1 00:00:01,639 --> 00:00:05,360 Speaker 1: Welcome to Get Connected with Nina del Rio, a weekly 2 00:00:05,480 --> 00:00:09,440 Speaker 1: conversation about fitness, health and happenings in our community on 3 00:00:09,440 --> 00:00:11,680 Speaker 1: one oh six point seven Light FM. 4 00:00:12,119 --> 00:00:14,480 Speaker 2: Welcome and thank you for listening to get connected in 5 00:00:14,720 --> 00:00:17,960 Speaker 2: the dead of winter. The snow this week it is beautiful, 6 00:00:17,960 --> 00:00:21,200 Speaker 2: but there's also been plenty to shovel and unfortunately every 7 00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:24,200 Speaker 2: year snow shoveling and slipping on ice are also common 8 00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:27,360 Speaker 2: causes of injuries. So just in time, my guest is 9 00:00:27,400 --> 00:00:31,120 Speaker 2: doctor Brian McHugh, a Long Island based Board certified neurosurgeon. 10 00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:34,120 Speaker 2: We're talking about common injuries he sees every winter and 11 00:00:34,159 --> 00:00:38,520 Speaker 2: how to avoid backneck and other injuries in winter. Doctor 12 00:00:38,560 --> 00:00:40,160 Speaker 2: Brian mchu thank you for being on the show. 13 00:00:40,760 --> 00:00:42,560 Speaker 3: Thanks so much for having me. It's great to be here. 14 00:00:42,760 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 2: You can find out more about the doctor at mchuneurosurgery 15 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:49,879 Speaker 2: dot com. It is estimated up to eighty percent of 16 00:00:49,920 --> 00:00:53,000 Speaker 2: people will experience low back pain at some point during 17 00:00:53,040 --> 00:00:56,440 Speaker 2: their lives. Winter conditions are a frequent trigger. What are 18 00:00:56,480 --> 00:01:00,120 Speaker 2: some of the most common winter spine injuries you see, 19 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 2: like we just had during the storm this week. 20 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:07,400 Speaker 3: Yeah, it's obviously not the best time to protect your 21 00:01:07,440 --> 00:01:10,520 Speaker 3: back right, that's a lot of work to do and 22 00:01:10,880 --> 00:01:14,240 Speaker 3: a lot of heavy snow to shovel, and that's going 23 00:01:14,319 --> 00:01:18,160 Speaker 3: to have repercussions, especially for those of us who don't 24 00:01:18,160 --> 00:01:20,840 Speaker 3: do things that loader back on a regular basis. So 25 00:01:21,440 --> 00:01:24,440 Speaker 3: the biggest issue we see, honestly, are just muscular sprains. 26 00:01:24,959 --> 00:01:27,480 Speaker 3: When you're out there lifting snow like that over and 27 00:01:27,520 --> 00:01:30,600 Speaker 3: over again, which is part of shoveling. You really put 28 00:01:30,640 --> 00:01:34,480 Speaker 3: a lot of what's the right word tacks on your glutes, 29 00:01:34,520 --> 00:01:37,640 Speaker 3: your hamstrings, kind of the muscular chain along the backside 30 00:01:37,640 --> 00:01:41,320 Speaker 3: of your body. And honestly, a lot of times it's 31 00:01:41,360 --> 00:01:44,800 Speaker 3: after you cool down from shoveling that you'll go to 32 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:47,800 Speaker 3: do something and those muscles are all exhausted and then 33 00:01:47,800 --> 00:01:51,200 Speaker 3: you over prescribe your back and you pull something in 34 00:01:51,200 --> 00:01:52,720 Speaker 3: the lower back or straighten it. 35 00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:55,640 Speaker 2: In fact, I have to say, to be honest, it 36 00:01:55,680 --> 00:01:57,920 Speaker 2: happened to me this week. So there's a lot of twisting, right, 37 00:01:57,960 --> 00:02:00,440 Speaker 2: like trying to get stuff over the rail or into 38 00:02:00,440 --> 00:02:02,960 Speaker 2: the side proper technique. That's part of it. 39 00:02:03,600 --> 00:02:06,080 Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean, if that's the tricky part, right, like 40 00:02:06,120 --> 00:02:08,360 Speaker 3: if you can lift with your legs not with your back, 41 00:02:08,400 --> 00:02:10,600 Speaker 3: that's kind of what we were all taught growing up. 42 00:02:11,000 --> 00:02:14,480 Speaker 3: That's the right technique. It's just that twisting and you're 43 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:17,960 Speaker 3: out there and slippery, slushy snow trying to move around, 44 00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:22,600 Speaker 3: and with every shovel are you maintaining strict technique. That's 45 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:23,520 Speaker 3: where we go wrong. 