When the body suspects injury or infection, it responds by sending white blood cells to help fight the problem. The area then gets red and swells, which is referred to as inflammation. Oftentimes, this immune system response is beneficial and can help the area fight off the issue and heal....
Lupus is a chronic disease that affects an estimated 1.5 million Americans, most of whom are women. Individuals with lupus can experience a wide range of symptoms, such as pain, fatigue, and cognitive issues. No two cases are exactly alike, and symptoms can vary significantly from person to person. The...
Gout is the most common form of inflammatory arthritis. It causes sudden, intense episodes of swelling, pain, and tenderness in one or more of your joints. Gout most often affects the big toe, and it occurs due to a buildup of uric acid crystals in a joint. In some cases,...
Psoriasis is a life-long skin disease that causes red, itchy, scaly patches to form on the body. It can appear anywhere on your body, but it most commonly affects the elbows, knees, torso, and scalp. Roughly 7 million people in the United States live with psoriasis. If you’re diagnosed with...
Osteoporosis is a disease that causes bones to weaken and break easily. It’s a silent disease that doesn’t cause symptoms until you break a bone. And a bone can break when doing everyday activities, such as climbing stairs or picking up a heavy object. It’s crucial to seek care from...
Lupus is a lifelong disease that can affect many aspects of daily life, but with proper management, people with lupus live healthy, productive lives. If you’re newly diagnosed with lupus, it can take time and patience to learn how to control your symptoms, prevent flare-ups, and minimize the impact of...
IV therapy involves delivering medicine through an IV. If you're unable to take oral medications, or if traditional drug therapy doesn’t help, infusion therapy may help you manage your symptoms, so you can resume a good quality of life. Board-certified rheumatologists Nathaniel Neal, MD, and Rebekah Neal-Kraal, MD, along with...
If you deal with daily joint pain and stiffness from arthritis, the idea of exercise may seem counterintuitive. After all, physical activity is often the last thing that comes to mind when joints are achy. It may come as a surprise to know that exercise is actually good for arthritis....
Sarcoidosis is an inflammatory disease that most commonly affects the lungs and surrounding lymph nodes, but it can also affect other organs. Patients with sarcoidosis experience inflammation and abnormal nodules in the affected organs. Called granulomas, the abnormal lumps may alter the normal structure of the affected organ, and, as...
Polymyositis is a rare disease that causes inflammation of skeletal muscle. Commonly known as idiopathic inflammatory myopathy, polymyositis affects more women than men, and it causes muscle weakness and sometimes muscle pain and tenderness. If you’re dealing with unexplained muscle weakness, you should visit the board-certified rheumatologists at Valerius Medical...
Uveitis is inflammation of one or more parts of the pigment layer of the eye called the uvea. This crucial part of the eye provides blood flow to the retina. Uveitis requires prompt diagnosis and treatment to reduce the risk of serious complications. Impaired vision and blindness may occur without...
For many people living with joint pain, winter can be a particularly challenging time of year. Cooler temperatures can make joint pain and stiffness worse. Even people who have well-controlled joint conditions may find that their joints feel achy and sore when the weather cools down. This can make it...
The shoulder joints are the most mobile joints in the body. Unfortunately, this mobility can make them vulnerable to injury, wear and tear, and other issues. Board-certified rheumatologists Nathaniel Neal, MD, and Rebekah Neal-Kraal, MD, of Valerius Medical Group & Research Center in Los Alamitos, California, specialize in diagnosing and...
Tension headaches can stop you in your tracks. One of the most common headaches, tension headaches can feel as if you have a tight band around your head. They can strike when you least expect it, and they can vary from mild to debilitating. If you receive a tension headache...
If you get an injury in your soft tissues — such as your muscles, tendons, or ligaments — employing the RICE method can ease your pain and help you heal. RICE stands for rest, ice, compression, and elevation, and this protocol can help you recover from a variety of sudden...
Osteoporosis affects more than 10 million adults in the United States, and low bone mass impacts another 43 million. With millions of adults living with osteoporosis and millions more at risk of developing osteoporosis, it’s more important than ever to take steps to strengthen your bones and protect your bone...
Scleroderma is a rare autoimmune disease that affects the skin and other organs. An estimated 300,000 people in the United States live with scleroderma. The primary features are thickening and tightening of the skin as well as inflammation of various organs. While there is no cure for scleroderma, rheumatologists play...
Gout causes joints to swell and feel painful. People with gout typically have flare-ups that last 1-2 weeks and resolve. The big toe is the most commonly affected joint. If you aren’t familiar with gout, you may misidentify the signs and symptoms. At Valerius Medical Group & Research Center, our...
Tendons are strong, cord-like bands of connective tissue that attach muscle to bone. These vital structures are tightly bound to create tension when your muscles contract, pulling against the bone to allow for movement. While the tendons are strong, they’re vulnerable to strains and tears from overuse. Tendonitis can cause...
Patients who have autoimmune disorders are at an increased risk for having psychiatric symptoms, such as anxiety and depression. While experts have yet to agree on a single explanation, patients with an autoimmune disorder should be aware of the potential impact their condition can have on their mental health. It’s...
