golf

Back on the Dance Floor: Kathryn’s Patient Experience

Kathryn is a former patient of mine who has left a lasting impression. Her back pain began when she hurt her L3/L4 disc after a spinning class, and she believes she aggravated the injury during a subsequent game of golf. Initially, Kathryn told me she didn’t think too much of it because she’s athletic and used to pushing herself outside her comfort zone. Kathryn thought this was something she could deal with – so she sought a massage treatment, iced her lower back area, and rested. Afterwards, she continued to play golf and attend spinning class. Unfortunately, what Kathryn didn’t do was listen to her body and get help when she needed it. I see this in a lot of patients; a good rule of thumb is if the pain persists, starts to travel down your arm or leg, and/or keeps you up at night, it’s time to see a physician. Unfortunately, the pain took a turn for the worse when Kathryn further exacerbated her injury lifting a mattress while vacuuming. Kathryn contacted my office and met with me to discuss different options that would work for her injury. Because she had severe nerve compression in her lower back due

February 3, 2015

Tiger Woods’ Back Pain

Tiger Woods was in his final round at The Barclays, undoubtedly within distance of the lead, when he dropped in pain to the green. The moment of gripping pain followed his second shot on the par-5 13th, and onlookers wondered if he would even be able to finish the back nine. The pro-golfer gingerly finished The Barclays, resulting in a tie for second place. Whether Tiger could have forced a play-off without his lowerback pain (LBP) is a question unknown, but he will not risk further injury by playing a previously scheduled philanthropic golf event before the second round of the FedEx Cup playoff tournament. What caught my attention is that Woods deemed traveling and sleeping in soft hotel beds as the culprit of his back spasms, versus playing the sport for years professionally. It is true that you may be able to prevent back pain by investing in a medium-firm mattress, as illustrated by a Spanish study in The Lancet. However, one of the most common golf injuries is low back pain, typically due to muscle strains and sprains, or disk related injury. This is because the rotational twisting force during the golf swing can put excess strain on

September 3, 2013

Sarah Cohn: “Practice Yoga While You Play Golf”

Nearly six months ago, I performed a revision surgery on patient Sarah Cohn for an Anterior-Posterior Revision Lumbar Fusion for Spondylolisthesis, after she received a failed minimally invasive spine decompression surgery at another practice. Following the revision surgery, Sarah, an avid golfer and yoga enthusiast, recovered quickly and was able to return to her athletic passions. Sarah can play golf again and stretches during rounds with simple yoga. I was touched to not only receive a copy of her book Practice Yoga While You Play Golf but also to be nominated by her for the Mount Sinai Medical Center “Honor Your Doctor” award. Most importantly, I was fascinated by Sarah’s unique fusion of golf and yoga and wanted to share with my readers and patients. You can visit her website at SarahCohnYoga.com and purchase her book here. Read below to see what Sarah had to say about her experience! Q: How did you discover Dr. McCance, and how would you describe your experience with him? A: I was referred to Dr. McCance by a pain management doctor who really wasn’t able to help me. I needed a spinal fusion and Dr. McCance made the process seem less terrifying, plus he spent

May 21, 2013

More Content | Blog

Back on the Dance Floor: Kathryn’s Patient Experience

Tiger Woods’ Back Pain

Sarah Cohn: “Practice Yoga While You Play Golf”