|
|
Doctor’s Senior Exercise & Health NewsletterAugust 1, 2002 Issue Vol. 2 No. 11
In This Newsletter The Doctor’s Senior Exercise & Health Newsletter is written monthly, solely for information to help seniors, baby boomers and anyone who may have an interest in staying healthy, living a vigorous, active lifestyle and combating the aging process. The newsletter also includes know-how in the form of useful tips and links to more extensive material on the Internet. It is not meant to prescribe treatments for any particular condition except as something that the individual may wish to discuss with their healthcare professional. Website: http://www.doctorsexercise.com How to subscribe: Click Newsletter on left menu at website for more info and to subscribe or browse directly to: http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/dsenews E-Mail address: newsletter@doctorsexercise.com The Doctor’s Senior Exercise Newsletter strives to give you the best available news that we hope will help you in your efforts to maintain a vigorous, pain-free and happy lifestyle. However, you should always seek advice from your healthcare professional before trying any new treatments that you feel may help you. Discussing your intentions with your doctor is always the proper procedure. You may wish to share this newsletter by sending a copy to a friend, neighbor or relative and suggesting they subscribe to it. Healthfully Yours*** I would venture to say that the majority of those reading this newsletter have endured some form of muscle pains at one time or another. There are those who will experience these pains on a constant basis. When an individual is constantly having muscle pains and stiffness of many groups of muscles, they may have a condition known as “Polymyalgia rheumatica”. Polymalagia rheumatica is quite common and is a well-defined syndrome. While it can affect many groups of muscles in different areas of the body, such as the neck, shoulders, back or the pelvis muscles, it does not cause atrophy of the muscles involved. The causative factor of polymalgia rheumatica is not known. It usually affects those 50 years and over, and will affect more woman than men, in a ratio of 4:1. The constant stiffness and achiness can be extremely debilitating to the individual. Getting out of bed in the morning can be a daunting task. Daily chores cannot be performed with any semblance of normalcy. The individual may experience fever at times, as well as loss of appetite with weight loss, and a feeling of apathy. They can feel extremely tired at all times. Very often the individual with polymyalgia rheumatica may experience pains in the temperal region of the head. This can be due to another condition called “Polyarteritis” that often accompanies polymyalgia rheumatica. In polyarteritis, the medium-sized muscular arteries are inflamed, causing a reduction of the blood to the surrounding tissues. Although polymyalgia rheumatica is not a life threatening disease, polyarteritis can be, and should not be taken lightly. The individual may suffer from severe headaches and irreversible blindness can occur. Should an individual find himself or herself in a situation that manifests itself as above, they should of course seek advice from their healthcare professional. The longer they wait places them in jeopardy. Their healthcare professional will do the necessary testing that will eventually lead to a definitive diagnosis. Having this definitive diagnosis is a must in knowing how to proceed with treating these conditions. Health Hints*** Your healthcare provider will do several blood tests. The one that will prove to be definitive in polymalgia is the sedimentation rate. The sedrate as it is known, is invariably high in this condition. If pains are present in the temporal region, it is also advisable to see an ophthalmologist as well. The condition of temporal arteritis causes headache and can rapidly affect the arteries to the eyes, and cause blindness if left untreated. A blood test called ESR will be high. An arterial biopsy may also be necessary in order to have a definitive diagnosis. The condition often affects those 40 to 50 years of age, but can affect other age groups as well. It will also affect men more than women on a 3:1 ratio. Polymyalgia rheumatica as well as temporal arteritis are generally treated with cortisone drugs. The patient with temporal arteritis will be started on cortisone (prednisone) immediately on a daily basis, and only will be reduced when the symptoms have subsided. For the patient without temporal arteritis, your healthcare professional may use other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). These drugs are prescribed in an effort to control the inflammation and pain. The individual affected with polymyalgia rheumatica and possibly temporal arteritis, should not depend on the drugs to find relief from the pain. Having enough rest is important so as not to overtax the body and the involved muscle groups. Hot showers (not extremely hot) can be used twice daily to relax the muscles and ease the pain. The use of a heating pad to the most painful areas will also prove helpful. Using an analgesic gel such as Biofreeze applied to painful areas 3 to 4 times daily will help control the pain. The most important thing that the individual can-do, is recognize the seriousness of their symptoms and seek advice from their healthcare professional. Above all, do not neglect it and feel that it will go away eventually. It may not, and it can indeed prove to be serious in its ramifications. Doc Cane PLEASE NOTE: In my June 1, 2002 Issue Vol. 2 No.9, I mentioned I was researching Air Filtering units that I felt would be the best to use in our homes. I looked at the units of several companies and I believe I found one company that had the award-winning units that will make the air quality of our homes the cleanest and safest at an affordable price. PLEASE VISIT: http://www.doctorsexercise.com to see and read about these fine units. Copyright, Disclaimer, and Trademark information Copyrightã 1997-2002 Emanuel M. Cane. All rights reserved. Except stated below, this material or parts thereof may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed by any means whatsoever without explicit, written permission from the author. ************* You may circulate copies of the Doctor’s Senior Exercise & Newsletter by Manually forwarding it, providing you forward the issue in it’s entirety, no fee is involved, and you may forward no more than three issues to any one individual. You may not attach advertising or otherwise modify the text of the newsletter. |
