|
PROLOTHERAPY
TREATMENT FOR SLIPPING RIB SYNDROME
"Doctor, I have a dull pain between my
shoulder blades." The patient gets discouraged as she knows this is just
another doctor that is clueless as to what to do. Another person states
"I get this sharp pain that cuts threw my chest like a knife." She
is also fearful that this physician is going to put her through a bunch of
tests that will be negative again. "I have trouble catching my breath. It
is like my lungs can’t expand like they should. No it’s not panic
attacks!" The last patient finally just can’t take it anymore.
Something is wrong with all these people but no one seems to be able to
diagnose the problem.
SLIPPING RIB SYNDROME IS COMMON The ribs are in constant movement because of our necessity to breathe.
Twelve to sixteen times per minute the ribs move up and down. This from the
very first breath until our last. Is it any wonder that the rib joints in the
front and back eventually get worn down? The ribs attach to the
sternum in the
front (called the sternal-costal junction) and in the back to the vertebrae (costovertebral
joints). Each of this joints can become weak. They can become weak just
because of use over a lifetime but more commonly because stretched or torn
after a trauma. The trauma can be violent coughing as when a person has the
flu, food poisoning, vomiting, or asthma. It can also occur because of
excessive violent breathing during sporting activities like sprinting. The
joints can, of course, be injured with blunt trauma as in a fall from a
bicycle, falling down stairs, or a car accident.
SLIPPING RIB SYMPTOMS The most common symptom of slipping rib syndrome is a dull pain in between
the shoulder blades or in the chest area. The pain is increased with direct
palpation over the injured area. The person can have
referral
pain also.
Injury to the sterno-costal area refers pain to between the shoulder blades.
Injury to the costovertebral junction refers pain to the chest. Shortness of
breath can also be a symptom when either of these areas are injured. The pain
though usually dull can lead to intermittent sharp pains sometimes simulating
a heart attack. Any young person who has a negative cardiac work up after
having severe sharp chest pain with shortness of breath, has slipping rib
syndrome until proven otherwise.
SLIPPING RIB SYNDROME DIAGNOSIS There is no test that can definitively diagnose slipping rib syndrome. The
best test is palpation and the reproduction of the person’s symptoms by a
practitioner familiar with the condition.
Prolotherapy
The rib attachments become stretched, injured or torn because of long term
use or trauma. The area that gets injured is typically the
ligament
attachments in the rib-sternal junction or the vertebral-rib junction in the
back. The joint then moves excessively. The surrounding muscles then contact
thus causing the stiffness of slipping rib syndrome.
The treatment of choice in my experience is
Prolotherapy. Since the condition is one of instability of the joint,
Prolotherapy to strengthen the ligament attachments makes sense. Sometimes
chiropractic manipulation will relieve the symptoms of slipping rib syndrome
temporarily but rarely permanently. In contrast, Prolotherapy usually will
resolve not only the symptoms of slipping rib syndrome temporarility but
permanently!
Prolotherapy induces a mild inflammatory
healing reaction in the area of injury in slipping rib syndrome. This causes
the area to tighten thus eliminating the instability in the area. The rib
stays in place and so do the symptoms.
Since Prolotherapy for slipping rib syndrome
involves the rib area, the number of sessions is typically more than the usual
3-6 visits. Since the ribs are in constant movement, it may take up to 15
sessions of Prolotherapy to resolve the symptoms of slipping rib syndrome.
DON’T FRET HELP IS NEARBY
People with unresolved
thoracic spine
stiffness and pain, can get discouraged because nothing seems to help
permanently. Just like those with unresolved chest pain.
Prolotherapy is a very good treatment for
slipping rib syndrome. If you or someone you love has slipping rib syndrome,
find them a good
Prolotherapy doctor. A lifetime of happiness and smiles could be
only a few shots away!
|