What is Cervical Dystonia (what I have…)

home title Posted on Jan 10th, 2012 | 0 comments home title

Cervical dystonia (spasmodic torticollis)

Cervical dystonia, also known as spasmodic torticollis, is a focal dystonia characterized by neck muscles contracting involuntarily, causing abnormal movements and awkward posture of the head and neck. The movements may be sustained (�tonic�), jerky (�clonic�), or a combination. Spasms in the muscles or pinched nerves in the neck can result in considerable pain and discomfort. Cervical dystonia may be primary or secondary.

Terms used to describe cervical dystonia include: spasmodic torticollis, torticollis, adult onset focal dystonia. Specific words may be used to describe the position of the neck: laterocollis (head tilts to side); retrocollis (head tilts back), anterocollis (head tilts forward).

Symptoms
In cervical dystonia, the neck muscles contract involuntarily. If the contractions are sustained, they may cause abnormal posture of the head and neck. If the spasms are periodic or patterned, they may produce jerky head movements. The severity of cervical dystonia varies from mild to severe. Movements are often partially relieved by a �sensory trick� (also known as geste antagoniste) such as gently touching the chin, other areas of the face, or back of the head.

Cervical dystonia may begin in the neck and spread into the shoulders, but the symptoms usually plateau and remain stable within five years of onset. This form of focal dystonia is unlikely to spread beyond the neck and shoulders or become generalized dystonia. Occasionally, people with cervical dystonia develop other focal dystonias.

Cause
Cervical dystonia may be primary (meaning that it is the only apparent neurological disorder, with or without a family history) or be brought about by secondary causes such as physical trauma. Cases of inherited cervical dystonia may occur in conjunction with early-onset generalized dystonia, which is associated with the DYT1 gene.

Diagnosis
Diagnosis of cervical dystonia is based on information from the affected individual and the physical and neurological examination. At this time, there is no test to confirm diagnosis of cervical dystonia, and in most cases assorted laboratory tests are normal.

Cervical dystonia should not be confused with other conditions which cause a twisted neck such as local orthopedic or congenital problems of the neck, or ophthalmologic conditions where the head tilts to compensate for impaired vision. It is sometimes misdiagnosed as stiff neck, arthritis, or wryneck.

Treatment
One of the most effective treatments for cervical dystonia is regular botulinum toxin injections to the affected muscles. A multitude of oral medications have demonstrated some benefit. The categories of drugs reported to help relieve the symptoms associated with cervical dystonia include anticholinergic drugs such as Artane �(trihexyphenidyl) and Cogentin� (benztropine); dopaninergic drugs such as Sinemet� or Madopar� (levodopa), Parlodel� (bromocriptine), and Symmetrel� (amantadine); and GABAergic drugs such as Valium� (diazepam).

Selective denervation surgery is an option for some cervical dystonia patients, and deep brain stimulation surgery is beginning to be explored for cervical dystonia as well.

Gentle physical therapy with a physical therapist who specializes in neurological disorders may improve range of motion and help reduce pain.

Complementary therapies should be explored and regular relaxation practices may significantly benefit discomfort and pain.

 

Source: http://www.dystonia-foundation.org/pages/more_info___cervical_dystonia_spasmodic_torticollis/46.php from the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation.  To Donate to the DMRF, click here

What Is Torticollis (Dystonia) And How Is It Caused?

home title Posted on Jan 10th, 2012 | 0 comments home title

What Is Torticollis (Dystonia) And How Is It Caused?

What Is Torticollis?

Torticollis comes from the Latin: torti (twisted) and collis (neck).Torticollis (sometimes called cervical dystonia or spasmodic torticollis) is a condition in which the muscles controlling the neck are locked in a sustained contraction causing the neck to twist to one side. Different forms of torticollis can cause the head to twist to the side, to tilt back, to tilt forward or lean ear to shoulder.It can be a very painful condition that can cause a lot of distress.photo courtesy of widipedia

Types Of Torticollis

Torticollis usually begins between age 30-60, with women affected twice as often as men. According to the National Spasmodic Torticollis Association, torticollis affects 83,000 people in the United States.