46 00:02:24,080 --> 00:02:26,680 Speaker 2: I also want to talk about falling on ice. That 47 00:02:26,840 --> 00:02:28,720 Speaker 2: is a huge thing. You see a lot of. 48 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:31,960 Speaker 3: That, Yeah, especially for our elderly patients. That can be 49 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:35,440 Speaker 3: really catastrophic the guy, especially black ice where it kind 50 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:37,799 Speaker 3: of looks like the pavement and then you have a 51 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:40,480 Speaker 3: slip and fall. Obviously, if you can slip in a 52 00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:43,240 Speaker 3: way where you go down slowly and can brace yourself, 53 00:02:43,360 --> 00:02:45,799 Speaker 3: that's different. But ice, you get a lot of those 54 00:02:45,840 --> 00:02:48,240 Speaker 3: banana peel type falls, that's what I call them, like 55 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:51,080 Speaker 3: you know old sitcoms where you slip feet go up 56 00:02:51,080 --> 00:02:53,480 Speaker 3: in the air. You can do real damage, especially if 57 00:02:53,480 --> 00:02:55,519 Speaker 3: you hit your head. So in the hospitals we'll see 58 00:02:55,560 --> 00:02:58,640 Speaker 3: a lot of brain bleeds actually from folks hitting their head. 59 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:02,359 Speaker 3: And then you can fracture your spine doing that as well. 60 00:03:02,880 --> 00:03:05,160 Speaker 3: That's less common, but it does happen every winter. 61 00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:08,720 Speaker 2: Let's talk about those falls too. Actually, I've recently heard 62 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:11,120 Speaker 2: a friend say something that was passed on from paramedics 63 00:03:11,120 --> 00:03:13,400 Speaker 2: that if you fall on ice, assuming you're in a 64 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:15,600 Speaker 2: safe place, not the middle of the street, not to 65 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:18,560 Speaker 2: get up immediately, just you know, maybe crawl to someplace 66 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:20,280 Speaker 2: and sit for a moment to gather your thoughts and 67 00:03:20,320 --> 00:03:22,800 Speaker 2: figure out what's injured, rather than getting up and like 68 00:03:22,840 --> 00:03:23,519 Speaker 2: slipping again. 69 00:03:23,919 --> 00:03:26,600 Speaker 3: Yeah right, yeah, I mean, I think if you're in 70 00:03:26,639 --> 00:03:29,680 Speaker 3: a bad situation where you have the slip and fall 71 00:03:30,160 --> 00:03:32,600 Speaker 3: and it almost plays out in your mind as a movie, right, 72 00:03:32,639 --> 00:03:34,800 Speaker 3: the person struggles to get back up in sort of 73 00:03:34,800 --> 00:03:37,720 Speaker 3: a panicked, frenetic burst of energy, and they just slip 74 00:03:37,800 --> 00:03:41,600 Speaker 3: and fall again and potentially damage things to a worse extent. 