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Not Another Headache Lecture
By · CommentsOur Neuropathy News event last month was a big hit. Doc Patrick Lowe spoke while the group enjoyed some great cajun food at Furlongs. Established patients learned how chiropractic care can help without dangerous drugs or therapy. Several new patients came and you should be seeing some of them around the office.
Well we’re ready to do it again in June. This time Doc Lowe will be lecturing on Headaches. The title of the lecture is “Not Another Headache” and the details are below.
- June 8, 2010
- 7 – 8:00PM at Furlongs Restaurant
- 9601 Shelbyville Rd 327-9299
If you’re having occasional headaches or battling recurring ones, you need the information we will share. Get a sneak peak of the things we’ll be covering by downloading our promotional flyer Not Another Headache (65).
You can register online or call Cathy Head at 693-3289 to reserve your seat today.
Doctors who read MRI’s
By · CommentsI was running with an attorney 2 weeks ago. About 5 miles in she said something profound. She said “People don’t understand that words have meanings.” I immediately started to think about an article I read in SPINE (a professional research journal). They did research on MRI reports of disc herniations. They concluded that “the specific morphology (shape) of the herniation was not reported by the radiologist in 42.2% of the cases.”
The problem is that most doctors only see the radiology report,they never see the actual pictures and many doctors aren’t trained to read the MRI itself. The report later says “the radiology dictation did not provide enough detail to classify the herniation as protrusion, extrusion or sequestered fragment.” The choice of words here is very important. Why is this important? Because one of these (the sequestered fragment) often requires emergency surgery! Extrusion should be referred for surgical consultation first instead of loading the spinal disc with more pressure with exercises routinely performed in physical therapy.
It is critically important to work with doctors who are have extensive knowledge in the interpretation of MRI with traumatic injuries.
If you have had an MRI study performed, please bring in the films or disc as well as the report. I like to read the MRI myself. I teach my doctors, “If a picture is worth a thousand words, why settle for a 200 word report?”
Click here to see Dr. Lowe’s Curriculum Vitae
- SPINE, Lurie,Dorman,Spratt, Tosteson & Weinstein (2009) pg 703-705
Louisville Chiropractor, Patrick Lowe works with low back pain, neck pain, whiplash and other injuries related to car accidents. He spends his spare time studying the best treatments and diagnostic tests for these conditions.
A Safe Bet, Increase your PIP limits
By · CommentsI have always considered buying insurance a gamble. You are betting that you will need it at some time in the future and get your money back. The insurance company is betting that you will pay enough premiums to not only cover you but also your neighbor if they have a wreck.
Kentucky, like most states requires you to have car insurance. They also set the limits of coverage. You have to have $10,000 per person in Personal Injury Protection. This pays medical bills, chiropractic bills and hospital bills for anyone who is injured in the collision.
Ten thousand dollars sounds like a lot until you consider the cost of an emergency room visit:
Ambulance $ 350
X-ray study $ 600
ER Room $ 800
MRI or CT scan $1400
Standard Prescriptions$ 200
The first day which is mostly diagnostics and minimal treatment is easily $3,350.
If you required a surgical consultation, therapy, chiropractic care or anything else it’s easy to see how fast $10,000 can go.
Here’s what some common surgical procedures cost according to Kentucky Hospital Discharge data from 2008. ^
Spinal Fusion (non-cervical) $71,491.20
Cervical Fusion $32,033.17
Spine Surgery $15,143.50
Fracture of Hip or Pelvis $ 9,260.00
That’s fast and believe me, that’s not the whole cost. You will have the bill from the anesthesiologist, the hospital, the surgeon, the physical therapist, the radiologist and several others. We see people all the time who are frustrated because their PIP is exhausted, they have additional problems and don’t have the money to have them addressed. I will be addressing some of these additional problems in future blog posts.
I called my insurance agent and got a quote to increase my PIP from the standard $10,000 to $40,000 limit. It would increase my premium by….. $40 a year. Yes, I said $40 a year.
With my health insurance I would have to pay my deductible ($1,000) and 20% of any procedure. I would have to pay at least $2,000 out of pocket for a hip fracture. I think I’ll take the $40 bet. You do the math.
It just makes sense.
