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Isaac, Zacharia

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Zacharia

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Isaac, Zacharia
Author's Publications: search.filters.isAuthorOfPublication.395da423-0f0d-4ae3-8432-71b39404e0ca

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Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    When Should a Cervical Collar be Used to Treat Neck Pain?
    (Humana Press Inc, 2007) Muzin, Stefan; Isaac, Zacharia; Walker, Joseph; Abd, Omar El; Baima, Jennifer Anne
    Neck pain is one of the most prevalent and costly health problems in the United States. It remains a complex, subjective experience with a variety of musculoskeletal causes. Although, cervical collars are a seemingly benign intervention, they can have adverse effects, especially when used for longer periods of time. It is feared that a long period of immobilization, can result in atrophy-related secondary damage. Many physicians cite anecdotal evidence of their clinical utility and soft cervical collars are often prescribed by convention for patients complaining of neck pain. The use of cervical collars to treat neck pain is an area of controversy. This review article examines the current evidence and studies related to recommending cervical collars for neck pain of a variety of etiologies.
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    The Role of Intradiscal Steroids in the Treatment of Discogenic Low Back Pain
    (Springer Verlag, 2007) Muzin, Stefan; Isaac, Zacharia; Walker, Joseph
    LBP is one of the most common reasons for visiting a doctor and is the most common cause of disability under age 45. Amongst a variety of etiologies, internal disc disruption (IDD) has been postulated as an important cause of low back pain. Treating discogenic low back pain continues to be a challenge to physicians. Inflammation, either from direct chemical irritation or secondary to an autoimmune response to the nucleus pulposus has been implicated as the primary pain source. Both steroids and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have partial effectiveness in treating pain associated with inflammation. Therefore, the rationale for using intradiscal steroids is to suppress the inflammation within the disc, thereby alleviating the patient’s symptoms. The goal of this article is to review the literature regarding the efficacy of intradiscal steroids to treat low back pain of discogenic origin.
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    Discography in Practice: A Clinical and Historical Review
    (Humana Press Inc., 2008) Walker, Joseph; El Abd, Omar H.; Isaac, Zacharia; Muzin, Stefan
    Chronic low back pain is the most common cause of disability in individuals between the ages of 45 and 65. Given the variety of anatomic and pathophysiologic causes of persistent low back pain, it is a difficult diagnosis for clinicians to treat. Discography is a diagnostic option that may link a patient’s subjective complaints of spinal pain to symptomatic disk disease when non-invasive imaging, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), does not find structural abnormalities. A controversial procedure, discography is only necessary to assess painful discs prior to surgical interventions. For accurate discogram interpretation an experienced spine interventionalist must be careful to exclude false positive results and be aware of the patient’s underlying psychological state. This literature review will discuss the following: anatomy and function of the spine and intervertebral disc, intervertebral disc degeneration and discogenic pain, history of discography, indications and contraindications, a description of the procedure, complications, and the current debate regarding its outcomes.