One in two Americans have a musculoskeletal condition. These conditions vary from arthritis, back and neck pain, and osteoporosis. If you’re suffering from musculoskeletal pain, you can find pain relief beyond pain killers and operations. Here’s what you need to know. WHAT IS MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN? Musculoskeletal pain affects the muscles, ligaments, tendons, and bones. CAUSES Musculoskeletal pain can be caused from: Wear and tear of daily activit…

Irritable Bowel Syndrome Research shows bone loss is much more common in women than men. This can be a frustrating fact to read for women because one of the causes is low calcium intake. Why are women taking in less calcium? It could be because women are twice as likely to suffer from IBS. IBS stands for irritable bowel syndrome. It’s an intestinal disorder that causes stomach pain, gas, diarrhea, and constipation. One of the treatments is someth…

Diagnostics Those with degenerative disc disease enjoy a 33% reduction in pain score and a 25% decrease in disability when compared to non-surgical patients. Operative care even reduces treatment costs. Spinal fusion has been the traditional go-to approach for many years, but treating such a broad range of conditions in the same way is like trying to shoot a fly with a cannon. Thorough diagnostics will determine the best surgical option for you. …

What Causes Back Pain? Back pain can be caused by a multitude of factors from sprains and strains to degenerative diseases. When struggling with chronic pain in you back, seek a spine specialist for diagnoses and treatment. Seeking treatment allows you to return to regular activity and the kind of life you've wanted to lead. Relieving, reducing, and managing back pain is a real possibility for you, too. Diagnosis Addressing pain begins with an ac…

The last few years have seen significant advances in the field of MRI imaging. Let's take a look at some of the most important upgrades: MRI-Conditional Implant Scans Medical implant technology has grown increasingly sophisticated, but implants traditionally complicated the MRI scanning procedure. Nowadays, however, spinal implants, pacemakers and other devices are becoming MRI-conditional, which means they do not interfere with the scanning proc…

Finding a top rated team of interventional pain management specialists requires one to understand what you need in a provider. When seeking a pain management medical provider to address my spinal issues, choose carefully. These tips will help you find the right medical specialist. Experience and Training It goes without saying that using a highly trained medical professional is absolutely mandatory. Your doctor must be renowned in their field and…

Holiday shopping is said to burn 1500 calories per trip, so it can be as harsh on your body as it is on your bank account. There are 12000 ER visits caused by activities of the season every year. 10% of them are caused by back strain, and 34% are related to falls. Keep your shopping trips safe and injury-free with these tips: Keep a Light Purse and Slim Wallet You probably know you need to empty out your purse before a long shopping trip, but you…

Michael S. Chang, MD was recently interviewed for an azcentral article. Read about Dr. Chang and his expertise on spinal conditions in children and adults.

Your spine might well be the oddest part of your body. It evolved too poorly to do its job well, undergoes changes from morning to night, and has the same number of vertebrae as a giraffe. It’s made from billions of neurons and keeps your brain in contact with the rest of your body. As spine specialists, we thought we'd share some fun facts about the spine in time for Halloween: If You Want To become Taller, Visit the Moon Gravity affects your he…

You might think that numbness and tingling don't deserve serious care because these symptoms seem more benign than pain, but any unusual sensation is your body’s request for change. Numbness can be surprisingly debilitating. It even takes a toll on your emotional resources. It should be looked into as soon as possible, because it may indicate stroke, seizures, or circulation loss. Numbness Complete or partial numbness is usually a sign of damage …