Thursday, September 20, 2012

BACK NECK PAIN AND HYPERTENSION

We suspect hypertension when a patient complains of pain in the back of the neck. But this symptom is very common even to young adults. The youngest age that I have diagnosed hypertension who complained of back neck pain was a 28 years old. But there are a lot of other diseases that cause this pain. Arthritis of the cervical vertebra is the least of all diseases that are suspected. Most often doctors diagnose arthritis in the  knee joints and elbows but not in the neck.
In the 60's barbers used to wring the neck after cutting the hair of males clients by turning the head to the extreme right and to the extreme left causing a snapping sound in the neck. Probably because of fear that it may cause paralysis ( as often heard in barbers' tales), the practice has stopped. But this procedure of wringing the neck was physio-therapeutic because it loosens the facets of the cervical vertebrae and thus prevent build up of uric acid substance in the joints.

2 comments:

  1. Dr. Cagape, you are mistaken. This practice of Filipino barbers performing cervical manipulation continues to this day. My professional estimate is that Filipino Barbers murder 50 people a year doing this "wringing of the neck," as you describe. This practice has been throughly documented to cause a Cerebral Vascular Accident, (CVA) also known as a stroke. In the States a barber would go to jail for such practice. Even a physical therapist may well loose their license for performing a cervical manipulations in the States. To my knowledge cervical manipulation is not even taught in medical schools. Why would it be allowed to be performed by someone like a barber,(whom in the Philippines has no formal training). This is health hazard which has never been addressed by the DOH. It is a serious situation which the public, and the DOH need STOP ASAP.

    Cervical neck pain may be due to hypertension, or osteoarthritis, there are other causes as well.

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    1. Yes, I heard about it. But I love the snapping sound. My barber is not doing it anymore. My brother in law is doing it to himself every now and then. I hope he doesn't have a CVA.

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