75 00:03:42,120 --> 00:03:45,080 Speaker 3: If you can calmly, just make sure, look, if you 76 00:03:45,160 --> 00:03:47,720 Speaker 3: hit your head, make sure you didn't lose consciousness, you 77 00:03:47,760 --> 00:03:49,640 Speaker 3: know where you are, you're not you didn't have a 78 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:51,880 Speaker 3: seizure or anything like that, and you're safe and you shouldn't. 79 00:03:51,880 --> 00:03:54,800 Speaker 3: Just call nine to one one from you know, your 80 00:03:55,080 --> 00:03:58,240 Speaker 3: recumbent position. If that seems safe to you, then you 81 00:03:58,320 --> 00:04:01,480 Speaker 3: kind of check your neck, in your lower back, make 82 00:04:01,480 --> 00:04:03,880 Speaker 3: sure it doesn't seem broken. You can feel your arms 83 00:04:03,920 --> 00:04:06,680 Speaker 3: and legs. Then you can slowly roll over and get 84 00:04:06,760 --> 00:04:08,040 Speaker 3: up and get to a safe place. 85 00:04:08,960 --> 00:04:11,840 Speaker 2: My guest is doctor Brian McHugh. He's a Long Island 86 00:04:11,880 --> 00:04:15,120 Speaker 2: based board certified neurosurgeon. You can find out more at 87 00:04:15,200 --> 00:04:19,000 Speaker 2: mqueurosurgery dot com. We're talking about winter injuries like slipping 88 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:22,400 Speaker 2: on ice and hurting yourself when shoveling snow. You're listening 89 00:04:22,480 --> 00:04:24,880 Speaker 2: to get connected on one six point seven light FM. 90 00:04:24,920 --> 00:04:28,800 Speaker 2: I'mina del Rio. Neurosurgeons, by the way, are people who 91 00:04:29,279 --> 00:04:32,039 Speaker 2: diagnose and treat conditions affecting the brain and the spinal 92 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:36,160 Speaker 2: cord and the nervous system. What is your particular focus. 93 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:39,480 Speaker 3: Yeah, that's right. It's going to be always general neurosurgery, 94 00:04:39,520 --> 00:04:43,200 Speaker 3: which is common traumas to the head. If you unfortunately 95 00:04:43,320 --> 00:04:45,120 Speaker 3: hit your head too hard, you can have blood in 96 00:04:45,160 --> 00:04:48,599 Speaker 3: the head, can fracture the skull, etc. We focus on 97 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:53,960 Speaker 3: my practice on spine issues and specifically minimally invasive spine 98 00:04:54,800 --> 00:04:58,000 Speaker 3: and deformity of the spine, so we're doing a lot 99 00:04:58,000 --> 00:05:02,520 Speaker 3: of surgeries for scolios age related problems. And then of 100 00:05:02,520 --> 00:05:05,080 Speaker 3: course trauma. It is just part of it, and that 101 00:05:05,120 --> 00:05:07,960 Speaker 3: can be in the setting of a fall like out shoveling, 102 00:05:08,040 --> 00:05:09,720 Speaker 3: or it can be something worse, you know, a high 103 00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:12,560 Speaker 3: speed car crash or something like that. But most of 104 00:05:12,560 --> 00:05:17,080 Speaker 3: the patients, frankly, are just regular folks. As we get older, unfortunately, 105 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:19,839 Speaker 3: you get wear and tear type arthritis in your lower 106 00:05:19,880 --> 00:05:22,680 Speaker 3: back and your neck, and that can cause real problems 107 00:05:22,720 --> 00:05:25,839 Speaker 3: like pinch nerves and severe pain. And then, of course, 108 00:05:25,880 --> 00:05:28,640 Speaker 3: if you're dealing with something like that, or you're susceptible 109 00:05:28,680 --> 00:05:31,000 Speaker 3: to something like that and you have to go out 110 00:05:31,360 --> 00:05:33,880 Speaker 3: and spend three hours shoveling a driveway, you're going to 111 00:05:33,960 --> 00:05:35,599 Speaker 3: have a lot of flare ups of those kind of 112 00:05:35,640 --> 00:05:37,520 Speaker 3: conditions this time of year. 113 00:05:38,080 --> 00:05:41,080 Speaker 2: So a couple of years ago, another full disclosure, I 114 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:43,520 Speaker 2: slipped on the stairs in wet shoes and I went 115 00:05:43,560 --> 00:05:45,919 Speaker 2: straight down on my tailbone, and I literally thought I 116 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:48,200 Speaker 2: had cracked something. It turned out to be a bruise 117 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:50,640 Speaker 2: as far as I could tell. But there's someone listening 118 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:53,039 Speaker 2: who's had a really bad fall this week. How might 119 00:05:53,240 --> 00:05:55,480 Speaker 2: a fracture feel different than a deep bruise. 