What if back-pain relief was just a few steps away? Esther Gokhale’s work with posture and movement finds that just changing the way you sit, stand, lie down, and walk can eliminate your back pain. Esther grew up in India helping her mom treat orphaned babies and she studied biochemistry at college. Later, she became a licensed acupuncturist. So when her own pain and herniated disc issues emerged, it motivated Esther to study how people move. “There were some seeds already sown in my brain that ...
Apr 04, 2022•50 min•Ep. 45
Dr. David Schechter didn’t always buy into the idea of the mind-body pain connection. As a medical student, he relied on conventional and traditional approaches to pain management. But that was before he developed knee pain that felt almost impossible to resolve. He tried mechanical therapy and strengthening exercises as is typically recommended, but nothing seemed to work. So he approached an NYU physiatrist for help: Dr. John Sarno, who became one of America’s most famous back pain doctors. Dr...
Mar 21, 2022•37 min•Ep. 44
Bryana Gregory works at a compounding pharmacy, an option that many physicians in traditional medical circles have never considered. But compounding could be the key to recovery and better long-term health for some patients. Rather than seeking only to relieve pain, compounding pharmacists take a holistic approach to a patient’s health to create personalized treatments. “It’s like back in the day, when we used to have apothecaries, and see doctors and pharmacists behind the counter mixing up med...
Mar 07, 2022•40 min•Ep. 43
Have you ever been told you have “Uncle Arthur,” more commonly known as arthritis? This ailment affects so many that either you or someone you know likely has pain from arthritis. With so many ways for a back to hurt, how do you tell if your back hurts from arthritis? Back pain from arthritis is a somewhat different affair than disc pain or structural pain. Instead of the pain radiating, it stays fairly localized to the facet joints, which Dr. Lakhia refers to as “the knuckles of the spine.” Bac...
Feb 21, 2022•39 min•Ep. 42
Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates’ Dr. Andrew Sumich is one of a handful of physiatrists across the country participating in trials of Relievant Medsystems' revolutionary technology that can reduce long-term pain for patients with chronic low back pain: the Intracept Spine Procedure. The secret to the procedure lies in new research, which deepens the medical understanding of spinal anatomy. While most patients experiencing low back pain are treated for discogenic pain, recent findings...
Feb 08, 2022•42 min•Ep. 41
As a CrossFit level 1 trainer with a 13-year physical therapy career and an interest in golf, running, skiing, and hiking, it’s fair to say that Dr. Jackson Bellis practices what he preaches when it comes to maintaining a healthy back. Dr. Bellis is always challenging his own body and encouraging his patients to safely challenge their bodies to see what they can do. “I really think we can make a big change in back health. And I think looking at the way we move, and the things that work and don't...
Jan 24, 2022•39 min•Ep. 40
Lumbar spinal injections can help reduce back and leg pain and are a highly requested treatment at our offices. But there are also plenty of misconceptions about them. Can epidurals be a first-line treatment for low back pain? How well can they help us determine a source of pain? Can injections heal discs? We brought on Dr. Joseph Zuhosky, who recently joined our team at Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates, to get answers to these questions and more. Along the way, we hope to alleviate ...
Jan 03, 2022•40 min•Ep. 39
Health care has been a constant presence in Matt Parks’s life for much longer than most people. His mother is an ER nurse. His older brother was born with a rare condition and was often hospitalized as a child. And as a college baseball player, Matt started taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to cope with a shoulder injury. He became dependent on the medications and started to experience migraines. He also developed depression when his parents divorced, which he still struggles ...
Dec 20, 2021•41 min•Ep. 38
Being told your pain is only in your head is maddening when it’s your back that hurts. But is there more truth to this statement than we have long believed? NeuFit founder Garrett Salpeter says that pain is sometimes not an accurate depiction of the extent of an injury, but rather an overreaction by your nervous system. At NeuFit, Garrett draws on his background in engineering and neuroscience to help athletes and other patients recover from injury, develop sustainable fitness regimens, and impr...
Dec 10, 2021•39 min•Ep. 37
Sometimes imaging doesn’t explain a patient’s pain, and when that is the case, many will feel discouraged if not flat-out alarmed. Trigger points can offer answers, and it’s the topic of this episode of Back Talk Doc. Marty Kestin joins the podcast to explain more about trigger points and how they are involved in causing pain. At Ensoma Bodyworks , Marty teaches both patients and students how to restore and improve body functioning by the way of advanced orthopedics like neuromuscular massage th...
