Cervical Disc

Cervical Disc

"The clinical study of body correction and pain control by body type of sasang constitution medicine "

The 16th International Congress of Oriental Medicine Sep. 14(FrI)-16(sun) 2012, COEX In Seoul korea http://www.icom2012.org

2012 Congress of Sasang Constitutional Medicine

1. What is a cervical disc?

A cervical disc is a symptom appeared when pressing nerves going from a bloated-disc, located between cervical spines, down to a neck and arms Hence, it brings pains on a neck, shoulders, arms, wrists and hands. A cervical disc must have pains not only on a neck but also on shoulders, arms and hands. Sometimes, patients with pains on shoulders and elbows think they don’t have a cervical disc, but it’s a traditional symptom of a cervical disc. In terms of a person not having a cervical disc yet but having a strained and thicken neck with increase of blood pressure, the one will have a degenerative change soon and it will turn into a cervical disk in turn.

2. What causes a cervical disc?

There are many cases with improper postures of a neck.

1) Working in a wrong posture, leaning on a couch, watching TV in an improper posture, carrying heavy stuffs with only one hand.

2) Getting stresses to adapt to the society the person belongs to, getting stressed and overworking.

3) Doing physical exercises using only one hand or leg excessively, such as Bowling, Tennis and Golf.

4) Ordinary life style using electric devices such as computers, smart phones, laptops and tablets.

5) Getting a car accident or falling down from a high place. These can damage cervical spine and the neck is the first area to get injured and eventually reach to a cervical disc.

3. Symptoms of a cervical disc

1) Pains only on a neck and cannot move or turn the neck.

2) Pains on shoulders, elbows and wrists.

3) Numbed tips of fingers with great pains.

4) In an extreme case, cannot lift one’s arm at all.

5) Getting a strained neck, numbed arms and tips of fingers, and pained shoulders, when wearing or taking off clothes.

4. Symptoms for a Diagnosis

1) Geriatric Diseases: Pre-symptoms of paralysis, headache, vertigo, numbed tips of fingers, face, arms and legs, and having a lowered temperature only on one side of the main body but still with normal spines.

2) Pains: Inflammatory symptoms, such as frozen shoulders, tennis elbow, golf elbow, golf omodynia and rheumatoid arthritis, showing a red color with fever on infrared ray films.

3) A cervical disc came from irregular blood circulation shows no symptoms on spines, and a cervical disc came from strained muscles is regarded to be developed relatively in a short period of time, also showing no symptoms on spines, hence, it is recommended to conduct acupuncture or herbal acupuncture treatment first.

5. Ways of a cervical disc diagnosis

1) Self Diagnosis

When turning a neck to right and left, if a person feels strained neck or arm, it can be a possible symptom of a cervical disc. For a more accurate diagnosis, lay a patient and press the patient’s head down, and if the person feels stimulus on his arms, there is a high probability of a cervical disc.

2) DITI (Digital Infrared Thermal Imaging) diagnosis and Spine/Pelvis analysis for treatment without operations

For treating without operations, it is necessary to take DITI and standing-positioned-pelvis X-rays. In order to find out the right spot of pains, by using DITI, areas with pains show rises and falls of temperatures. In terms of a cervical disc, when comparing both shoulders, arms and the neck, if one side’s temperature has fallen, the fallen area is regarded to have a cervical disc.

Cervical disc by DITI

3) The pelvis analysis and X-rays for Constitutional type analysis

By taking x-rays of jaw joints, cervical spines, thoracic spines, lumbar spines and the entire pelvis, one can see a balance of the overall spine, and also can diagnose degeneration or modification of spines. To treat without taking an operation, these tests are strongly demanded.

4) MRI & CT

In order to specifically analyze a status a disc, CT and MRI tests are also necessary. The tests enable to distinguish a disc’s current status, swelling, rupture and etc. In the oriental medicine, these are used only for confirm the status, so required when an operation is necessary, which means that the tests are regarded as pre-check-up for taking an operation afterwards.

Cervical disc by MRI

5. Relevant areas of a cervical disc

1) Jaw joints and a cervical disc

Jaw joints have many relations with a cervical disc. If jaw joints are moved back, teeth underneath them are also moved back and the overall center of gravity is moved back in turn. Hence, the person becomes strained on the neck by using his neck muscles, pressing the disc on a neck, so eventually gets neck disc symptoms. In an ordinary life, when losing or having pressures on teeth, there comes a change on jaw joints, changing the center of gravity of a head. A person head has a weight of approximately 5-8 kg, and based on the location of a head, the center of gravity of a head is changed. So, if the center of gravity of a head gets out of its own center, there comes great pressure on a neck and a waist, reaching to each type of a disc. If symptoms are light, using a mouthpiece can treat the symptoms, but it has more severity, the person needs to take braces.