120 00:05:56,320 --> 00:05:58,800 Speaker 3: That's a great question, actually, and you bring up an 121 00:05:58,839 --> 00:06:03,119 Speaker 3: interesting topic. Tailbone fractures. You can actually break the tip 122 00:06:03,160 --> 00:06:06,440 Speaker 3: off your tailbone, And those kind of stories that you 123 00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:09,839 Speaker 3: just told are exactly the stories for these patients, and 124 00:06:09,920 --> 00:06:12,960 Speaker 3: you tend to move on from it because the tailbone, 125 00:06:13,200 --> 00:06:15,640 Speaker 3: and I'm just digging in here on this tailbone issue. 126 00:06:16,080 --> 00:06:18,440 Speaker 3: You can walk around with a broken tailbone for a while, 127 00:06:18,440 --> 00:06:21,720 Speaker 3: but sitting really hurts, and these folks realize they can't 128 00:06:21,720 --> 00:06:24,200 Speaker 3: sit anymore and they end up getting kicked around the 129 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:26,520 Speaker 3: healthcare system for a while because it just isn't a 130 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:32,520 Speaker 3: common complaint and it's rare. But if that doesn't heal appropriately, 131 00:06:32,520 --> 00:06:34,920 Speaker 3: we actually do a surgery where we remove the tip 132 00:06:34,920 --> 00:06:37,400 Speaker 3: of the tailbone for folks that have cracked it off 133 00:06:37,400 --> 00:06:40,760 Speaker 3: and it hasn't healed. And fortunately, if you had to 134 00:06:40,760 --> 00:06:43,880 Speaker 3: go through something like that, once the broken piece is gone, 135 00:06:43,920 --> 00:06:47,159 Speaker 3: you can sit again. But that sounds like that didn't 136 00:06:47,200 --> 00:06:51,760 Speaker 3: happen to you. You're not unfortunately not a common problem 137 00:06:51,760 --> 00:06:55,200 Speaker 3: out there for folks. But what is common is kind 138 00:06:55,200 --> 00:06:58,080 Speaker 3: of falling like you mentioned, and then especially as we're 139 00:06:58,200 --> 00:07:02,560 Speaker 3: getting older, we can get bones that's called typically osteoporosis 140 00:07:02,640 --> 00:07:07,320 Speaker 3: or osteopenia, and what is common our compression fractures or 141 00:07:07,360 --> 00:07:10,720 Speaker 3: burst fractures of vertebrae in the back and it does 142 00:07:10,760 --> 00:07:12,880 Speaker 3: feel like a bruise, but it just lingers a little 143 00:07:12,920 --> 00:07:17,320 Speaker 3: bit too long and can cause neurologic issues that you know, shooting, 144 00:07:17,400 --> 00:07:20,560 Speaker 3: radiating pain that goes down into the legs. Anything that's 145 00:07:20,640 --> 00:07:23,320 Speaker 3: lingering for longer than a week or two and causing 146 00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:26,560 Speaker 3: those neurologic problems. That's something to see a doctor about, 147 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:28,480 Speaker 3: because you could have done something a little bit more 148 00:07:28,520 --> 00:07:30,680 Speaker 3: substantial than just bruising something. 149 00:07:30,800 --> 00:07:33,600 Speaker 2: Would you say, that's typical of any injury you might 150 00:07:33,680 --> 00:07:35,760 Speaker 2: get when you're say, shoveling, you know, you fall on 151 00:07:35,800 --> 00:07:37,880 Speaker 2: an elbow, you fall on a rib or something like that. 152 00:07:38,280 --> 00:07:40,800 Speaker 3: Yeah, it's funny. You mentioned that there's something called the 153 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:45,720 Speaker 3: clay shovelers injury, which is a fracture and got its 154 00:07:45,800 --> 00:07:49,440 Speaker 3: name from mining work and stuff like that. And if 155 00:07:49,480 --> 00:07:53,840 Speaker 3: you imagine shoveling, clay clays like a very sticky, heavy dirt, 156 00:07:54,200 --> 00:07:55,920 Speaker 3: and you would