You may have heard of people being “thick-skinned”? These people seem impervious to criticism. However you likely have never heard of anyone being “thin-skulled”, unless you live around Cripple Creek, near Colorado Springs. Here resides the cranium that has forever changed injury legal matters nationwide. On Christmas night in 1901, a goldminer stopped in a…
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) has recently been highlighted in professional sports, like football, as a neurodegenerative disease caused by repeated head injuries. It is now also being suspected in boxing, hockey, soccer, rugby, etc…, and even youth sports. While it still remains controversial, both significant or seemingly innocuous impacts could have a major cumulative effect…
The vast majority of Americans feel correctly informed by the media, whether through reading or watching television. More than 80% of people think the press ensures its consumers have the knowledge to be informed. However, in recent analyses, only about 9% of Americans surveyed, “showed an understanding” of basic healthcare. And while 96% of people…
Even before the widespread acceptance of the opioid epidemic, spine pain treatment has tried to focus on non- narcotic strategies. The American College of Physicians in 2017 published in the Annals of Internal Medicine that since “most patients with acute or subacute back pain improve over time regardless of treatment”, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are…
Over 15,000 new spinal cord injuries (SCI) occur each year in the United States. The outcome depends on the severity and location of the injury, resulting in either partial of complete loss of sensory and/or motor function. Partial paralysis occurs about 40% of the time, and complete paralysis about 60% of the time. If a…
In spine surgery, loss of lordosis seems to be associated with poorer outcomes. “Lordosis” refers to the “c” shaped curve of the cervical and lumbar spines. In the thoracic spine, the opposite curve is labeled a “kyphosis”. Cervical About 70% of adults will suffer neck pain at some point in their lives. Most people have…
In 2021, Cosmopolitan magazine posted multiple “covers”, under the cloak, “11 women who prove wellness isn’t ‘one size fits all’”. From the Baroque period to about 1910, obesity was perceived as a sign of wealth and attractiveness. Renoir famously painted numerous “Bathers” scenes of obese individuals into the late 1800s. However it was “Rubenesque” full-figured…
It’s difficult to predict the persona of a caveman, however my impression would be a pretty tough cookie. I picture someone really living in a cave, wearing an animal hide of sorts, probably carrying a club, and likely with a bone through their nose… just like the Geico commercials or the Flintstones. I sense the…
February 14th. Valentine’s Day…. The Perfect Valentine’s Day Chocolate. The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different Saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred. Some think the day commemorates one of the Valentines’ death. However, others think the middle of February was chosen to challenge the pagan celebration of the Roman god…
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most aggressive and deadly brain tumor in adults. We still do not know exactly how GBMs form, or why they universally recur. It was previously thought that glial cells (astrocytes) were the only type of cell that could proliferate in the brain, so GBMs must start from these cells. However,…