David Perna, D.C.

Whiplash associated disorder (WAD) is a very common injury that can occur in a variety of ways, but it’s most commonly associated with motor vehicle collisions. The symptoms associated with WAD have been classified as follows: • WAD I: Pain, stiffness, or tenderness of the neck as the only complaint with no physical exam findings [..]

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a controversial diagnosis, as there are no clear objective clinical tests that can establish whether or not a patient has the condition. ADHD belongs to a spectrum of neurological disorders with no physiological basis (no clear lab tests exist) and often include other conditions such as learning disabilities, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), [..]

Why Do People Go To Chiropractors? What Are the Clinical Assessments,Clinical Goals, and Clinical Applicationsof a Typical Chiropractic Office Visit? •••••••••• Why Do People go to Chiropractors? The most recent authoritative assessment of the chiropractic profession appeared in the December 2017 issue of the prestigious orthopedic medical journal Spine, and was titled (1): The Prevalence, Patterns, [..]

Low back pain (LBP) is the single greatest cause of disability worldwide and the second most common reason for doctor visits. Overall, LBP costs society more than $100 billion annually when factoring in lost wages, reduced productivity, and legal and insurance overhead expenses. Studies regarding the use of spinal manipulation(SM)—a form of treatment offered by [..]

Past research has demonstrated that combining spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) with exercise yields the best long-term results for individuals with neck pain. So what exercises should we consider when neck pain rears its ugly head? In the acute phase of an injury, rest and ice may be appropriate, but patients will often benefit from lightly [..]

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most common and well-known entrapment neuropathy, or pinched nerve in the extremities. Many people think that carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) affects only computer workers or assembly-line workers, but that is far from the truth. Though CTS can affect anyone, it’s quite common in athletes. Surprised? Let’s take a closer [..]

Sports that require rapid acceleration and deceleration, cutting left and right, agility, jumping, and bending pose a unique risk for injury to the lower limbs. Hamstring injuries are the most prevalent injury in Australian rules football, afflicting 16% of players, causing an average of 3.4 missed matches per injury, accounting for the most time lost [..]

Whiplash associated disorder (WAD) injuries usually result from rear-end, low-impact crashes with about 90% occurring at speeds less than 14 mph. Approximately 40% of all WAD patients develop long-term, chronic problems. Let’s look at how chiropractic care can help crash-injured patients recover and return to their normal lives... REDUCE INFLAMMATION: Inflammation occurs when ligaments and [..]

Smoking tobacco causes more than 480,000 deaths annually, which makes it the leading cause of preventable death in the United States (US)—that is nearly one in every five deaths in the country! Smoking causes more deaths than HIV, illegal drug use, alcohol abuse, car accidents, and firearm-related deaths COMBINED. More than ten times as many [..]

Is it possible to identify which low back pain patients might experience the most benefit from spinal manipulation combined with exercise? In a 2011 study, researchers identified which patients might respond best to this combination of care and which patients might need a more aggressive approach. Directional preference (DP) describes a situation in which it [..]

Experts estimate that up to 70% of people will experience an episode of neck pain in their lifetime. Though there are many potential forms of treatment available, little has been published comparing the various treatment options available to the neck pain patient. A 2012 study that involved 272 neck pain patients compared three treatment options: [..]

Numbness in the hand is a common problem that we’ve all had at one time or another, and unless it becomes frequent, we usually don’t worry too much about it. When it starts to wake us up at night, that SHOULD get our attention! Since carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is one of the most common [..]