go to throw it over your shoulder 157 00:07:55,960 --> 00:07:59,600 Speaker 3: and it would stick to the shovel and that creates 158 00:07:59,640 --> 00:08:01,760 Speaker 3: kind of a jerking motion if you can sort of 159 00:08:01,800 --> 00:08:05,360 Speaker 3: imagine that, and you can actually evolse one of the 160 00:08:05,600 --> 00:08:08,800 Speaker 3: spinest processes off the back of your neck when that's 161 00:08:09,000 --> 00:08:11,000 Speaker 3: what I mean by that is when you reach behind 162 00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:13,320 Speaker 3: your head on your neck, those little bony protuberances. You 163 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:18,040 Speaker 3: can feel there is an injury where you're shoveling, typically clay, 164 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:21,000 Speaker 3: it sticks to the shovel and you evulse one of 165 00:08:21,000 --> 00:08:23,920 Speaker 3: the bones. And that has happened to folks when the 166 00:08:24,000 --> 00:08:26,600 Speaker 3: snow is wet and heavy and sticks to the shovel 167 00:08:26,720 --> 00:08:30,120 Speaker 3: just like clay might. So you get these funny injuries 168 00:08:30,200 --> 00:08:32,000 Speaker 3: that you put in the back of your mind and 169 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:34,280 Speaker 3: say that I didn't break anything. I was just shoveling 170 00:08:34,360 --> 00:08:37,600 Speaker 3: the dryway and it lingers. And when you're still dealing 171 00:08:37,640 --> 00:08:40,880 Speaker 3: with kind of intense pain past a handful of days 172 00:08:40,920 --> 00:08:43,760 Speaker 3: to a week, it's something to take seriously. 173 00:08:44,320 --> 00:08:47,120 Speaker 2: Where should we go if we think it's something serious. 174 00:08:47,760 --> 00:08:50,760 Speaker 3: This is a big issue in healthcare, frankly, because there 175 00:08:50,800 --> 00:08:52,600 Speaker 3: are a number of red flags that come up. We 176 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:56,040 Speaker 3: call them that technically actually in the spine, and they 177 00:08:56,080 --> 00:08:58,400 Speaker 3: are things like neurologic deficits, you know, an arm or 178 00:08:58,520 --> 00:09:03,120 Speaker 3: leg going numb, or the inability to use it, fevers, 179 00:09:03,440 --> 00:09:07,319 Speaker 3: acute kind of severe pain that's refractory. All of these 180 00:09:07,320 --> 00:09:09,840 Speaker 3: things we call red flags, and unfortunately you do just 181 00:09:09,880 --> 00:09:11,400 Speaker 3: have to either call nine to one one or go 182 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:14,719 Speaker 3: to an emergency room because the concern is they can 183 00:09:14,760 --> 00:09:19,080 Speaker 3: speak to not catastrophic, but very significant underlying concerns that 184 00:09:19,080 --> 00:09:22,200 Speaker 3: you shouldn't be walking around with. Most people aren't going 185 00:09:22,280 --> 00:09:24,160 Speaker 3: to have these red flags, right, it's just kind of 186 00:09:24,240 --> 00:09:26,480 Speaker 3: aches and pains that they can't get to go away. 187 00:09:27,240 --> 00:09:30,080 Speaker 3: And then you're better off just engaging outside of the 188 00:09:30,120 --> 00:09:33,679 Speaker 3: emergency system. You can call your primary doctor, you can 189 00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:36,680 Speaker 3: go to an urgent care clinic. You can even see 190 00:09:36,720 --> 00:09:41,240 Speaker 3: folks like myself, many of us won't only see surgical patients, 191 00:09:41,280 --> 00:09:44,600 Speaker 3: will counsel people and treat them because most of the patients, 192 00:09:44,600 --> 00:09:48,319 Speaker 3: frankly aren't surgical. It's all conservative measures, which are usually 193 00:09:48,400 --> 00:09:50,360 Speaker 3: ice heat, things like. 194 00:09:50,280 --> 00:09:53,719 Speaker 2: That, ice or heat. That was my next question. Oh yeah, right, 195 00:09:53,760 --> 00:09:56,120 Speaker 2: which when and that sort of thing. 