Exercises To Help With Pain

Sufferers of chronic pain are often told to incorporate exercise and stretching into their daily regime.  In addition to medication, exercise and stretching are also useful in controlling and monitoring pain.  This is especially useful in situations where chronic pain is more localized and less diffuse throughout the body. 

One reader of Pain Pathways Magazine wrote in with a question in the Spring 2012 issue regarding severe quadratus lumborum (lower back) pain that had become chronic.  The pain specialist answered her question and wrote back with some stretching techniques that could work to relieve the pain and allow her to walk and participate in other light exercising without muscle pain or spasms.  The three types of exercises the pain specialist recommended were:

1.  Core strengthening exercises.  This is similar to traditional crunches that work to strengthen the area around the pelvis and abdomen.  There are many versions of abdominal crunches that might help to improve posture and relieve back pain.

2.  Flexion distraction techniques.  These are movements that you can perform with the help of a special table.  They work to stretch the spine through a series of small pressure movements. Ultimately, it works to decrease inflammation in that area.

3.  Myofacial release.  This is a technique used by a therapist to work through the deep tissue layers and restore range of motion.  It can be used for many different musculoskeletal pain issues.

Attorney Doug Stoehr is a lawyer located in Altoona, PA who has successfully negotiated claims for those who have chronic pain as the result of personal injury.  For more information on him and his firm, please click here.

Test Yourself: Pain Patches

Pain patches, a transdermal medical patch that can administer pain medication through the skin, are becoming more widely used to treat various pain disorders. In some situations, pain patches may offer the opportunity to take a higher and more effective dose of medication with reduced side effects.  In the most recent issue of Pain Pathways magazine (Spring 2012, page 51) a quick quiz is available that may help you learn more about pain patches. Some of the answers from the quiz (answers located below) might surprise you!

-Pain patches can be used to manage arthritis, back pain, sprains/strains/bruises, shingles pain, diabetic neuropathy, postherpetic neuralgia, and complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS).  It may also help manage many other disorders, too!

-Pain patches do NOT all contain opioids (narcotics) and do NOT all require a prescription.  Some of the patches that do not require a prescription are those that contain lidocaine and menthol.

-Pain patches sometimes work only at the site of the patch, but not always. 

-Pain patches cannot always be combined to adjust the dose.  Adhering more than the recommended dose to the skin may result in serious, and sometimes lethal, side effects. Be sure to follow written or physician's instructions when applying the pain patch. 

-You should avoid using a fentanyl pain patch if you have not used prescription opioid medication in the past.  It is more difficult to precisely monitor the dosage of drugs given through a pain patch, so fentanyl pain patches are not recommended for opioid-naive patients.

-Capsaicin patches not not always have to be applied in the doctor's office.  It depends on the dosage.

-People suffering from pain can use the patches to also reduce opioid side effects and relieve opioid withdrawal (under physician instructions).

-Patches should never be applied to the face or on damaged skin.



Attorney Doug Stoehr is a lawyer located in Altoona, PA who has successfully negotiated claims for those who have chronic pain as the result of personal injury.  For more information on him and his firm, please click here.

Secret Meth Lab Catches Fire In Ohio Nursing Home

Occasionally, one hears of truly unbelievable stories involving real-life people.  Recently, one of those instances occurred in an Ohio nursing home.  Apparently, a methamphetamine lab was being run at the nursing home in a resident's room and caught fire and exploded.  The fire killed one man, who was neither a resident nor an employee.  Four others were burned and taken to the hospital. According to the police report, at least two visitors and one nursing home resident knew about the existence of the meth lab.  The resulting fire damaged one nearby room and part of a hallway, resulting in six residents being relocated elsewhere.  Last year, this same nursing home was cited for inadequate care and more then ten other violations.  According to the newspaper article, "Alleged violations found in a December survey included inadequate care, failure to investigate how a resident was injured and improperly responding to residents' complaints about missing property. The facility's plan of correction said it would go over proper care and reporting procedures with staff and would replace residents' missing items."

Obviously, this particular story is not the norm in cases of nursing home injury, abuse, and neglect.  However, this story is horrendous and can show how bad nursing home conditions can get if not kept under control and monitored.   With this in mind, you will need to research possible nursing home options extensively to avoid the possibility of negligence or abuse of a loved one, as well as under/inefficient staffing.  Attorney Doug Stoehr is a central Pennsylvania lawyer specializing in nursing home abuse and negligence.  For more information on his practice, please visit our website.

Chronic Pain and Substance Abuse

Sufferers of chronic pain often find relief through an individualized regimen of prescription medication and physical therapy/regular exercise.  Unfortunately, many of these same patients also often develop drug addictions to their painkillers, since many of these medications include a form of methadone or other narcotics.  In an effort to understand more about developing drug addictions in chronic pain patients and to reduce the occurrence of this phenomenon, a recent study took a closer look.


The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota took a look at chronic pain patients who were also addicted or at-risk for addiction for prescription drugs.  The Mayo Clinic instituted a substance abuse education portion to the chronic pain section of their clinic and recorded the results.  According to the press release, "The study addressed substance use in chronic pain patients, and the researchers aimed to determine the efficacy of a 3-week interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation treatment for patients with chronic pain who have an increased risk of substance abuse. With 50 percent of their patients clearly candidates for an addiction treatment program, the Center began to incorporate substance use education into their interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation program. Not only could patients improve their functioning and mood as it related to their pain, but they could also begin to explore and increase their awareness of their substance abuse risk.".  Hopefully, other chronic pain clinics and pain specialists will follow suit and continue to incorporate substance abuse education into their treatment procedures.