Dr. Lowe
Patrick Lowe is a chiropractor in Louisville, KY. He has done extensive research and training in the diagnosis and treatment of whiplash and collision related injuries. Dr. Lowe works in the medico-legal arena helping people through a painful and often frustrating time of their lives. His office is located at 10306 Shelbyville Rd, Louisville. He can be reached at (502) 245-7334
^ http://info.kyha.com/
Docs Story
By · CommentsOver Christmas I ran into a friend from college. He was surprised to hear that I was a chiropractor and not a medical doctor or psychiatrist. That was my goal back then. We had attended Ohio University, a beautiful college located in foot hills of the Appalachian Mountains. We walked up and down hills covering miles each day getting to and from our classes. We always had our books in a backpack swung across one shoulder.
Walking to my car, I felt my right hip and low back lock up. One step was all it took. Every step felt worse until I made it to my car and made it home. I remember sitting on our linoleum floor in our small house, leaning against the wall, hoping that it would shift or pop back in place and feel better. I didn’t know anything about chiropractic then, but somehow, deep in my brain, I knew what needed to happen. It didn’t, I walked around crooked and in pain for three weeks.
I graduated from college with two bachelors, one in biology/pre-med and one in psychology. I had studied the brain, anatomy, physiology, psychology, the nervous system and how the brain controls and effects the body. I was planning on going to medical school and on to become a Psychiatrist. Someone mentioned a new idea (new to me anyway). An idea that linked both of the sciences I had studied. They told me about Chiropractic. Chiropractic opens the connections from the brain (Psychology) to the body (Pre-Med) so that the body could take care of itself.
One of the major truths that I learned from my studies in pre-medicine is that doctors do not heal the body, medicine does not heal the body, surgery does not heal the body. The only thing that heals the body is the life force already inside the body.
Surgery can cut our cancer and medicine can stop its spread. Surgery can put a broken bone back together and pain killers can stop the pain. Only time and the power within the body can actually do the healing. The power within the body travels from the brain, through the spinal cord, to the nerves and to all of the parts of the body. Chiropractic care just opens the channels for all of this to take place. It just made sense!
I knew, deep in my brain, that my low back and hip needed to shift into place to relieve the pain. Other people just know, deep inside, that their spines have to be in place for their bodies to work right. You know it to.
Patrick Lowe is a Doctor of Chiropractic in Louisville, Kentucky. He established Lowe Chiropractic and Wellness in 1998. His office serves the people of Louisville and Eastern Jefferson County.
“They Said I Would be in a Nursing Home”
By · CommentsThey Said I would be in a Nursing Home!
By · CommentsThey said I would be in an Nursing Home here is my story. by Mary Ruth VanGundy
I started coming to see Dr. Lowe when I discovered I had rheumatoid arthritis. I had been going to a group of arthritic doctors for about eight months and the particular one that I went to most of the time wanted to put me on a drug and I did not want to go on drugs, but anyway, she was out of the country and I used—I had to see one of the other doctors that was there and he had told me if I did not get on the drug that in five years, I’d be in the nursing home and that I would be paralyzed, people waiting on me. Would have people waiting on me and that didn’t sound too good either.
So I decided to go on the drug. I had explained to him that I told her that I could not take the 250 mg drug every day. I couldn’t even take an aspirin for my stomach, let alone that kind of a drug, so he said, “You look like a smart, intelligent lady. We will give you a shot today, and you can start giving yourself the shot.” So that’s the way we decided to go, only now it was a 6cc shot and I took it once a week, and I did take it for, well—back up.
When she came back she wanted to know how he did that and so, I repeated the story to her, how come I got on the drug, she moved it up to 2cc which made it—I was taking once a week and I had to come back in of course monthly to be checked, and anyway, I told her, I was going to stay on the drug in a year. So my year was either up or about up when I had found this link that in the Southeast Christian’s Paper and it happened to be from Dr. Lowe and it said that your first examination was free. I thought, “You know what, I’ve used chiropractors before and decided to try them.” Theyhad helped me previously with my back, but I had a little bit more wrong now, but anyway, I came and made an appointment, come to see, took the x-rays and the next week, I came back and we talked about it and I had a bad—just a few more months, I don’t know exactly now the month time is, and so long ago, to take the drug and I asked her about—told her that I was going to get off, so I had told her that I was going to get off the drug and she said, “Are you going to go cold turkey?” I said, “Well, I’m no doctor. That’s not the right way to go. I’ll downsize on it.” So then, we started downsizing and it took me six months to do that and as of today, I am cured of all of my ailments that I had with the RA, mostly and I haven’t been on drugs for five years, praise the Lord!
Anyway, let’s see, I do get an adjustment twice a month. I’ve had the decompression done on my neck which I had had terrible migraine headaches and problems with my neck because I had two whiplashes and now, I have no more headaches and I can walk without any problems although most of my rheumatoid arthritis is in my feet and in my hands.
I don’t know what to say right now.