Jun 29, 2021•33 min•Ep. 36
Just like the spine — the clinicians, doctors, and practitioners who practice spinal care comprise a complex system. In this episode of Back Doc Talk, we are talking about the team it takes to manage your spinal health, and especially the role of Physician Assistants (PAs). PAs like Mike Nido of Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates are responsible for a range of treatments and assistance when it comes to fixing back and spine problems. But is patient care compromised when you see a PA inst...
May 10, 2021•16 min•Ep. 35
We’re talking about healthy relationships on this episode of Back Doc Talk. What does that have to do with back and spine health? A lot. With power couple and relationship coaches Jocelyn and Aaron Freeman at the helm, this episode examines how back and spine issues can affect your relationship and vice versa. Physical pain influences how we feel and how we interact with others, and developing a conscious awareness about how that affects our loved ones is critical. Aaron dissects the difference ...
Apr 26, 2021•43 min•Ep. 34
The general public’s understanding of spinal fusion often starts with a misconception. When Dr. Hunter Dyer talks to people about lumbar fusion, many think that it’s the screws doctors place that are the fusion. But that’s not true — the hardware just holds the spine in alignment until the vertebrae or spinal elements grow back together. As an expert in spinal fusions, Dr. Dyer is familiar with what people get wrong or just don’t understand about caring for their spine and fixing spinal issues. ...
Apr 13, 2021•44 min•Ep. 33
With fifteen years of experience as a spine physician, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia is always on the lookout for ways to help his patients improve their back health, particularly with natural, less invasive methods that can be easily integrated into their day-to-day lives. Today, we’re going to be discussing a common cause of back and neck pain, prolonged periods of sitting. Joining us on this episode of Back Talk Doc is Dr. Turner Osler, a retired trauma surgeon, epidemiologist, entrepreneur, and founder ...
Mar 29, 2021•49 min•Ep. 32
On Episode 13 of Back Talk Doc we spoke with Dr. Matt McGirt about Adult Spinal Deformity ( Ep. 13 - Adult Spinal Deformity with Dr. Matt McGirt .) It proved to be a popular and valuable episode for our community, so today we’re following up that episode with a discussion of scoliosis and spinal deformity in pediatric patients. Joining us is Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates’ new partner, Dr. Michael Bohl . Dr. Bohl attended medical school at the University of Michigan and completed his...
Mar 09, 2021•34 min•Ep. 31
We have addressed numerous aspects of low back pain from surgical angles to medications, nutrition, and injections on the podcast, but an increasing number of patients are also suffering from mid-back pain or “thoracic pain.” On this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia is joined by Dr. Scott Otis , a physiatrist at the Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates, to discuss thoracic back pain. Dr. Otis attended medical school at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and completed ...
Feb 22, 2021•26 min•Ep. 30
By the numbers, a solid percentage of you are listening to this 29th episode of Back Talk Doc on your mobile device or in front of your computer. You may be hunched over peeping at the show notes on the screen, a noticeable strain rippling down your back. Whether you’re experiencing back or neck pain as you’re reading these words, this episode is here to help. On today's episode of Back Talk Doc, our host Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia is accompanied by Dr. Sameer Vemuri, a partner at Carolina Neurosurgery a...
Jan 28, 2021•38 min•Ep. 29
While COVID-19 has the headlines, for many, 2020 has also become synonymous with back pain. Working from home has cast many people from their ergonomic office chairs to couches, spare bedrooms, and dining room chairs. On this episode, our Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia, explores the benefits of utilizing electrical stimulation to combat those work-from-home back pains. Electrical stimulation, a form of neuromodulation, is essentially applying different types of electrical or electricity-based ...
Jan 07, 2021•26 min•Ep. 28
While the holiday season is known for evoking feelings of joy and merriment, we know that back pain can dampen even the most festive of spirits. That’s why we’re devoting this episode to our Top 10 Gift Ideas to promote a healthy spine. If you have a friend or family member struggling with back issues this holiday season, consider a gift that will help them stay active and pain-free in 2021. 1. Traditional Medicinal Tea . Medicinal teas are available at most grocery stores, and many contain ingr...
Dec 16, 2020•25 min•Ep. 27
Because medicine is in a perpetual state of evolution, it is incumbent upon medical practitioners to be lifelong learners, always sharpening their intellect and skillset. In recent years, much of this continuing education has become reliant on technology. While clinicians have access to scientific journals, magazines, blogs, podcasts, and other digital sources at their fingertips, quickly accessing full research articles continues to be a hindrance. Enter QxMD, a company designing apps to help c...
