Head & Neck

Why does my neck hurt?

Your neck (also known as your cervical spine) supports the entire weight of your head and is responsible for turning it from side to side, around, and up and down. Because your cervical spine is the thinnest portion of your spine, it’s susceptible to injury and trauma. Dysfunction, weakness, or injury of the upper cervical spine can cause head pain or chronic headaches in addition to neck pain. Jaw dysfunction (TMD) and craniocervical instability (CCI) can also contribute to facial pain, headaches, and neck pain.

When your head or neck hurts, the pain could be coming from any of the many parts that make up your neck and cervical spine, including:

• Vertebral discs
• Vertebrae
• Muscles
• Tendons
• Ligaments
• Nerves

Neck pain can also radiate from other areas of your body, such as tense or injured shoulder muscles. When you come to Interventional Orthopedics of Washington, Dr. Silva conducts a thorough physical exam, takes a complete medical history, and might perform other diagnostic tests to determine the source or sources of your neck pain.

What are the risk factors for head & neck pain?

Women are more likely to develop neck pain than are men. Other risk factors for acute (sudden) or chronic (ongoing) neck pain include:

• Whiplash (back and forth movement during a car accident, blow to the head, or a collision)
• Weak or tense shoulder or neck muscles
• “Tech Neck” or other forms of slouching and poor posture
• Herniated vertebral disc
• Osteoarthritis
• Spinal stenosis (neural passageways degenerate and compress nerves)
• Unstable Spine
• Nerve injuries

A tumor or infection can also cause neck pain in rare cases.

What are my options for treating head & neck pain?

Each case of neck pain is unique. After determining the cause or causes of your neck pain or stiffness, Dr. Silva devises a custom-designed treatment plan. He might first recommend lifestyle changes and supportive therapies such as:

• Anti-inflammatory diet
• Improving posture
• Anti-inflammatory supplements
• Consulting other specialists
• Doing physical therapy to strengthen muscles

If you don’t respond to lifestyle adjustments or your pain or disability are severe, he can also recommend groundbreaking regenerative treatments such as:

• Prolotherapy: injections that irritate injured tissues to stimulate healing
• Platelet-rich plasma (PRP): injectable serum with a high concentration of platelets, which contain growth-factors that repair tissues
• Cellular Therapy: your own cells injected into damaged tissue and bone to stimulate a healing response and regrowth

Dr. Silva uses ultrasound and x-ray guidance when administering injectable therapies to ensure that the healing agents are delivered precisely to the area of injury.

Get relief from your neck pain today by calling us at 425-326-1665 or using the the “Book Appointment” button.