There are three types of torticollis:
* tonic, in which the abnormal posture is sustained
* clonic, marked by jerky head movements.
* mixed, a combination of tonic and clonic movements

Torticollis in Real Life

Crooked Twisted Neck Cervical Dystonia Spasmodic Torticollis
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54 ratings | 72,914 views

curated content from YouTube

Torticollis Symptoms And Causes

The nerve signals responsible for torticollis are thought to originate in the basal ganglia, a group of brain structures involved in movement control. The exact defect is unknown.

Symptoms usually begin gradually, and may come and go, becoming worse in times of stress. Symptoms usually progress over a few years, and then become steady.
People who suffer from torticollis sometimes feel relief when lying down.

Pain in the neck, shoulder or back affects more than two-thirds of all people with torticollis. Pain may also spread to the arm or hand.

Learn More About Torticollis and Dystonia

Torticollis Treatment

There are diffferent avenues for treating torticollis (cervical dystonia) but the preferred torticollis treatment is botox injections. Botox temporarily paralyzes the muscles allowing for normal range of movement. Oral drugs such as muscle relaxers can provide relief also.

There are alternative routes other than pharmaceuticals that can be very helpful. Physical therapy can help relieve secondary consequences of torticollis. Regular muscle stretching prevents permanent muscle shortening. Pain and spasm may be temporarily lessened with application of heat or ice.

Regular massage therapy can reduce additional pain in affected areas of the body. Energy-based therapies, such as acupuncture, can work to rebalance the whole person, helping to correct the torticollis. Antispasmodic herbs may help to relax the muscles. In addition, herbs that can help balance the stimulus from the nervous system are often beneficial.

In some cases people opt for surgery.

Different Surgeries For Torticollis, Cervical Dystonia

There are two different types of brain surgeries performed for torticollis: lesioning procedures, which consists of selective destruction of specific, abnormal brain tissue, and deep brain stimulation, which mimics lesioning by manipulating selective brain areas with non-destructive electrical pulses.

Surgery is usually reserved for those people whose torticollis does not respond satisfactorily to other treatments and therapies. The effects of surgery occur on the side of the body opposite the surgical site. Although there are risks involved,
studies have shown that both procedures can result in marked improvement with minimal complications. Some patients can completely stop any drug therapies after surgery.

Dealing With Torticollis Through Relaxation And Comfort

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Getting The Word Out About Torticollis

Torticollis (cervical dystonia) is a condition that many people suffer through or deal with everyday and so many of us are unaware of this fact. I hope I have been able to bring about some much needed attention to this movement disorder and some understanding of how it impacts these people’s lives.

The Science of Victimization

home title Posted on Nov 2nd, 2011 | 0 comments home title

This blog post from Skip is very much on point – by looking outward to blame others we ignore/escape the real issues that lay within each of us to deal with.  Life is what it is; it is brutish, hard and short.  Life is NOT fair.  Ask anyone with an invisible condition about fairness.  Fairness shares a portion of it’s etymology with fairy, as in fairy-tale.  The moment we allow the idea of fairness of OUTCOME to creep into our thoughts we are doomed to this cycle of apathy, socialism, awakening and renewal.

Trackback: http://disqus.com/forums/conservativeoutpost/the_science_of_victimization/trackback/

The Science Of Victimization.

Posted by :Skip MacLure October 31, 2011 – 6:25pm

We suffered a malfunction. The lights went out on our main site. At first I thought, okay, it must have been the article that Dee recently managed to slip by the editorial staff at the Daily Kos. My imagination summoned a legion of spittle-drooling, knuckle-dragging hackers in their mothers’ basements mounting an assault against our sites.

We had certainly stirred up an ants nest over there, as it was. There were some panties over there so twisted up it was cutting off their circulation. We had much the same thing happen a couple of times when the Huff ‘n Puff Post published a couple of our articles, probably because an editor published off a headline or a sub-head without reading the article. The results were hysterical. It was just as though we took a stick and stirred up a nest of Texas Fire Ants. Some of them actually actively looked for us for several months. Cute trick, since we publish from ‘somewhere’ in Wales.

So the lights went out and it was because of the bank’s apparent inability to post a payment on time. Gee, there it is, Dee… we’re victims. Victims of big banking. What a hoot. That’s exactly what the whole ‘progressive’ movement is all about. Taking victimization and attempting to codify it.

As genuinely sick and tired as I am of listening to the statist Lame Stream Press carry water for the left and its Marxist agenda, I can take solace from readers comments on the subject saying much the same things. They are (the statists) steadily losing ground and influence, and they know it.

