Lymph nodes (or lymph glands) are small lumps of tissue containing white blood cells that fight infection. They are part of the body’s immune system and filter lymph fluid, composed of water and waste products from body tissues. Introduction to Lymph Nodes Lymph nodes are located in different body areas. On average, we have approx 600 LN. In the neck area only, we find 160 LN itself. LN can vary in size and go from 2 to 30 mm. Lymph Nodes are connected by vessels, better known as afferent and efferent vessels. The afferent vessels carry the lymph to the lymph node, and the efferent vessels take the lymph away from the lymph nodes. So, the lymph nodes are also connected directly to the blood system, veins, and arteria. What is a lymph node made of? Despite the structures that enter and leave the lymph node, these cleaning stations are made of: Connective tissue capsule Supporting strands of connective tissue inside Below the marginal sinus, there are clusters of lymphocytes lymphoid follicles Artery, vein and nerve As for the filtering station, the lymph node is essential to ensure that no bacteria, viruses or dirt can access the blood system. Where we find no lymph nodes in the brain. Indeed, the lymph fluid around this area gets drained by the Optic and Olfactory nerve. Following then the position of the lymph nodes, we can define the watershed. MLD and Lymph Nodes. Lymph Nodes can occasionally be swollen, which happens when the body fights an infection. In my practitioner experience, I often have to refer to the lymph node concept to introduce the client to MLD treatment. Not many clients know about this technique; they are more familiar with Myotherapy or Thai Massage and Remedial Massage. Said so, the client who tried MLD are all well impressed with its benefit. During an MLD session, what happens is that with a gentle stretch and recoil of the skin, I help your lymphatic system to work faster. Consequently, that’s how swollen area gets reduced. In pushing your lymphatic system to work harder, the lymph node would receive more liquid to process. On the other hand, knowing where the lymph nodes are, is essential to ensure we push the lymph liquid in the right direction. If you haven’t booked your appointment yet and wish to set a goal for MLD, please follow this link.
Monthly Archives: June 2022
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How Strength Exercises Can Help With Bone Density
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How Lymphatic Drainage Massage Can Help with Menopause Symptoms?
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Body scans as a Diagnostic Tools
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Meralgia Paresthetica: Causes, Symptoms, and Myotherapy Treatment
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How Exercises can help you in preventing Alzhaimer’s
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Jun
Calf muscles make up the lower posterior portion of the leg. Calf Muscles are: 2 are the calf muscles, the Gastrocnemius and Soleus. Below is a table with Gastrocnemius and Soleus’s Origin, Insertion and Action. Gastrocnemius Origin The posterior surface of the lateral and medial condyle of the femurs Insertion Calcaneus via calcaneus tendon Action Flex the knee Plantar flex the ankle Soleus Origin Soleal line; the proximal posterior surface of the tibia and posterior aspect of the head of the fibula Insertion Action Plantar flex the ankle So, due to their origins and insertions, we can clearly understand how the Gastrocnemius is involved in knee flexion and how the Soleus is not. The Gastrocnemius does across the knee, as it originates from the femur itself. On the other hand, the Soleus doesn’t cross the knee, so it doesn’t play any role at the knee level. This aspect is so important to differentiate what of these 2 muscles are involved in the restrictive movement at the ankle, and or in calf pain. Calf Muscles testing Firstly the patient is lying down in a supine position (face up) doing active dorsiflexion. Secondly, we will ask the patient to lie in a prone position (face down), and we knee bend (passively), they would go in ankle dorsiflexion again. What happens there is when the knee is flexed passively, the Gastrocnemius is deactivated, and so the ankle dorsiflexion is happening by pulling the soleus only. Now, 2 are the case scenarios that could happen: Still a limited range of motion at ankle dorsiflexion with or without pain A better quality of ROM with a greater angle in dorsiflexion. In the first case, the tension muscles could still be both. In the second case, the Gastrocnemius is clearly the muscle limiting the ROM. For ankle ROM in dorsiflexion, we are looking for a minimum of 20° to up to 30°. It is not all about Muscle Pain. But can calf pain be related to something else and not just to muscle pain? The answer is YES. Calf muscle pain can be a RED FLEG for Deep Veins Thrombosis (DVT), especially after a flight. DVT Symptoms: Sharp pain; Heat at the touch; Soreness at the touch; Redness on the skin. In this case, you want to contact your GP immediately. Massages are absolute contraindications. In conclusion, for a full calf or muscle recovery, we want to look in too some exercises. Remedial Massage, Myotherapy, and Thai Massage are great ways to reduce pain and manage symptoms, but exercises are essential actually to heal a muscle. Indeed, when we talked about plantar fasciitis, those exercises are something that we can look at for calf strengthening.
