backpain-therapy

Archive for the ‘back pain physical therapy’ Category

Vertebral axial decompression therapy is a very useful tool for people who have horrible back problems because it is relatively inexpensive and it does not involve surgery. Data was collected from twenty-two medical centers for patients who received VAX-D therapy for low back pain, which was sometimes accompanied by referred leg pain. Only patients who received at least ten sessions and had a diagnosis of herniated disc, degenerative disc, or facet syndrome, which were confirmed by diagnostic imaging, were included in this study.

The data contained the patients’ quantitative assessments of their own pain, mobility, and ability to carry out the usual ‘activities of daily living’. The treatment was successful in 71% of the 778 cases, when success was defined as a reduction in pain to 0 or 1, on a 0 to 5 scale. Improvements in mobility and activities of daily living correlated strongly with pain reduction. The causes of back pain and their relationship to this therapy are also discussed.

Although imaging procedures, including CT and MRI, are able to accurately define structural pathology, the correlation of these anatomic findings with physiology, back pain, and other clinical complaints is imprecise. Although surgical decompression, epidural blocks, and spinal instrumentation can sometimes help patients suffering from back pain, these treatments do not completely take the biomechanical function of the disc into account, and may leave patients unrelieved of their suffering.

Low back pain is aggravated by activities that increase axial loading on the spine, such as sitting, standing, and lifting. Patients may describe some relief with walking, but more particularly, by lying down, which unloads the spine and reduces intradiscal pressure. The causes of mechanical low back pain may include degenerative disc disease, degenerative spondylosis with limitation of range of motion, facet arthropathy, relative lateral recess stenosis from a combination of the above, microenvironment presure changes affecting the thecal and epidural space from disc bulging, subligamentous and/or extruded herniation, and segmental instability.

A number of potential mechanisms are specifically addressed by the lumbar vertebral body separation achieved during therapy. With aging, disc desicction occurs, disc height is lost, and this process is accelerated with activities which produce high physical loading of the lumbar spine. Osteophytes develop along the anterolateral and posterior border of the vertebral bodies, and facet arthropathy increases as degenerative disc change advances . Normal vertebral body separation is lost as the disc degenerates. blood supply to the nerve roots of the cauda equina is sensitive to compression. Even at pressures of only 5-10 mmHg, the flow in over 20% of the venules was completely stopped. Flow in all the capillaries stopped at pressures between 20 and 50 mmHg. A pressure of 30 mmHg is slightly less than one pound per square inch, so solute transport is easily reduced. Even vertebral distractions of 1 or 2 mm per disc would reduce ligamental redundancy and help to restore canal/foraminal patency, reduce venous congestion and increase axoplasmic flow.

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Groshan Fabiola
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/vertebral-axial-decompression-or-vaxd-and-their-results-106783.html

Ankylosing spondylitis is a condition that a fraction of the population faces. It is a type of arthritis that affects the spinal column and can be one of the most debilitating of all types of arthritis. In this condition, you will experience stiffness and pain. Generally, that pain runs from your neck down into your lower back. The worst part about this condition is that it often ends up causing your vertebrae, or the bones in your spine, to fuse together. That can cause many problems for you in virtually every function of your life.

What you need to know about ankylosing spondylitis is that if the condition is caught and treated soon enough, your pain will be lessened and the conditions worst debilitating abilities will be lessened, considerably. With the help of medications, physical therapy and screening, you can reduce your pain. If you don’t seek out the help you need for this condition, the worst possibility you can face is having a stooped over spine that can lead to the inability to function and do the things you need to do.

Do You Have It?

With the help of your doctor you can determine if you have ankylosing spondylitis. He or she will perform a series of tests that often include x-rays, a monitoring of your symptoms and a physical exam. Through these things, your doctor will be able to determine what is affecting you as well as the degree and the possible treatment for it. The symptoms of this form of arthritis are quite unique. One of them is the fusion of your vertebrae. What happens is as simple as your body doing too much to help itself. As with arthritis, an inflammation starts, it causes your body to trigger a healing device. In this case, it thinks that you need to heal your bones and therefore begins to stimulate bone growth. The problem with that is that the bony growth is actually fusing the two vertebrae together which leads you to additional problems.

Not only will this cause a loss of range of motion, but in addition, it will make it harder for you to breathe because your ribs are being forced in against your lungs. You may not be able to take in a deep breathe.

