Health Articles

For those who suffer from back pain, finding the most comfortable sleeping position can be difficult. Mattresses, pillows, and sleeping positions are all factors in a good night’s sleep with back pain, and there are ideal sleeping positions for some of the most common causes of discomfort.

Spine and neck pain will afflict nearly 80 percent of Americans at some point in their lifetime. The spine doctors at Sierra Pacific Orthopedics say one of the most common causes of that pain is poor posture.

A herniated disc is the rupture of a spinal disc, which is the soft cushion that sits between each vertebra of the spine. When the disc ruptures, a small part of the spinal disc is pushed outside its normal boundary, and the spinal nerves and spinal cord may become pinched.

The majority of back pain symptoms stem from inflammation due to an acute injury or overuse of the muscles, joints, or tendons.

The ankle joint distributes weight within the foot to allow for mobility.  Three bones make up the joint (tibia, fibula, and talus) and are responsible for allowing the foot to move up and down.

Ankle arthritis, or ankle osteoarthritis, is a long-term problem that can cause pain and complications. There are several risk factors that can lead to osteoarthritis in the ankle, such as seemingly minor ankle injuries including ankle sprains and strains.

A stress fracture is a common sports injury, often occurring in weight-bearing bones, such as the tibia or the bones in the foot.

As the largest tendon in the body, the Achilles tendon connects your calf muscles to your heel bone, allowing you to run, jump, and walk. Though this tendon can withstand a great deal of stress due to running and jumping, it is also prone to injuries related to overuse and degeneration.

The shoulder is composed of the shoulder blade (scapula), collarbone (clavicle), and upper arm bone (humerus). With two joints (the glenohumeral and the acromioclavicular), the shoulder is widely considered to be the most unstable joint.

In young athletes, most injuries to the meniscus are a result of trauma. The menisci are vulnerable to injuries in which there is both compression and twisting across the knee. Meniscus tears are common in contact sports, like football, as well as in skiing and volleyball.