Jun
How good is it to receive a massage? What are the benefits of massage? Often in this blog, I have been talking about how the different massage technique works, but never an explicit post about the benefits of massage with a more broad approach. From the modalities of Remedial Massage to the history of massage, to how MLD can be good for bond fracture or swelling along the body. But it is time to draw a line and talk about the general benefit of a massage. Massages are beneficial for endless reasons. For example, massage does stimulate blood flow. Increased blood flow is what mainly does the trick in removing that nasty knot from the shoulder. On the other hand, a massage does also increase the production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. In addition, this does also reduce the Cortisol, which is responsible for the body’s stress response. More information about those chemical reactions is available from this study. Moving forward, massage is also helpful for stimulating the regeneration of the skin. Here then maybe we want to differentiate the benefit of Relaxation massage from Thai Massage or other techniques where there is no topic cream or oil used. Other benefits of massage are then the reduction of body aches and pain. The older we get, the more our body aches and pain manifest, and said so, a tough massage such as Remedial Massage or Thai Massage is not always easy to take. Therefore, I always suggest MLD as a technique for clients who can’t stand strong pressure during a massage session. Improving mobility is another big benefit of massage. I do love to receive Thai Massage from a practitioner who studied with Pichest. The improvement of mobility after a Thai Massage is just amazing. Back to the benefits of massage, let’s not forget that a massage can also be the perfect Gift Card. At Melbourne Thai Treatment we offer Gift Card for your love ones. In conclusion, don’t wait for the body to stop, or for the pain to be unbearable. A massage can be good for reducing body aches, but it can be good as even just to reduce body and mind stress. Reducing general stress, can improve your well-being and keep your aches away still for a while. Click here to book now your next massage session.
Jun
Latissimus Dorsi and exercises Latissimus dorsi is a thoracic back muscle that seats superficial to the Erectos Spine muscle groups. As better explained in the table below, one of its main actions is to rotate the thoracic. Latissimus Dorsi (LD) is occasionally related to back pain symptoms. Along with this blog post, we will go through a series of exercises to facilitate of Latissimus Dorsi. Origin Spinous processes of thoracic T7–T12, Thoracolumbar fascia Iliac crest Inferior 3 or 4 ribs The inferior angle of the scapula Insertion the floor of the intertubercular groove of the humerus Action Adducts, extends and internally rotates the arm when the insertion is moved towards the origin. When observing the muscle action of the origin towards the insertion, the lats are a very powerful rotator of the trunk. Now, given away the specification of lat Dorsi we start to get a clear idea of how this muscle can be involved in back pain, especially when going to a rotation or opening the arm side wise (Adduction). Given its origin point, along the Illiac crest and the Thoracolumbar fascia, LD takes part along with Gluteus Max to what we call, Oblique Muscle Sling. Indeed, in the case of the predominant force of the LD, we may observe weakness in the G. Max. Said so, the LD is a muscle that can be easily stretched out and reinforced. To start with let’s look at how a massage therapist can reduce tension from LD. In case of a Remedial Massage, to access and work on this muscle the patient is lying in a side position. MFTT is a myofascial technique used to release fascial tension from this muscle, by stripping the skin over the muscle and by pulling passively the arm away from the chest. On the other hand with Thai Massage the client will be seated on the floor, cross legs and both hands behind the head. In this position, the LD is activated as the lumbar origin points are fixed to the ground and the insertion point is stretched. So, initially the therapist seat on her/his knee behind the patient. After that, she/he places a knee on the tight of the patient on the opposite side of Lat Dorsi that needs to be stretched, and by using her/his hands holds down the tight of the affected side and pulls side way the flexed forearm. This type of stretch must be controlled and done gently. Asking for constant feedback from the patient on how it feels is really important. Despite how to release tension from this muscle with manual therapy, we can look into some corrective exercises. Along with those exercises we include one of the Thai Yoga series. In fact, this specific exercise from the Thai Yoga series is good for working on Lat Dorsi and on Gluteus Max at the same time. Latissisum Dorsi exercises. Open book. Start with lying down on the not affected side, with both knees flexed at 90° and arms and hands seating one on the other one, pointing away from the body. Have a pillow below the head. Start opening the arm of the affected side, by keeping the arm straight. As the chest and arm are opening, rotate with neck and head towards the same side. Stop immediately if you are experiencing pain (as you should not experience any pain) or stop when you feel the knees start moving. Close the arm and restart. Stop before the knee starts moving. Book sliding page. As per the previous exercises lying down on the unaffected side with band knees and arms standing on each other, facing away from the body. This time, start sliding the hand seating above along the line of the other arm. As you slide the hand, as you go to reaching the chest, start rotating the head and neck. Again, stop if pain occurs or if the knees start moving. Close the arm and repeat. Thai Yoga Lattissimus Dorsi twist. Seat on the floor with the leg in Thai Pray position, by placing the leg of the affected side flexed backwards. Hold the back up nice and straight. Take a deep breath in through the nose. And as you breathe out, start rotating with the thoracic towards the unaffected side. Stop if you feel pain, along the back or elsewhere or when you can rotate more. Keep rotating side to side, following the breathing in and out Those Latissimus Dorsi exercises are recommended for those who are aware to have limited thoracic rotation. If you are experiencing any sharp pain or nervy type of pain sensation along with these exercises, don’t practice them and book your next session to better evaluate what is happening there.