6. Period and Cycle of Waist Disc Treatment Program

The first treatment demands twelve times, and then, there will be additional treatments as one additional session for 6-time-base. In the beginning, having two to three times’ treatment per week, and afterwards when symptoms are relieved, a treatment is made in every four to seven days. The entire treatment spends 1 month to 1.5 months.

7. Methods of lumbar Disc Treatment

1) Constitutional Type Acupuncture

Based on constitutional types and body conditions, it is useful to conduct constitutional acupuncture and others for treating painful and paralyzed spots.

2) Oriental Physiotherapy

In order to support circulation of vigor around painful areas, it conducts treatment using spots on the body suitable for acupuncture. It is necessary to select suitable and effective treatments followed by painful body parts, patient’s status and constitutional types.

3) Chuna Therapy

Based on the results and data from DITI and Pelvis Analysis, it conducts the best and the most suitable treatments on skull, cervical spine, thoracic spine, lumbar spine, pelvis, upper and lower legs and joints to straighten the body shape.

4) Bee-Venom Therapy

It is a natural pain-killer and a treatment to increase immunity for a case of having severe pains. It controls pains and sharp pains and relieve strained or rigid muscles softly.

5) Herb Acupuncture

This treatment is used when a patient only has light pains and fever. Based on Sasang constitutional types, it selects appropriate herb remedy which is matched with each patient’s constitutional types and symptoms.

6) Bone Straightening (Golta) Therapy

For patients’ with wrong spines and pelvis, it straightens their spines and pelvis to be on the right position. It is effective for treating duck-looking hips, straight waist, spinal kyphosis, spinal scoliosis, turtle neck, sway back, straight neck and D-shaped neck.

7) Maeseon Therapy

By using painful areas and spots on the body suitable for acupuncture, it continuously brings a similar effect of having acupuncture, which relieves stresses or strengthens weak muscles. When having this Maeseon Therapy, it has an effect of getting acupuncture for approximately six months, changing a wrong body shape and makes one keep having it afterwards.

8) Warm Heat Physiotherapy

Warm heat is delivered to deep inside of a body and relieves strained muscles. It also controls pains on spots with severe pains, and make muscles around cold or irregularly-circulated parts operate smoothly. By improving blood circulation, it enables one to have a correct body shape.

9) Shock Therapy

When circulation around joints does not properly work, foreign materials are piled, or bones are grown up, it controls the symptoms by using external stimulus. It is effective for degenerative diseases, inflammatory diseases and diseases with irregular circulation.

10) Chimdo Therapy

It controls inveterate pains by using Chimdo. When having extreme waist pains and a practical lumbar disc, muscles and ligaments around the waist are adhered, so the therapy manages pains by relieving those muscles’ strain and adherence. It is also used for controlling pains caused from excessively used muscles or adherence by inflammation or bruise.

11) Light acupuncture Therapy

Followed by status of cervical spine, the therapy corrects curves of cervical spine naturally. It is simple but effective, and also has many benefits because it can be applied even when a patient is sleeping.

12) Physical Exercise Therapy for Body Shape Straightening

It improves physical strength, controls balance of a body and corrects body shapes based on a patient’s body shape and level of muscle development. It is a method for controlling inveterate pains.

13) Sasang Constitutional Herb Remedy

Since each Sasangsang constitutional type has different reasons for getting a disc, diagnosis of which Sasang constitutional type the person has is the first step for this therapy.

The Lesser Yang Person has weak kidneys, waist and bones, therefore, it needs to improve kidneys and strengthens bones and joints.

The Lesser Yin Person has irregular blood and water circulation and gains weight from it, reaching to have a high probability of getting a disc. Therefore, it needs to help circulation of blood and water in the body and losing weights, while conducting the therapy.

The Lesser Yin Person has little Yang vigor and blood, so the blood circulation is not smooth and makes the body cool, reaching to a disc eventually. Hence, it is necessary to supplement Yang vigor, remove coolness, improve functions on stomach, support blood circulation, and supplement bloods to make the body warm.

The Great Yang Person has naturally weak lower body, and vigor goes to the upper body a lot. So it has a high risk of getting a disc, and needs to make vigor down and strengthens the lower body.

8. Recommended Foods for each Sasang Constitutional Types

1) The Lesser Yin Person

Warm foods are recommended to make a body warm and sweat a bit. In terms of tea, Doochoong Tea, Ginger Tea and Citron Tea are recommended, and if a person lacks vigor, Ginseng Tea and Cheongung Tea are also recommendable.

2) The Great Yang Person

Cool foods such as green bean, red bean, sea slug, raw oyster, globefish, carp, snakehead mullet and cucumber are recommended. In terms of tea, Sansuyu tea and Chinese matrimony vine tea are recommendable.

3) The Great Yin Person

Pear, walnut, pine nuts and arrowroot are recommendable, and also adlay tea and arrowroot tea are effective on this type.

4) The Great Yang Person

Crucian carp, shellfish, grape, wild vine, Chinese quince are recommended, and Chinese quince tea and Ogapi tea are also recommendable.