-About neck pain, arm pain, and tingling sensations-


Neck pain is popular symptoms following to back pain. Acupuncture is very effective treatment for neck symptoms. The change in working environment, accompany with long hours of working at desk, there is a tendency that people who are suffering from the neck problems increase. The structure of cervical spine is almost the same with that of lumber spine, hence the symptom development mechanism is also similar.

cervical spine disorder

The cervical spine is composed of many different anatomic structures, including muscles, bones, ligaments, and joints. Each of these structures has nerve endings that can detect painful problems when they occur. The different parts of the cervical spine are normally well balanced and able to handle all of the movements, stresses, and strains of the body gracefully. However, when the different parts of the cervical spine are injured or start to wear out, your neck can be a significant source of pain and discomfort.

causes and symptoms

In daily life activity, stress and emotional tension can cause muscles to tighten and contract, resulting in pain and stiffness. You can sleep wrong and wake up with a crick in your neck. You can sit too long at your desk, staring at your computer, and give yourself a stiff neck.
Also, the way you're living could be causing your neck pain. Poor posture, obesity, and weak abdominal muscles often disrupt the spine's balance, causing your neck to bend uncomfortably to compensate.
Even healthy, normal activities can cause neck sprains and strains, which can lead to pain. Gardening, tennis, a friendly game of touch football, and even golf can all potentially hurt your neck.
Age-related disorders such as osteoarthritis, spinal stenosis, and degenerative disc disease directly affect the cervical spine.
The sudden "whipping" motion causes injury to the surrounding and supporting tissues of your neck and head. Muscles react by tightening and contracting, creating muscle fatigue that results in pain and stiffness. Severe whiplash can also involve injury to the intervertebral discs, joints, ligaments, muscles, and nerve roots. Car accidents are the most common cause of whiplash. If you've had a head injury, more than likely, your neck has been affected, too, even if you don't feel it right away. It's wise to seek medical attention immediately.
Neck pain sometimes radiates down the arm and possibly into the hands and fingers, is frequently caused by a cervical herniated disc or foraminal stenosis pinching a nerve in the neck. The pain may be accompanied by numbness or tingling in the arms and/or hands. The symptoms may start suddenly or develop over time.
Sensation abnormality such as feeling of weakness, fatigue, coldness, or stiffness, in arms, hands or fingers is equivalent to the compressed area. For example if the fifth cervical vertebra disk is pressured, it will be thumb that has sensation abnormality.

Acupuncture treatment for chronic neck pain

Releasing tightened muscle, or improving blood circulation, around the cervical vertebra where nerve root compression occurs, will be able to cure most of cervical spine symptoms. Quite a few patients who are suffering from numb feeling or pain in fingers for a long time cured about a month of acupuncture treatments. In recent comparative study conducted in 2001, the researchers concluded "Acupuncture is a safe form of treatment for patients with chronic neck pain if the objective is to obtain relief from pain related to motion and to improve cervical mobility," .
If you are suffering from chronic neck pain after treated by traction or other physical medicines, please do not hesitate to contact us.