There are other symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis as well. The pain and stiffness that is generally accompanied by any form of arthritis are there. This can happen from the lower back, into your hips and into the buttocks. If you have pain that is constant in the hips and lower back area for more than three months, then it is a sign that you could be developing this condition. In addition, the ligaments and tendons in your spinal area on down into the back and hips can be effected and may be sore and stiff.

With the right help, though, most of the symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis can be lessened and even reversed. But, for this to happen, you have to be proactive in getting the help you need to make it so.

Greg Marsh
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/ankylosing-spondylitis-what-87668.html

If you sit at a desk all day, stand in place at work, do a lot of heavy lifting, etc, your body will most likely benefit from inversion therapy by helping the body recover from daily activities. Inversion Therapy is recognized by doctors, physical therapists and sports trainers to be a safe and effective way to relieve stress on the spine and weight bearing joints. Being that I have lower back problems and discovered at my last check up that I am actually getting shorter, I decided to do some research on what people are reporting about the benefits of hanging upside down.

One thing is for sure we are not alone in having back or joint problems. The chronic pain often experienced can reek havoc on your life. I remember when my back pain was at it’s worse, I couldn’t lift my feet to walk. My doctor treated me with epidurals, which only numbed the pain for a while. Today, my back is mostly stiff. It always feels like it needs to be stretched or straightened out.

So how is inversion therapy helping people with back and joint problems? From what I have learned, most people are happy with the results they get from regular use of an inversion table. People are saying that Inversion Therapy reverses the way gravity has been negatively effecting their body. Ever feel like things are going south, so to speak? I can definitely relate. Simply put, Inversion Therapy puts gravity on your side by alining the body with the downward force of gravity. It elongates the spine, actual increasing the space between the vertebrae. It makes sense that this could relieve pressure on discs, which means less pain.

Inversion elongates the spine, increasing the space between the vertebrae, which relieves the pressure on discs, ligaments and nerve roots. Less pressure means less back pain. Have you ever noticed that being stressed out makes the pain and discomfort from aches and pains worse? Many customers report that using Inversion Therapy helps to calm and relax them after a hard day at work. Stress and tension can cause pain in the back, neck and shoulders, also headaches and other problems. Don’t you hate that awful neck and shoulder pain that is usually experienced after a day at the office. We don’t realize a lot of times, we’re tensed up while at work, driving, anticipating an up coming event, etc. I sometimes take notice that my shoulders have been tensed up for hours and when I try to relax, it only brings pain.

Customers who are regularly using inversion therapy say that even just a few minutes a day can help relax muscles, allowing for our body to flush out toxins, increase oxygen supplies so the pain and stiffness begins to disappear. They also say that posture is improved and some people report that they have regained their normal height, after their body started getting shorter. Stress and tension can cause muscle spasms in the back, neck and shoulders, as well as headaches and other problems. Tense muscles produce spasms and pain by reducing the supply of oxygen and by reducing blood and lymph flow, allowing the accumulation of waste chemicals in the muscles.

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natalie shelby
http://www.articlesbase.com/wellness-articles/teeter-hang-up-review-743500.html

Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that has no known cure. It is a common disease that affects between 2 – 6 percent of all people. Fibromyalgia is characterized by widespread pain in the tendons, ligaments and muscles, and also causes sleeping problems which can leave the affected person feeling constantly fatigued.

Medical researchers are still not clear on what causes fibromyalgia. That being said, it is believed that a number of different factors can contribute to the disease including problems with joints in the low back and neck, surgery, work related injuries, physical or emotional stress or emotional trauma. These factors may explain why some Gulf War veterans suffer from Fibromyalgia.

A health study was done on Gulf War veterans, over a decade after they served in the first Persian Gulf War in 1991. It was discovered that Gulf War vets are more likely to suffer from fibromyalgia syndrome and chronic fatigue syndrome compared to other veterans who did not take part in that war.

The study that came to this conclusion was done over the course of three years at 16 Veteran medical centers across America, and involved over 1000 gulf war veterans and over 1000 non-Gulf War vets. What was found was that while just over 1% of non-gulf war vets have fibromyalgia, 2% of Gulf War vets are affected by the pain characterized by the disease. This is a significantly higher percentage.

Due to the fact that fibromyalgia can develop in regular citizens and non-Gulf War veterans, scientists are not certain what particular factors have put Gulf War vets at a higher risk for this debilitating disease. Although it is clear that Gulf War syndrome may be the reason, research has yet to confirm that this is true.