196 00:09:56,280 --> 00:09:59,960 Speaker 3: Yeah. Sure, the physical therapist will call it contrasts there 197 00:10:00,520 --> 00:10:03,679 Speaker 3: and they'll do ice and heat, and you'll hear kind 198 00:10:03,720 --> 00:10:06,280 Speaker 3: of twenty minutes on twenty minutes off that kind of 199 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:09,520 Speaker 3: a program. The truth is a lot of people pick 200 00:10:09,600 --> 00:10:12,600 Speaker 3: one over the other. They just prefer it. And I 201 00:10:12,640 --> 00:10:15,559 Speaker 3: had an old mentor who once said, I love this 202 00:10:15,600 --> 00:10:18,199 Speaker 3: for patients. He said, look, the ice is for the injury, 203 00:10:18,240 --> 00:10:22,320 Speaker 3: the heats for the patient. His point was, the ice 204 00:10:22,800 --> 00:10:26,120 Speaker 3: does have elements that can heal the tissue there. Right. 205 00:10:26,160 --> 00:10:28,720 Speaker 3: I always tell people if you see a baseball pitcher 206 00:10:28,840 --> 00:10:31,679 Speaker 3: on TV after they pitch the big Game, they always 207 00:10:31,720 --> 00:10:35,040 Speaker 3: have their shoulder packed in ice. But it feels good 208 00:10:35,120 --> 00:10:37,679 Speaker 3: and it relaxes all those sore muscles to kind of 209 00:10:37,720 --> 00:10:40,480 Speaker 3: lay on a heating pad or heating blanket. So people 210 00:10:40,520 --> 00:10:43,240 Speaker 3: tend to l like that, and it does cause blood 211 00:10:43,360 --> 00:10:45,839 Speaker 3: to flow to an injury area and bring part of 212 00:10:45,880 --> 00:10:49,280 Speaker 3: the immune system for the repair that's necessary, which is 213 00:10:49,320 --> 00:10:52,880 Speaker 3: why we do advocate this contrast therapy of both. And 214 00:10:52,920 --> 00:10:55,080 Speaker 3: if you have to choose, if you're going to choose one, 215 00:10:55,160 --> 00:10:57,560 Speaker 3: put it this way. There's not a right or wrong. 216 00:10:57,640 --> 00:10:59,760 Speaker 3: It's just a matter of consistency of doing it. 217 00:11:00,280 --> 00:11:02,160 Speaker 2: Ace or compression bandages. 218 00:11:02,600 --> 00:11:04,840 Speaker 3: Oh, you know, I like both. Frankly. I think you 219 00:11:04,840 --> 00:11:09,240 Speaker 3: can add stability. It feels good if you've injured your 220 00:11:09,280 --> 00:11:11,160 Speaker 3: back or your neck to just have kind of a 221 00:11:11,200 --> 00:11:13,959 Speaker 3: bear hug, and that can be an ACE bandage or 222 00:11:13,960 --> 00:11:17,200 Speaker 3: an ACE wrap or a corset type brace. And then 223 00:11:17,240 --> 00:11:19,880 Speaker 3: you can get a compression bandage where and there's a 224 00:11:19,920 --> 00:11:22,160 Speaker 3: variety of these out there now where if you have 225 00:11:22,240 --> 00:11:27,560 Speaker 3: a particularly sore area or spastic muscle. These spastic muscles 226 00:11:27,559 --> 00:11:30,320 Speaker 3: are a big part of the pain profile and patients 227 00:11:30,360 --> 00:11:33,080 Speaker 3: with back in neck issues, and we all know that 228 00:11:33,200 --> 00:11:35,800 Speaker 3: kind of feeling, nagging feeling where you're digging into the 229 00:11:35,880 --> 00:11:38,080 Speaker 3: muscle in the back of your neck or shoulder because 230 00:11:38,080 --> 00:11:41,000 Speaker 3: it's just cramped up on you. Some of the braces 231 00:11:41,040 --> 00:11:44,200 Speaker 3: will have a pressurized area where as you put the 232 00:11:44,280 --> 00:11:47,160 Speaker 3: brace on, it will kind of dig into or massage 233 00:11:47,240 --> 00:11:51,200 Speaker 3: that spastic muscle. And the interesting thing is muscles that 234 00:11:51,280 --> 00:11:55,040 Speaker 3: are spastic or contracting, if you put pressure on the 235 00:11:55,040 --> 00:11:58,400 Speaker 3: belly of the muscle, the physiology of it is that 236 00:11:58,480 --> 00:12:00,960 Speaker 3: it releases. That's why it feels good to get a 237 00:12:00,960 --> 00:12:02,199 Speaker 3: massage or something like. 238 00:12:02,160 --> 00:12:06,520 Speaker 2: That safety tips before we go outside. So stretching is 239 00:12:06,520 --> 00:12:07,120 Speaker 2: that part of it. 240 00:12:07,600 --> 00:12:10,160 