If your favorite sleeping position happens to be on your tummy, you’re not making it any easier for your neck joint. When you sleep on your stomach or in another awkward position, your neck may remain angled to one side for many hours while you doze. The stomach pressing down into the mattress also puts pressure on the spine and back muscles. The result is you waking up with neck pain and wondering why.
Let’s not rule out aging joints. The fact of the matter is, our joint health tends to worsen as we get older. This is also why many older individuals complain of neck pain in the morning despite having slept in the right posture and with the right pillow.
As you age, the muscles and ligaments in your neck weaken. They become less flexible and more prone to injury. If you sustained a joint injury in the past, the neck muscles may have a decreased range of motion. As a result, even slight movements or overexertion of the muscles can cause neck pain and stiffness.
At Houston Physicians’ Hospital, we offer neck pain treatments as part of our orthopedic spine care in our Spine Solutions Center. We also perform joint surgeries, physical therapy, and other treatments to help patients recover from various ailments including neck pain.
Visit our website to find a doctor who’s right for you in Webster, TX.
Characterized by forgetfulness, a lack of focus, reduced mental clarity, and confusion, brain fog can affect a person’s physical and mental health. If you continually feel tired, distracted, and disoriented, you may struggle to focus at work, on your relationships, and on yourself.
People who experience brain fog struggle to complete tasks, develop frequent headaches, have memory problems, and often feel fuzzy and spaced out. Brain fog is more common in people in their 50s and older, but people in their 40s can also experience the condition.
In this blog, we’ll offer a closer look at why you may be experiencing brain fog. We’ll also present you with a few theories that may shed some light on its causes and help you treat or overcome it.
Continue reading “Why Am I Experiencing Brain Fog in My 40s?”
If you suffer from a heart condition, you may be familiar with cardiac catheterization. This procedure entails the insertion of a thin, flexible tube (catheter) through a blood vessel all the way to the heart. This is done to help diagnose or treat heart conditions like irregular heartbeat, clogged arteries, etc.
The procedure helps doctors obtain essential information about the patient’s blood vessels in the heart, heart valves, and heart muscle. During the procedure, doctors often perform different tests. Common heart disease treatments like coronary stenting and coronary angioplasty are performed using cardiac catheterization.
In this blog, we’ll offer a closer look at three types of patients who should undergo this procedure. Continue reading.
This condition develops when plaque gradually builds up inside the arteries. As a result, the arteries become narrow and hard, which restricts blood flow. If left undiagnosed and untreated, atherosclerosis may lead to blood clots that increase the risk of heart attack or stroke.
Cardiac catheterization is used to press plaque buildup against the walls of the arteries. This significantly improves blood flow.
Heart valve disease occurs when one or more of the four heart valves fail to function properly. These valves play a pivotal role. They make blood flow in the correct direction.
If one or more heart valves fail to open or close properly, blood flow through the heart to the rest of the body can be disrupted. This condition can be fatal.
Cardiac catheterization helps detect problems with the functioning of the heart valves. It also identifies abnormalities in the functioning of the coronary arteries and heart muscle.
Symptoms of common heart conditions include (but are not limited to) chest pain, chest tightness, shortness of breath, chest pressure, numbness or weakness in the limbs, heartburn, indigestion, and nausea. Patients who experience one or more of these symptoms may have to undergo cardiac catheterization. In such cases, the procedure helps identify any abnormalities.
At Houston Physicians’ Hospital, we specialize in performing cardiac catheterization. Our doctors use the procedure to diagnose heart conditions and correct any irregularities identified along the way.
Find a cardiologist who’s right for you. Our physicians also treat conditions like joint pain, knee pain, hip pain, back pain, and neck pain, among a range of other disorders and ailments.
While Parkinson’s disease (PD) can be physically debilitating, it can also take a toll on a person’s mental and emotional health and affect the people around them. As PD sufferers struggle to manage tremors, muscle rigidity, bradykinesia, posture and balance issues, speech problems, and a range of other symptoms, their psychological health can be affected.
As a family member or friend, you should provide ample support, reassurance, and encouragement. Start by understanding the different stages of PD so you can take the right measures accordingly.
Continue reading “5 Stages of Parkinson’s Disease Family Members Should Be Aware Of”