The leftists have a largely deaf ear to those of us outside of the political class. Until, that is, their political agenda is threatened and then they quickly morph into their ‘party of the people’ mode to once again convince the ‘victim’ class that the visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads will come true… if only they wait. The real and present problem for the left, trying to re-ignite the spark that swept Barack Hussein into office, is that many of his base really believed the things that were said and promised.

As the first glow of victory faded and the light of reality shone on Barack Obama’s stewardship of the country, even his most ardent supporters had trouble defending him and his visibly destructive policies. The exodus of support continues to this day, three years down the road. Even the ‘victims’ are tired of waiting.

Semper Vigilans, Semper Fidelis

© Skip MacLure 2011

Disabled Discrimination – One of the last tribal stigmas

home title Posted on Sep 16th, 2011 | 0 comments home title

Skin tone, sex and sexual orientation, race, religion and class are all stigmas that have existed from humanity’s beginnings. Anything that appears to be different from the eye of the beholder’s own experience was foreign and not understood. We began to eliminate our prejudices based on our understandings. Sometimes the shift was relatively smooth and bloodless, but more often than not the shift from persecuting someone who was different than us to not persecuting them was filled with violence ranging the scale.

One stigma that our Paleolithic minds cannot seem to avoid is toward those whom are handicapped, disabled, differently abled or any other word combo you wish. Whether a core ability was not there (seeing, hearing, walking) or a ‘wiring’ issue with someone’s personality or behavior, we are still to a large degree living in a tribal culture that shuns at best and is actively discriminatory toward at worst those who are traveling this world (and happen to have a disability).

No conversation of this topic would be complete without discussing this: Many disabled persons have a cosmically large chip on their shoulders (based on self-pity). This cannot be ignored. Beyond that, I imagine (and have the same thoughts) that many disabled folks wish they could show an Avatar to the world. If only to avoid people who feel sorry for them; even though they just want to help or have a warm heart, the ill-fated interaction with someone who’s disabled rarely go as they well-meaning mind would want.

Disabled persons want to feel/be seen as normal, even though they know that they aren’t. As we are different, it is natural that the urge would be to fight to be seen as normal. Perception is the problem – disabled folks feel marginalized and looked down upon as broken or an incomplete person. Nothing could be more incorrect – disabled people can do just about anything they want, to a point. I’d never attempt to become a firefighter or a Navy Seal – it would be stupid to try. Learning our limits is one challenge; helping others learn what those are (and what they aren’t) is a MUCH larger challenge.

There was a story in the news recently where a wheelchair-bound girl was protesting her rejection from the cheer-leading team in her high school.  These types of stories do not help the plight of those who are disabled, nor do they help the disabled person — it is a given that each human being walking this earth must face and overcome certain obstacles in their life’s journey.  The cognitive dissidence of the girl and her parents that allow them to believe she is entitled to join the cheerleading team even when she cannot perform the functions of a cheerleader is indicative of our lunatic society.

Part of the lunacy stems from the fact that folks who do not have a disability either look at those who do as a novelty or as someone that requires rescuing.  To borrow a current irritating phrase, let me be clear — I am not speaking of the occasional opening of a door or the supporting someone’s request for aid.  I am speaking of someone’s overzealous desire to either draw attention to a disabled person or to overwhelm the disabled person with unwanted assistance.

When I walk around, I’m “normal” looking and no one would think that I’m a person living with a disability.  I had a dead battery once and tried to get the attention of people passing by.  I could’ve been invisible with the results of my attempts to get help — no one seems to even see a person requesting aid.  Contrast this with someone who is in a wheelchair; is rare to see someone rolling about and not find someone going out of their way to offer assistance.  While this is an innocent, overzealous effort to ‘help someone to can’t do what we do’, the able-bodied person doesn’t realize that they are offer of assistance actually violates the prime directive for a disabled person.

The prime directive for those with disabilities is this — look normal, behave normal and be normal.  Those with disabilities are fixated around the idea of being normal; those able-bodied persons that encounter disabled people noticing the abnormality attempt to give aid that cause the facade of normality to be shattered.  We will get better at this process — we are however nowhere near the state that most people want to believe that we are in.  My advice to you is this — treat disabled individuals as you would treat a coworker or your best friend.  If you can ignore their disability you will make them the happiest person on earth.

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