Dr. Weston E. Zenner

I am so sorry to hear that your ankle is painful after walking or running a short distances such as 1 mile, but it is explainable and can get better. Pain occurring during or shortly after exercise is usually stemming from some kind of soft tissue, such as muscle, ligament, tendon and/or fascia. The pattern of pain your describing would lead me to believe it could be tendinitis which is an inflammation of a tendon, more specifically the peroneal tendon that runs on the posterior (backside) and lateral (outside)
portion of the ankle. This is one of the most commonly seen issues with the ankle pain following exercise or stress. Unfortunately, without a proper physical exam it would be difficult to have an accurate diagnosis and it could be more complex depending on how long this has been going on and if it is progressively getting worse. To start with, avoid activities that hurt it, drink plenty of water, eat a cleaner diet (veggies and meat, avoiding starches and sugars) and make an appointment for an evaluation by a qualified health professional to rule out any complicated problems such as a stress fracture or peripheral nerve entrapment. In the absence of more serious stretching, soft tissue therapy, strengthening and manipulation of the ankle can reduce symptoms and get you back to enjoying walking or running without pain or fear of serious injury.

Yours in Health,

Dr. Weston Zenner, D.C.

Absolutely, lower back pain is one of the most common conditions that are seen by chiropractors and has the most research to support its success. A chiropractic adjustments along with some active therapy like stretching and/or muscle therapy for mechanical lower back pain is more successful than pain killers and muscle relaxers. Mechanical lower back pain is exactly what you are describing, having severe low back pain that increases in one or two specific positions. Hope that this is helpful to you.

Yours in health,
Dr. Weston Zenner, D.C.

There are many possibilities to why your 67 year old mother has developed tremors in her hands. Anxiety, thyroid dysfunction, heavy metal poising, drug related side effect, low blood sugar or Parkinson's are some of the diseases or reasons that can cause this symptom. Since our aging population is taking numerous pharmaceuticals daily it would be best to check each of your mother's prescriptions and see if that is a common side effect from one of them. If one is a potential culprit then I would suggest to inform the prescribing physician about the side effect and find alternatives for treatment. If that does not present a clear answer then the next logical step would be blood work to check for heavy metals, blood sugar levels and thyroid function. If not conclusive, I would be to have her checked out for possible anxiety disorder with a specialist and last would be Parkinson's which would be best for a neurologist to investigate. There are also many Parkinson's like diseases that could be a potential
cause to this that the neurologist would be able to identify. I know that this is not a single, simple answer but more of a cascade or flow of the possibilities. I hope that this may shed some light on this unique symptom and hope that you and your mother finds some kind of relief in this information.

Yours in Health,

Dr. Weston Zenner, D.C.

Yes it is very common with manual therapies such as adjustments because
they move the bones in your spine, and if any of them have congenital
abnormalities (birth defects that are considered normal) then it may alter
the course of treatment. So, I use x rays to help determine the safety of
treatment when patients have any history of congenital abnormalities or if
they have severe pain patterns and/or neurological conditions such as
sciatica. Usually if the doctor does not take x rays on the first visit
they may wait and see how the patient responds to care before determining
the need of more advanced imaging such as x rays. The only exception to
this rule is trauma like a motor vehicle accident or fall and x rays are
almost always used to rule out any type of fracture, dislocation or other
serious damage that would require immediate medical attention.

*Yours in Health,*

*Dr. Weston Zenner, D.C.*
Indian Creek Natural Medicine
10464 Metcalf Ave
Overland Park, KS 66212
913-649-6677

It is never too late to see a chiropractor, especially if you are still having pains stemming from an injury or an accident . Some motor vehicle accident injuries do not become evident until weeks, or in some rare cases months after the accident. The most common injury from a car collision is whiplash, which creates soft tissue damage from the sudden movement of the head in relation to the cervical spine, or neck. It sounds like you are dealing with a similar injury and could benefit from seeing a chiropractor. Hope that this helps you in anyway it can!

Unfortunately, pain like what you are describing is hard to diagnosis without a physical exam of some sort. But, by the description of your pain it sounds like some kind of nervous compression from muscular imbalance associated with the left thoracolumbar muscles including but not limited to the psoas muscle. My reason for this specific muscle is that the psoas is the primary trunk flexor and is shortened when in the seated position, causing that muscle to shorten pulling the spine to that side compressing nervous tissue causing this pain pattern. I would personally do a comprehensive evaluation on your nervous, spinal and muscular systems to determine the exact reason for this dysfunction and discover any contributing or limiting factors.

Absolutely, especially if the treatment has a muscle specific therapy. That includes a vast range of modalities such as but not limited to ART, Graston, IASTM, Kinesio Taping, therapeutic exercises and various streching methods. Adjustments help joint fixations improving range of motion and when coupled with a soft tissue specific therapy can drastically reduce muscular pain. An increase in water and taking a quality proteolytic enzme will also aid in soft tissue repair.

Dr. Weston Zenner, D.C.