Nov 27, 2020•34 min•Ep. 26
From Kim Kardashian getting a vampire facial to Hines Ward's extraordinary knee recovery in the weeks leading up to the 2009 Super Bowl, regenerative medicine has gained a tremendous amount of interest in both the lay population and the scientific community. This medical-assisted self-healing process has helped athletes including Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant and other high-profile celebrities not only overcome injuries but increase their recovery times. On this special one-year anniversary episode o...
Nov 13, 2020•52 min•Ep. 25
In the world of back pain, there are a variety of vendors in the marketplace offering purported solutions. And, with patients searching for alternatives to injections, physical therapy, surgery, and traditionally prescribed medications, the market for these alternatives treatments is booming. With these solutions ranging in efficacy from widely accepted remedies to ineffective and potentially harmful, how do you know what is and isn’t safe? Welcome to Back Talk Doc. In this episode, Dr. Sanjiv L...
Oct 26, 2020•19 min•Ep. 24
If you live or work in the Carolinas, you probably either play golf or have a friend or loved one that plays. Golf is an excellent sport for children and retirees alike and a popular activity for competitive exercisers that don’t want to strain their bones and muscles in high-impact sports. However, golf can also lead to its fair share of aches and pains, so today’s episode focuses on preventing and treating golf-related injuries. On this episode of Back Talk Doc, our host Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia welc...
Oct 11, 2020•38 min•Ep. 23
Imagine you suffer from a painful disc injury that prevents you from engaging in many of your daily activities. For most people, the obvious course of action is to go see your doctor, where it’s likely you’ll have a physical examination and be prescribed medications and/or surgery. At the end of this course of treatment, you hope to be pain-free and back to your daily routine. Many patients never stop to ask themselves, “is there anything else I could be doing to improve my circumstances?” Dr. J...
Sep 18, 2020•35 min•Ep. 22
Do you frequently suffer from back pain and don’t know the right way to treat them? Or do you think your home exercises are making the pain worse? Patients often mistake the difference between being physically active versus going to physical therapy to treat a specific injury, causing them to worsen the pain and fail to properly recover from herniated discs or muscular back strains. In this episode of Back Talk Doc, our host Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia, welcomes Dr. Eleanor McMillan, a physical therapist ...
Sep 02, 2020•34 min•Ep. 21
Although advancements in technology have made many things possible in medicine, particularly in the surgical aspect, robotics is still somewhat a relatively new concept. This sector is gaining traction in the market, but you won’t find robots in most hospitals in the U.S. In this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia is joined by neurosurgeon Dr. Chris Holland to explore surgical robots utilized in spine surgery. Chris goes in-depth into what surgical robots are, how these work, and how th...
Aug 17, 2020•37 min•Ep. 20
Replace defective joints in the knee and hips is not unheard of and there’s a big chance that you or someone you know has had this surgery done. But can this type of procedure be done to address issues in the spinal region? In this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia is joined by Dr. Dom Coric, who is an expert in spine trauma, spine surgery, and in particular, spinal arthroplasty. They dive deep into all aspects of artificial disc replacement surgery in the neck and lower back. Dom desc...
Aug 03, 2020•35 min•Ep. 19
Aside from clinical treatments for back pain and pain in general, acupuncture and dry needling are increasingly becoming part of treatment plans prescribed by physicians. However, there are misconceptions about these two interventions, with people often interchanging one for the other. In this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia goes into a discussion on dry needling and acupuncture and the significant differences between these two treatment options. It’s not so much as which is more eff...
Jul 20, 2020•26 min•Ep. 18
Besides cases of lower back pain, another common problem that most people face is neck pain. In severe instances, the pain shoots from the neck to the arm, which can lead to numbness and immobility. One condition that is often difficult to diagnose is the Thoracic Outlet Syndrome (TOS). In this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia is joined by Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates’ nurse practitioner Emily Tucker and physical therapist Jay Murugavel in this roundtable discussion on...
Jul 06, 2020•41 min•Ep. 17
One of the most common responses to feeling back pain is asking your physician for an x-ray to determine what’s causing it. However, the process of coming to diagnosis to properly treat any pain goes more than just reading off of an x-ray or MRI test result. In this episode of Back Talk Doc, Dr. Sanjiv Lakhia gives a rundown on how physicians determine the proper dedicated imaging option needed for a patient. Numerous factors affect decision-making as each scenario is different. First, the docto...
Jun 22, 2020•26 min•Ep. 16