Your skin is your largest organ, and it plays a key role in providing a barrier against chemicals, microorganisms, and temperature changes, to name a few. It also helps retain moisture. Skin cells have a life cycle that ranges from 10-60 days depending on various factors, such as your age....
The immune system is a complex set of defenses comprised of a multitude of physiological processes. Under normal circumstances, your immune system protects you against harmful organisms, such as bacteria, viruses, and parasites. However, sometimes the immune system doesn’t work the way it should. In as many as 4 million...
Scleroderma is an autoimmune rheumatic disease that affects the connective tissues in the body. It’s primarily characterized by the hardening and tightening of the skin and other connective tissues. However, it can also impact the digestive system. A comprehensive evaluation is required to be sure that your symptoms are related...
Gout is a form of inflammatory arthritis that affects approximately 4% of adults in the United States, with men outpacing women by a large margin — six million men versus two million women. Because this condition can be extremely painful, any steps you take now to prevent a flare-up are...
Like many health problems, there are several myths and misconceptions about lupus. If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with lupus or are exhibiting symptoms, knowing what your options are and what to expect is an important part of your treatment and recovery process. At Valerius Medical Group,...
When someone says they have arthritis, they’re usually referring to osteoarthritis — a degenerative condition of the joints. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis and is characterized by the breakdown and wearing away of cartilage, the connective tissue that cushions the joints. Cartilage may degrade due to injury,...
According to the National Psoriasis Foundation, stress is a common trigger for psoriasis flare-ups. To make matters worse, dealing with a psoriasis flare-up can heighten your stress, creating a vicious cycle. If you’re suffering from the painful and sometimes embarrassing symptoms of psoriasis, we can help. Nathaniel Neal, MD, Rebekah...
Your skeleton is quite literally the backbone of your body. By your early 20s, you reach peak bone mass formation, which is the strongest and most dense your bones will ever be. After you reach peak bone mass, your bones start to naturally degenerate over time. If you have especially...
When treating a chronic condition, oral and topical medications are often part of the therapy. But sometimes oral and topical methods fall short. When this happens, you may need to turn to more direct measures, such as IV therapy. With IV therapy, medication is delivered directly into your bloodstream through...
One of the great things about the summertime is that the warm weather can often bring relief from the pain, patches, and dryness of psoriasis. However, there are still pitfalls for those who must manage their psoriasis in the summer months. Drs. Nathaniel Neal and Rebekah Neal-Kraal, as well as...
Osteoporosis is one of the most common serious health issues faced by the aging population. According to Osteoporosis Canada, at least one in three women and one in five men will suffer an osteoporotic fracture in their lifetime. In fact, over 80% of all fractures in people over 50 are...
Rheumatoid arthritis can be difficult to diagnose because no single test confirms it, and its symptoms could point to many other conditions. You may not realize the pain or exhaustion you feel are due to rheumatoid arthritis, a chronic inflammatory condition. That’s why it’s so important to consult the team...
Gout is a severe, complex form of arthritis that develops when your bloodstream accumulates too much uric acid. When this happens, the uric acid dissolves, forming microscopic, spike-like crystals, then exits the bloodstream where it gets stuck in joints and soft-tissues. Just like any other foreign body, your immune system...
Osteoporosis is a medical condition that makes your bones weak and fragile. Bones are living tissue that grows and replaces itself naturally. When you have osteoporosis, your body doesn’t generate enough new bone to replace the bone that is lost, resulting in brittle bones that can easily break. Signs of...
Your immune system’s job is to protect you — to fight infections and keep you safe from invasion by pathogens, much like a well-trained army. When this elite team of germ-fighting machines revolts and starts to attack your own tissues and organs, it’s known as autoimmune disease. This malfunction of...
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is one of the most common autoimmune conditions, affecting around 1.3 million Americans today. It’s a disease where your body’s immune system becomes faulty and attacks its own tissues, particularly the synovial membranes that line the insides of your joints. As a result, you have pain, stiffness,...
Does it often feel like your psoriasis flares up for no reason? One or more triggers could be to blame. In fact, everyday things like a cold, a bug bite, or even stress can trigger psoriasis. Triggers can vary from person to person, but discovering what they are and learning...
If you’ve experienced limited success with treatment for rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus erythematosus (also known as SLE or lupus), you may be interested in enrolling in one of Valerius Medical Group & Research Center’s clinical trials to gain access to new treatments. While participation in a clinical trial is...
An active lifestyle does not doom you to a future that includes osteoarthritis. This joint disorder that causes pain, stiffness, and swelling in places like your knees, hips, elbows, and shoulders is not an inevitable part of aging. There’s a lot you can do to prevent osteoarthritis or, if you...
An estimated 1.5 million people in the United States have lupus, an unpredictable, often mysterious autoimmune disease. The journey to an official diagnosis is fraught with frustration, delays, and confusion. Unlike other conditions, no single test can diagnose lupus on its own. Gaining an understanding of why diagnosing lupus is...