Well, I feel great! I mean, I can do just about anything I want to. I am capable of living by myself, I am capable of doing for myself. I can drive. I do get tired, but I was told—fatigue comes with the rheumatoid arthritis and also at 73, you’re bound to get tired faster. I just praise my Lord for opening the door and for coming to see Dr. Lao and to be off of drugs because I don’t want to do drugs. I do some alternative things that helps my health—immune system, but none of them are drugs.
Louisville Chiropractor Patrick Lowe is a member of Southeast Christian Church. His office Lowe Chiropractic and Wellness is located at 10306 Shelbyville Rd. (502) 245-7334 www.louisville-chiropractor.com
Louisville Chiropractor on The Flu
By · CommentsOne Flu… and its Over.
Many of our patients ask us about whether or not they should get the flu shot. Advertisements are everywhere about getting the Flu Vaccine. I have even seen drive through vaccination centers set up.
Let’s look at the flu itself. If you get it you can be sick for anywhere from 24 hours to 7 days. It can be miserable. But once you have had a certain strain of the flu you build up a life long immunity to that strain. Overall, it makes you stronger.
The National Vaccine Information Center reports 20,000 deaths each year from complications from the flu such as pneumonia. Most deaths are related to people who already have a compromised immune system, are elderly, and those who are suffering from diabetes, kidney dysfunction, and heart disease.
Officials from the Federal Health Agency try to guess which three specific strains of the flu virus are most likely to occur each year. They take these three inactivate them with formaldehyde and preserve them with thimerosal. (Thimerosal contains mercury which can cause brain damage, etc.) If they choose the right strains, then, it is 70 to 80 % effective in people under the age of 65 for decreasing flu symptoms. It is only 30-40% effective in those over 65.
Side Effects of the flu vaccine include fever, fatigue, joint pain, and headaches. It can also lead to Guillian-Barre Syndrome within 2 to 4 weeks. This condition includes muscle weakness, unsteady gait, numbness, tingling, pain and sometimes paralysis. Recovery does take several months and can lead to permanent disability, 5% lead to death.
The results of the vaccine seem promising until we realize that the immunity from the vaccine only lasts for 6 months. Immunity from getting the strain of the Flu is life long.
What about the new FluMist nasal spray vaccine?
This new type of flu vaccine was just approved in June of 2003. It can be sprayed into the nose and reportedly gives the same benefits as the flu vaccine. The Dow Jones Business News reported in September “MedImmune, the manufacturer of FluMist, recently announced that it signed an agreement that makes FluMist, the new intranasal influenza vaccine, readily available to people as they shop at Wal-Mart, the worlds biggest retailer.” [1]
The injected vaccine contains a dead virus. The new nasal spray contains a live weakened virus. Research shows this virus being released from the person for up to three weeks.
The manufacturer recommends that people not get flu mist vaccine if they have:
Asthma, are pregnant, have diabetes or kidney disorders, chronic heart or lung conditions…. And the list goes on. Further, they recommend staying away from people with these problems or who are immunocompromised for 21 days because of the shedding of the virus. A natural reaction to putting something up you nose is to sneeze.
A sneeze projects mist out of the nose at about 150 miles per hour. Now THAT can spread a virus.
A prescription is required only if the person is under the age of 17 according to the Flu Mist website. [4]
Barbara Loe Fisher from the National Vaccine Information Center states, “When more people have been exposed to the flu shot as opposed to the disease, you have fewer and fewer people who have any kind of permanent immunity to any strains of the flu, we become basically vaccine dependent.”
Chiropractic care helps boost you immune system so your body can fight off any infections faster. And the healthier you are, the better your internal resistance, the better your body will fight off any infection.
As for me and my family we will NOT be getting the flu vaccine and we will limit our shopping at stores that are giving the Flu-Mist nasal spray to shoppers. To find out where the FluMist viral particles will be the highest visit their website a www.flumist.com
1. Dow Jones Business News. Sept. 12, 2003. FluMist Available In Pharmacies This Fall.
2 FluMist package insert and Website information www.flumist.com
3. Website for National Vaccine Information Center WWW.909shot.com
Patrick Lowe is a Chiropractor in Louisville, KY. His office serves Anchorage KY, Lyndon KY, Middletown KY, Crestwood KY, Jeffersontown KY and Louisville’s East End. Lowe Chiropractic & Wellness is located at 10306 Shelbyville Rd in Dorsey Plaza. Lowe Chiropractic treats people suffering from lower back pain, neck pain, head aches, neuropathy and many other conditions. http://www.louisville-chiropractor.com