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      What is a Facet Joint? The spine is made up of a number of building blocks, the vertebrae, which support the weight of the body. Between these are Intervertebral Discs, which act as shock-absorbers. Between two vertebrae are a pair of small Facet Joints, which allow the spine to move and...

Causes of Myofascial Pain Syndrome Introduction Myofascial Pain Syndrome (MPS) is typically defined as a chronic local or regional musculoskeletal disorder, involving a single muscle or a muscle group. The pain associated with MPS most commonly occurs in the head, neck, shoulders, arms, legs and lower back. Such pain of the Myofascial Pain Syndrome...

Neck pain succesfully treated with facet joint blocks Introduction I reviewed a 52 year old gentleman in the Pain Clinic. He had a history of neck and lower back pain. A recent MRI scan had shown a slight cervical intervertebral disc protrusion. Examination findings On examination he had occasional tingling in both hands, which...

Case report of patient with knee pain from a cross trainer treated with simple local injection of cortisone Introduction I reviewed a 42 year old lady in the Pain Clinic who had been using a cross trainer at home. Over the last week she had had increasing left knee pain, which had got steadily...

Case report of patient with post surgical neuropathic right iliac fossa pain treated with pregabalin Introduction A 71 year old gentleman was seen in the Pain Clinic with right iliac fossa pain. Examination findings On examination he had right iliac fossa pain and neuropathic type pain which he described as a clawing, spasm-like pain,...

Better sleep and Chronic Pain Introduction Chronic pain is a pain that goes on for more than six months and fails to respond to conventional pain medication. Today, chronic pain is known to affect an estimated 30 to 50 million Americans. It can result from a vast range of factors including injuries that did...

Symptoms of Myofascial Pain Syndrome Introduction Myofascial Pain Syndrome (MPS) is essentially defined as a painful musculoskeletal condition, characterized by the development of Myofascial trigger points (TrPs). These points are locally tender when active and refer pain through specific patterns to other areas of the body. MPS – Key Aspects The Myofascial Pain Syndrome...

Coping with flare-ups and Chronic Pain Introduction Chronic pain is a pain that persists for an unusually long period of time, which goes beyond the expected time of healing. It can lead to a series of long-term consequences such as loss of physical activity and sleep, a sense of uncertainty and insecurity about the...

  Slouching and Back Pain. Why is it that low back pain can be so much worse when we sit relaxed? Your mother probably always told you not to slouch, and, according to research from the Netherlands, she was right! A group of researchers (Snijders et al, 2004) set about looking at the stresses...

Testimonial of patient treated for neuropathic pain by London Pain Clinic Dear Dr Jenner, As it is three weeks since I came to see you I thought it was time to give you a progress report. Firstly thank you for seeing me in the first place and for your concern about my foot pain...