It is my wish to inform patients and colleagues about the possibilities of eliminating pain even when it is thought to be permanent (chronic) or require an invasive proceedure such as surgery, nerve injections, spinal cord stimulation or a morphine pump to achieve any relief. Our story begins with the recogniton that the current standard of care doesn't work very well. An article in the Jouranl of the American Medical Association (JAMA), in February, 2008, by Martin, Deyo, et al..

April 27, 2009 - 5:19pm — Posted by Dr. Norman Marcus

With severe back pain we frequently worry about having a herniated disc.  If you have back pain and get an MRI chances are you'll find something. At NY Hospital/Weill-Cornell, 90% of the MRIs of the low back are read as abnormal. But most back pain is diagnosed as "Idiopathic /Non-specific", referring to sprains and strains of soft tissue such as muscle.

May 3, 2009 - 3:07pm — Posted by Dr. Norman Marcus

Muscles are thought to be the cause of low back and other common pain problems by some clinicians. Myofascial pain (syndrome), which actually means pain that originates in the muscles and connective tissue (i.e. tendons, ligaments and fascia) is the diagnosis that is frequently used and it is often considered to be the same as trigger point pain. Trigger points are small nodules or knots in the muscle that when pressed produce pain locally and often at a distant area, i.e. a trigger point in the trapezius muscle may radiate pain to the upper arm.

May 29, 2009 - 2:39pm — Posted by Dr. Norman Marcus