As I mentioned in the anatomy discussion above, the disc is a little shock absorber between each vertebrae. The disc has a makeup similar to a jelly donut – firm on the outside and soft of the inside.

Imagine what would happen if you gently squeezed the jelly donut. It would bulge on the opposite side. This is analogous to a medically diagnosed “disc bulge.”

Now imagine squeezing it hard enough for the jelly to squirt out. This is similar to a “disc herniation.”

Either spinal disc injury type can be quite serious because that disc material can put pressure on sensitive nerve tissue that a healthy disc is designed to protect.

Resulting symptoms include pain, numbness and tingling, and weakness in the back, legs, or feet.

Because of the seriousness of a disc injury it is important to get evaluated by a trained clinician ASAP. At Forest Hills Rehabilitation, our doctors and physical therapists are specifically trained to diagnose and treat all types of disc injuries, but don’t guess if this condition will get better on its own – because it probably won’t!

The doctors and physical therapists at Forest Hills Rehabilitation have been helping patients just like you recover from serious disc injuries, without surgery for more than 15 years.

If you are experiencing symptoms associated with a spinal disc injury, call our office today to see how our techniques can benefit you.

Arthritis literally translates to “inflammation of the joints”. We most commonly use it as a lay term referring to the degeneration of the joints.

A joint is an area where two bones come together. The ends of the bones are covered with a smooth fibrous cartilage. In a healthy joint, that cartilage is bathed with a fluid allowing the bones to slide freely over one another through their normal movements.

In an unhealthy joint however, the cartilage becomes pitted, the bones become roughened, and the fluid becomes limited. This is what we generally refer to when we mention “arthritis.”

It happens from cumulative stress. If you are a professional skier for example, you may have arthritis in your thirties. But for most of us arthritis begins in our forties or fifties. The more stress we acquire, the more rapidly and widespread the degeneration.

You may think that nothing can be done for arthritis. This however is not entirely true, and does not tell the whole story.

It’s true that you can’t reverse much of the bone destruction associated with arthritis, but you can make the joint function better with less pain. By addressing the soft-tissues (muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc), as well as the joint motion, proper physical therapy can decrease pain, increase joint stability, and range of motion.

It is the function and pain level that we're most concerned about anyway, not the way our x-rays look!

At Forest Hills Rehabilitation, we have a integrated program that can make you more flexible and stronger by working not only with the joint, but also with the surrounding soft-tissues. The joint complex will therefore function better allowing you to function better.

So your x-rays may not look a whole lot different, but you sure can feel and act different!

Don't keep putting it off. If you have arthritis, our team can help! Every day you wait, allows the condition to continue to worsen.

If you are experiencing symptoms associated with arthritis, call our office today to see how our techniques can benefit you.

Spinal Stenosis occurs when the tube that the spinal cord sits in "the canal" closes down. This can happen acutely, as in the case with a disc herniation (discussed above) or over a longer period of time, as in the case with degenerative arthritis - common in the aging population.

Spinal stenosis can be serious and lead to permanent disability. However, many spinal stenosis patients can completely erase their symptoms and get back to enjoying life. Specific exercises, stretches, and spinal joint mobilization can open that canal and actually reverse symptoms – but don’t take our word for it…check out our testimonials section to learn about the benefits we’ve already shared with your neighbors.

If you are experiencing symptoms associated with spinal stenosis, call our office today to see how our techniques can benefit you.