Speaker 3: The stretching is probably the most important part of it. Right, 241 00:12:10,200 --> 00:12:14,400 Speaker 3: So if you can limber up appropriately, which just too 242 00:12:14,440 --> 00:12:16,120 Speaker 3: many of us are too busy to do or we 243 00:12:16,160 --> 00:12:19,600 Speaker 3: don't think to do, you will avoid ninety nine percent 244 00:12:19,679 --> 00:12:23,000 Speaker 3: of especially back in that dries right. The vast majority 245 00:12:23,040 --> 00:12:28,040 Speaker 3: of those come from starting an activity like shoveling cold 246 00:12:28,480 --> 00:12:31,520 Speaker 3: and then straining a muscle while doing that, and it's 247 00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:34,480 Speaker 3: not really warming up your neck or your back, although 248 00:12:34,480 --> 00:12:38,040 Speaker 3: you should do that. It's the muscles around those areas 249 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:41,640 Speaker 3: that protect and shield those areas. So if you're shoveling, 250 00:12:42,080 --> 00:12:46,560 Speaker 3: it's stretching the ham strings, the gluteal muscles, the hip abductors, 251 00:12:46,559 --> 00:12:50,560 Speaker 3: it's almost the lower leg lower extremity stretching. And with 252 00:12:50,679 --> 00:12:53,680 Speaker 3: the neck, it's the torso and the arms and the 253 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:57,720 Speaker 3: shoulders because that's where all the work's being done. And 254 00:12:57,720 --> 00:13:01,280 Speaker 3: when those muscles are tight and they won't stretch appropriately 255 00:13:01,280 --> 00:13:04,120 Speaker 3: and you try and do a shovel type maneuver, you 256 00:13:04,240 --> 00:13:07,760 Speaker 3: transmit the force to the much smaller muscles of the 257 00:13:07,760 --> 00:13:10,559 Speaker 3: neck and back that aren't designed to lift that kind 258 00:13:10,600 --> 00:13:13,000 Speaker 3: of weight, and that's how you strain them. So if 259 00:13:13,040 --> 00:13:16,560 Speaker 3: you limber up appropriately air quotes on the limber up part, 260 00:13:17,080 --> 00:13:20,440 Speaker 3: you're really very unlikely to kind of have these back 261 00:13:20,480 --> 00:13:22,360 Speaker 3: in neck strains that people talk about. 262 00:13:22,520 --> 00:13:24,360 Speaker 2: The form also has something to do with it. Do 263 00:13:24,400 --> 00:13:27,000 Speaker 2: you have general notes on the form when shoveling? 264 00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:29,760 Speaker 3: Yeah, you know, it's tricky. It is tricky, but it 265 00:13:29,800 --> 00:13:32,760 Speaker 3: is doable and you'll feel the right form after I 266 00:13:32,800 --> 00:13:35,240 Speaker 3: explain this, you'll know it when you're out there doing it, 267 00:13:35,920 --> 00:13:38,560 Speaker 3: and you won't have any issues. But the form breaks 268 00:13:38,600 --> 00:13:40,080 Speaker 3: down as you get tired, and that's when you'll have 269 00:13:40,120 --> 00:13:42,559 Speaker 3: the issues. Right, so we always tell people you want 270 00:13:42,559 --> 00:13:46,840 Speaker 3: to keep your spine perfectly straight and your core are 271 00:13:46,880 --> 00:13:50,040 Speaker 3: the muscles or the groups of muscles around the spine 272 00:13:50,559 --> 00:13:52,719 Speaker 3: that work to keep the spine straight. The spine's like 273 00:13:52,760 --> 00:13:55,040 Speaker 3: a big beam in a building or a house. It's 274 00:13:55,040 --> 00:13:58,280 Speaker 3: a structural element. It's not really meant to bend or move. 275 00:13:58,720 --> 00:14:00,880 Speaker 3: It's just meant to stay straight and solid so you 276 00:14:00,920 --> 00:14:03,960 Speaker 3: can move the rest of your body around it. So 277 00:14:04,040 --> 00:14:07,679 Speaker 3: if you engage your core, keep your back straight and 278 00:14:07,720 --> 00:14:11,120 Speaker 3: your neck neutral, only bend at the hip the knees, 279 00:14:11,480 --> 00:14:14,679 Speaker 3: move the shovel with the shoulders. You won't hurt your 280 00:14:14,720 --> 00:14:18,480 Speaker 3: neck or back. It just feels awkward to move like that, 281 00:14:19,280 --> 00:14:22,720 Speaker 3: and once you get fatigued and other things distract you, 282 00:14:22,800 --> 00:14:26,120 Speaker 3: that's when that critical form breaks down. But if you've 283 00:14:26,160 --> 00:14:29,600 Speaker 3: ever watched an Olympic lifter, let's say, do a power lift, 284 00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:34,360 Speaker 3: they have perfect form. If you shoveled every stroke of 285 00:14:34,400 --> 00:14:37,560 Speaker 3: the shovel with form like that, there'd be no injuries. 