What is Gulf War syndrome? It is a term given to illness that cause certain symptoms, some of which include: chronic fatigue, migraines, dizziness, loss of balance and/or muscle control, muscle and joint pain, problems with memory, shortness of breath, indigestion and skin problems. It is believed that Gulf War syndrome was caused by some of the drug experimentation that was performed on the veterans during their time of service.

Thus, some researchers think that Gulf War syndrome may be the reason why some of the vets deployed in this war have developed fibromyalgia. In fact, it is now being suspected and recognized by the Defense and Veterans Affairs, that along with fibromyalgia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig ’s disease), and brain cancer has a potentially direct connection to service during the Gulf War.

To learn more about Gulf War syndrome and the other illnesses that affect Gulf War veterans visit http://VA.gov. In addition, for those Gulf War vets who suffer from Fibromyalgia, there are different treatments that can be tried to help relieve pain and discomfort. As was mentioned, there is no cure for the disease, but there are ways you can make living with fibromyalgia more bearable. For instance, a treatment that all fibromyalgia sufferers may benefit from is Trigger Point Therapy.

Jane Thompson
http://www.articlesbase.com/medicine-articles/hidden-causes-of-fibromyalgia-95199.html

After weeks of trying painkillers alone, I finally went to sports rehab for help with her agonizingly painful lumbar spine problem. To my surprise, physical therapy was a relief to my back pain, and I was able to leave the facility an hour later, walking fully upright for the first time in weeks. Thanks to a wonderful contraption called a traction bed, that stretched out my spine and relieved the pressure on the lumbar area.

What is traction? The physical therapist first put me in a harness. They had me wear a vest-like apparatus, and attached another one to go the opposite way, as I lied down on the traction table, with pillows under my head. Then, they hooked me to a Tens Machine (I’ll explain that in a moment) and then turned on both systems. It felt wonderful, I could’ve stayed there all evening. After roughly twenty minutes, they unhooked me, and I was amazed to be able to walk around much more comfortably than when I walked in the place. Whoever invented this wonderful apparatus did back pain sufferers a really big favor.

What is a Tens Unit? It is a machine that emits minor electrical pulses to the area that is in pain, working the muscles and giving relief to the area. There are different kinds of pulses, some ping and some pulse, but they all feel great. I had the physical therapist crank it up as high as possible, and it made my pains go away for the time I was using it. Amazing. I’d been doubled over with serious pain, even with medicines like Celebrex and Tylenol with Codeine in my system. This worked better than both of those together, hands down.

On the wall was a poster, explaining the spine, in minute detail. Very interesting. It’s much more complicated than I could ever imagine. I had the therapist show me where my L5 lumbar area was, because that is where the herniated disk is. Half the benefit of going to physical therapy is the instruction on what to do with your problem. They teach you how to get up correctly without straining your back, what the best position for sleeping with a bad back (on your back with a pillow under your knees), and other useful mobility tips. Hearing all the correct ways to treat my body, it was apparent to me that I’ve really been abusing my poor spine for most of my life. No wonder I’ve had lesser bouts of back pain for the last twenty years, culminating in a more severe case this time around. I learned my lesson.

The therapist told me to slowly, gradually, build up my stamina by walking and doing light exercizes. He told me to listen to my body, if I feel pain then it’s time to stop. I did a little walking this evening. Thanks to the traction therapy, I am much more comfortable. It will be a long and slow recovery from sciatica but at least I now know there is hope. Having to go to a spine doctor and for physical therapy for the first time in my life was initially really scary to me. But, truthfully, it was an unexpected relief. Nobody gave me shots in my spine, or manhandled me. There wasn’t any torturous pain inflicted on me, just a few tests to see how strong or weak my muscles are, a CT scan and a few x-rays. I heard another patient ask the therapist what happens if the physical therapy doesn’t work. The next step is getting shots in the back, he said. No way, I told him to fix me, so I never need to get to that level of treatment. The next level of treatment after those shots is surgery. I want to avoid all of that, and am glad to know that they don’t push these things on us. They wait to see how we respond. And, I can tell that the therapy is working, so I am going to build up my stamina by doing as told.

If you suffer from crippling back pain, make sure to go to a specialist and have him look at your back. He will probably give you pain killers and prescribe physical therapy. I reccommend it, and wish you a speedy recovery. I’m so glad I finally went. No more toughing it out for me. It gives me hope of a pain-free future and shows it’s needless to suffer in silence. Been there, done that.

Carolyn McFann
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/lumbar-spine-traction-is-a-wonderful-thing-126033.html