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Showing posts from tagged with: Back health for chidren
Upper Crossed Syndrome – What is it? And how can Remedial Massage help?
Upper Crossed Syndrome
What is it? And how can Remedial Massage help?
Upper Crossed Syndrome (UCS) is an extremely common musculoskeletal imbalance of the upper body. It is usually caused by poor posture or repetitive tasks in prolonged standing or sitting positions.
As a consequence certain muscles become chronically tight, while others become long and weak. This muscular imbalance results in rounded shoulders/upper back, winging/tipping shoulder blades, and a forward head position with a poking out chin.
The muscles affected in this common syndrome are the Pectoralis Major and Minor muscles in the chest, the Sub-Occipital muscles at the base of the skull and Upper Trapezius and Levator Scapulae in the upper shoulder/neck which all become overactive, short and tight. This excessive shortening of muscles causes an imbalance between muscles groups. Muscles such as Mid-Lower Trapezius, Rhomboids and Serratus Anterior of the upper back and the deep cervical flexors in the neck therefore become underactive, long and weak.
The musculoskeletal imbalances of UCS can result in an array of pain or discomfort presentations. For example mid- upper back pain/tightness, neck pain/tightness, headaches, or pins and needles down the arms, just to name a few.
Also overtime if untreated, these muscular imbalances can affect the position of the skeletal system leading to other chronic conditions such as shoulder instability, shoulder impingement and shoulder bursitis.
Luckily Remedial Massage and correctly prescribed exercises can dramatically help with this condition.
Remedial Therapists can use their skills in soft tissue work to release the tight, short and overactive muscles, and can give simple homework stretches/exercises. This is extremely important for while these large powerful muscles such as the Pecs or Upper traps remain tight, it is very challenging to properly strengthen the weak muscle groups. Remedial Therapists can also use techniques to stimulate the long, weak and underactive muscles encouraging them to activate and strengthen.
Remedial Massage can be used as an effective complementary treatment for UCS, alongside Physiotherapy allowing the exercises prescribed by Physios to be most effective.
If you feel like you relate to any of these symptoms, don’t wait, find the time to care for yourself and book some Remedial treatment today so you can move and feel your best!BACK TO SCHOOL
The school holidays have flown by and now it is time to think about getting the kids organised for school: uniforms, stationary, lunch boxes and of course a school bag.
Choosing the right bag is really important as their growing bodies are carrying heavy loads and we need to ensure that the load is being distributed evenly. Here are a few tips to consider when choosing a back pack:
APA physiotherapists recommend school children should wear a backpack that weighs no more than 10 per cent of a child’s body weight, yet research on back problems in children aged 12-17 years found 61% carried more than 10 per cent of their bodyweight on their backs on a daily basis.
“Far too many students are carrying around very heavy weights on their back - particularly those in high school,” APA National President Marcus Dripps said. “We know an overloaded or incorrectly-worn backpack can be a major source of chronic strain, and can cause shoulder, neck and back pain in children.
“Stress put on the spine can cause your child to lean too far forward and experience distortion of the natural curve, rolling their shoulders and causing a more rounded upper-back. Neck and shoulder pain can also develop from wearing a bag on one shoulder, or a bag with straps that are too thin that dig into the shoulder muscles and strain the neck,” Mr Dripps said.
Key tips to remember when your child starts school:
- Wear backpack load close to the spine - pack the heaviest items nearest to your child’s back
- Children must wear both straps at all times
- Backpacks should always weigh less than 10 per cent of your child’s body weight
- Ensure your child is carrying only what they need - encourage your child to be organised and check their timetable when packing their bag for school
- To decrease the load your child should have separate folders for each subject so that they can only bring home what they need for their homework
- Encourage your child to be physically active – walking to school every day has many benefits for you, your children and your community.
- Parents should contact a physiotherapist if they are concerned about their child's posture, back health or obesity and weight management related conditions. Pediatric physiotherapists have particular expertise in this area.
- Wide shoulder straps that are comfortable and sit well on the shoulder
- Waist and chest straps to help transfer some of the load to the hips and pelvis
- A padded back-support that allows the pack to fit ‘snugly’ on the back
- The backpack must fit the child. Don’t buy a big pack to ‘grow’ into, when sitting with the backpack on, the pack should not extend higher than the child’s shoulders
- Look for one that carries an endorsement from a professional health organisation. The APA endorses Spartan Physiopaks