286 00:14:38,000 --> 00:14:41,520 Speaker 2: And final question, when are your shoveling days over? 287 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:46,160 Speaker 3: That's a really good question, and some people argue, look, 288 00:14:46,200 --> 00:14:48,560 Speaker 3: I don't have an option. My shoveling days are never over. 289 00:14:48,680 --> 00:14:52,640 Speaker 3: But you know, certainly our data shows you get a 290 00:14:52,680 --> 00:14:57,160 Speaker 3: big uptick in operative types of injuries and the sixty 291 00:14:57,200 --> 00:14:59,320 Speaker 3: five year old cutoff, and that's a lot of that's 292 00:14:59,360 --> 00:15:02,360 Speaker 3: because the day there are transitions over to federal Medicare 293 00:15:02,440 --> 00:15:04,600 Speaker 3: data and we can track it a lot easier. But 294 00:15:04,920 --> 00:15:07,920 Speaker 3: everyone who has family members and friends as we get older, 295 00:15:08,160 --> 00:15:11,320 Speaker 3: that's a reasonable, just sort of common sense cut off 296 00:15:11,320 --> 00:15:14,160 Speaker 3: where the body just starts to move a little bit 297 00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:17,880 Speaker 3: less nimbly at that age, and so it's not a 298 00:15:17,920 --> 00:15:21,440 Speaker 3: hard cutoff, but it's something to know where reflexes are slower, 299 00:15:22,040 --> 00:15:25,840 Speaker 3: ligaments and tendons are tighter, so you're less slimber, and 300 00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:29,040 Speaker 3: any slip and falls can be catastrophic. Not that if 301 00:15:29,080 --> 00:15:31,040 Speaker 3: you're forty years old or fifty years old, or even 302 00:15:31,040 --> 00:15:33,040 Speaker 3: thirty years old, if you slipped and fell in the 303 00:15:33,080 --> 00:15:35,200 Speaker 3: wrong way, you wouldn't have a serious problem. You would, 304 00:15:35,880 --> 00:15:39,080 Speaker 3: but the risks are much higher the older you get. 305 00:15:39,320 --> 00:15:42,760 Speaker 3: So not to limit anyone, but be very mindful if 306 00:15:42,840 --> 00:15:46,240 Speaker 3: you're getting on there up in years, if anyone can 307 00:15:46,320 --> 00:15:47,400 Speaker 3: help you, it might be the. 308 00:15:47,400 --> 00:15:49,400 Speaker 2: Right thing to do I like that idea? 309 00:15:49,840 --> 00:15:50,240 Speaker 3: Yeah. 310 00:15:50,360 --> 00:15:53,120 Speaker 2: My guest is Doctor Brian McHugh, a Long Island based 311 00:15:53,160 --> 00:15:57,360 Speaker 2: Board certified neurosurgeon. You can find out more at mcuneurosurgery 312 00:15:57,520 --> 00:16:00,040 Speaker 2: dot com. Have a safe winter and thank you for 313 00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:01,600 Speaker 2: joining me on Get Connected Earl. 314 00:16:01,640 --> 00:16:02,360 Speaker 3: Thanks for having me. 315 00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:06,480 Speaker 1: This has been get Connected with Nina del Rio on 316 00:16:06,480 --> 00:16:09,240 Speaker 1: one oh six point seven light Fm. The views and 317 00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:12,000 Speaker 1: opinions of our guests do not necessarily reflect the views 318 00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:14,080 Speaker 1: of the station. If you missed any part of our 319 00:16:14,120 --> 00:16:16,480 Speaker 1: show or want to share it, visit our website for 320 00:16:16,640 --> 00:16:19,520 Speaker 1: downloads and podcasts at one oh six to seven lightfm 321 00:16:19,600 --> 00:16:21,680 Speaker 1: dot com. Thanks for listening.