Chronic pain is a serious and life-altering diagnosis.  If you have been having trouble sleeping and have also had consistent pain lasting over six months, it might be time to consult with a doctor.  If this pain was caused by an accident due to the fault of another, it may also be time to consult with an attorney.   If you would like more information about this page or central Pennsylvania attorney Doug Stoehr's areas of practice, contact our Altoona, Pennsylvania, law firm by calling 814-946-4100. 

Strange But True: Chronic Pain Researchers Discover "Erasing" Chemical

Occasionally while investigating a research problem, scientists stumble upon something that they did not expect.  Researchers studying the pathways and treatment of chronic pain had that experience recently.  While studying the genes involved in chronic pain, the scientists discovered a chemical that can erase "memories".  Neuroscientists at McGill University claim that the chemical, with the  acronym ZIP, can selectively wipe out the nervous system’s “memory” of chronic pain while still leaving other memories intact.

This chemical may work because pain that lasts more than a few minutes, leaving a permanent memory trace (which is the reasoning behind phantom limb syndrome).  To begin experiments with ZIP, the scientists injected the chemical into the spinal area of rats.  This successfully wiped out pain memories in their hind paws that had become tender and very sensitive from the use of capsacin, the burning chemical in hot peppers.  Although this chemical is in the very early stages of development and may not possibly become a drug for many years, its future is bright and many result in chronic pain relief for thousands of patients.

Chronic pain is a tricky diagnosis in terms of finding the right medication combination that will work, but will not lead to overmedication.  Working with your physician and seeing what is right for you is the only way to find an effective, realistic pain management treatment.  If you would like more information about this page or central Pennsylvania attorney Doug Stoehr's areas of practice, contact our Altoona, Pennsylvania, law firm by calling 814-946-4100. 

A Closer Look Into Nursing Homes

Nursing homes are a pretty ubiquitous feature of most cities and populated areas.  Although many people know generally what nursing homes are like and what features they have, some do not know the many varieties within these facilities.  All nursing homes are not created equal and there is a wide variance in layout, amenities, features, and programs.

AARP, through a blog series, took a look at the varieties of living options for seniors.  Through looking at different types of nursing homes in particular, they discovered that almost all facilities have these 7 things in common:

1. on-site physical therapy and rehabilitation services
2. activity programming
3. transportation to medical appointments
4. all meals and snacks
5. medical care (i.e. IV therapy, wound care, end-of-life care)
6. medication management and administration
7. personal care (dressing, bathing, transferring, toileting)

If you are interested in learning more about the different options of elder and end-of-life care, the AARP website and blog may be a good source of information for you.  They have articles covering all types of living options for elderly people, as well as information about MediCare and MediCaid as it relates to those living options.

As stated earlier, not all nursing homes are created equal.  This also means that not all nursing homes provide the same level and quality of care.  With this in mind, you will need to research possible nursing home options extensively to avoid the possibility of negligence or abuse of a loved one, as well as under/inefficient staffing.  Attorney Doug Stoehr is a central Pennsylvania lawyer specializing in nursing home abuse and negligence.  For more information on his practice, please visit our website.

Private Investment Nursing Homes Don't Fare Well In Study

A recent study by the Government Accountability Office and Health Services Research offices attempted to compare care in government-run nursing homes and private, for-profit nursing homes.  Although for-profit nursing homes advertise better quality of care than their government counterparts, this study suggested that superior care in private nursing homes is not always true.


According to the study, which was published in July of last summer, the researchers reviewed complaints from for-profit nursing homes that had consistently provided poor quality care. Interestingly, most of these complaints centered around homes that private investment (PI) firms purchased for large nursing home chains.  Many suggest that these PI firms are focusing on monetary success, not quality of care. The government study compared PI homes against other for-profit and nonprofit homes and found that higher instances of serious complaints and issues were found in PI homes; additionally, PI homes also had lower nurse/staff ratios. Additionally this lower ratio resulted in a decreased quality of care and correlated to more pressure ulcers, higher mortality rates, and a higher number of regulation violations.  The study reported that "the top ten for-profit homes received 36 percent higher deficiency citations and 41 percent higher serious deficiencies. These deficiencies are issued whenever a facility violates regulations that can lead to injury."

 The government sets up standard state and national regulations that private homes must meet, and if these standards are not met, citations are issued. There are over 180 regulations and regulation deficiencies are reported on two different levels, standard and serious, during routine and random federal inspections. A standard deficiency is more related to quality standards, such as cleanliness and food storage, while a serious deficiency is more directly related to putting a patient in immediate danger.  Citations can result in a range of consequences, from monetary penalties to revoking a license.

With this in mind, it is important to research the many options available to your family if you are deciding to put a loved one into a nursing home. By gaining the most information possible, you can make the best decision to avoid elder abuse and substandard care.  Substandard care in a nursing home often leads to neglect and injuries.  Nursing home litigation is a relatively new field of negligence law.  We suggest you consult with an attorney who understands the complex federal and state regulations that apply to care plans in nursing homes.    For more information on Attorney Doug Stoehr and his central Pennsylvania law firm, please visit our website  or call us at (814) 946-4100.