Group theory and spinal injuries

[bananas]

http://arxivblog.com/?p=494

Group theory and spinal injuries
July 1st, 2008 | by KFC |

Medical science is stuck in the middle ages when it comes to understanding the causes of back pain and how to prevent it. If you want advice, “bend your knees when lifting” is all you’re likely to get.

The standard theory describing spinal injuries is known as the principal loading hypothesis and assumes that any damage is caused by one of either tension, compression, bending or shear forces on the spine.

But Vladimir Ivancevic from the Defence Science & Technology Organisation in Edinburgh, Australia, says this is a vast simplification of what is really going on and has developed a far more sophisticated model to describe spinal damage.

In his model, each vertebrae is able to undergo a range of rotations–pitch, yaw and roll–as well as a range of translations. In the language of group theory, these can be described by the Special Euclidean group SE(3).

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[Warpy]

1. I know if I twist a certain way

my back will spasm. I also know if I ice it right away, the spasms will last only a day or two.

I generally manage to avoid twisting into that position but there are always times I need to.

The model for back pain has needed updating for a very long time. Often when pain pathways have been firing without relief for a period of time, those pathways will stay active when the problem has been resolved.

The study of pain is also in its infancy. They're just now starting to twig to the fact that unrelieved pain is fatal, driving people to self isolate, become depressed, and relive their pain through suicide. Most chronic pain is back pain.

This is an exciting time to be alive and observing what's going on in medicine. Maybe we'll be part of it when we kick the insurance industry to the curb.

[bananas]

5. One time my back spasmed while I was half-way down a flight of stairs

For a few seconds I was just frozen, any movement caused the pain to spike.
Then the vaso-vagal response kicked in and my consciousness started fading.
I didn't want to tumble down the rest of the stairs,
so I managed to sit down and lay back as I was passing out.
I came to as the paramedics were trying to get me onto a stretcher.

[pansypoo53219]

2. i had sciatica(severe tingling). emergency room, no answers.

went to a chiropractor who specilized it treating backs. xrays and total workon me. my lower spine out of whack from a hard fall. where surgery would have proably fused my spine or something, she put back and took out my scoliosis too.
outsideer health sometimes better.

[Indenturedebtor]

3. Sometimes better yes. ER Docs are great with a heart attack

But probably don't deal with a lot of nerve damage.

Tingling probably caused by nerves being compressed either by the bones or swelling. Mechanically forces the neuron to generate an action pulse. Chiropractor likely re-aligned the bones to take pressure off the nerves.

Now I only know about nerves from my psych degree... so take that for what it's worth heh.

[TZ]

4. How can a chiropractor "take out" scoliosis?

Thats a curvature of the spine and ummm, a permanent condition...Perhaps treated your scoliosis is a better word..but anybody who can umm change the basic structure of the spine itself..thats physically impossible in a living person.