BACK AND SPINE PAIN CONDITIONS

DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN SELF-REFER FOR A CONSULTATION?

Have you been told you have any of the following: a bulging or herniated disc, spinal stenosis, degenerative disc disease, arthritis in the spine, whiplash, military neck, a pinched nerve? When you see a medical provider about your pain you are given a lot of answers as to what you may have but not how to treat the pain that goes along with the condition.

How can physical therapy help?

Physical therapists are skilled at diagnosing different spinal conditions and setting up proper treatment plans to address your symptoms. An appropriate diagnosis is important as well as spending time really listening to your symptoms and functional limitations. We are the clinicians of choice for a non-invasive plan of care to treat pain associated with any of the above conditions.

Lumbago

You may hear this word a lot: it simply means “lower back pain”1—and it can come from many places.

Arthritis

Any change in the shape of the bones of the spine is a type of arthritis. Arthritis in the spine starts in our 20s and is actually normal. As we age, we have more arthritis in our spines as well as other joints in the body.

Click to learn how to download our free ebook regarding arthritis of the spine.

Bulging Disc in Back and Neck

A normal and common condition for people who do not have any spine pain. Sometimes a bulging disc can cause pain when seated for periods of time as well as during changes in position, often relieved by standing and walking.

What Is a Herniated Disc?

Herniated Disc, or Herniated Nucleus Pulpolsus (HNP), is diagnosed by an MRI or other such image that can see soft tissue. These are generally seen in those who are NOT having any pain. Common complaints of pain can be similar to a bulging disc but there can also be pain down one or both legs.

There are various types of herniated disc exercises you can do in physical therapy to make you healthy again, such as water aerobics, muscle strengthening, and stretching2.

Discogenic Pain

Pain that behaves as if there is a herniated or injured disc but an MRI does not show any disc injury. Common complaints of pain are similar to a herniated or bulging disc.

What Is Sciatica?

True sciatica is actually very rare. In some, the sciatic nerve, instead of travelling from the spine through the pelvis and behind the piriformis muscle, it dives through the piriformis muscle and can be impinged by that muscle when it gets tight. An MRI or ultrasound can diagnose this, but you can have this your entire life without feeling any sciatic nerve pain.

Stretching can be a particularly good treatment for sciatica3. But only if the right stretches are done. Your physical therapist can diagnose and help you treat your sciatic symptoms.

What Is Spinal Stenosis?

Spinal Canal Stenosis is the narrowing of the space that the spinal cord travels through in the center of the vertebral column and can be caused by a disc that is bulging or changes in the bone shape (arthritis). This can be temporary and doesn’t have to cause pain.

Another type of stenosis, but one more limited in damage, is “neuroforaminal stenosis”. This time affects holes on the sides of the spine, rather than the spine canal itself, and it can sometimes only be limited to certain parts of the spine4.

Another type is “lumbar spinal stenosis”, which mainly affects your lower back. According to the Harvard Health Blog, physical therapy exercises are a great treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis5.

Whiplash – Meaning and Symptoms

When you are involved in some type of trauma (the most common is a car accident) in which the head and neck travel forward and backward very quickly, many structures in and around the neck get irritated and injured. Depending on the severity of the accident, whiplash can be mild to severe.

Pinched Nerve in Back and Neck

A nerve can be sensitive or irritated but does NOT need to be actively getting “pinched” or injured. In fact, if a nerve is sensitive it can react to changes in temperature, movement, stress or even immunity changes in your body. It doesn’t have to be warning you of anything that is actually damaging the nerve or the tissue surrounding it.

What is Spondylosis?

Also known as “neck arthritis”, this is caused by neck bones developing areas of grown which could grow in an area that is close to nerves thus putting pressure on the nerve, and becomes more likely as you age6. More than 85 percent of people older than 60 have spondylosis7. This is a very common diagnosis and does not need to cause pain.

Sacroiliac Joint Pain

Often shortened to “SI Joint Pain”. You have an SI joint on each side of your lower pelvis in the back, which help carry the burden of your upper body, especially when you stand up or walk, which is why those two actions are when you’re most likely to run into SI joint pain8.

It has many causes, including other conditions, like arthritis; having different leg lengths, which can make your walking movement put more strain on your SI joints; old age; and certain surgeries9. The ligaments around the SI joint can become injured in very high trauma such as a fall from an extreme height. The ligaments become more flexible as a woman’s body gets ready to give birth, during pregnancy. Both of these are reasons for SI joint pain.

More Conditions We Treat

Below is a list of conditions related to the neck, spine, and ribs that we treat including diagnoses for which we provide treatment and links to articles and video transcripts that provide more information regarding each condition.

Neck Issues and Pain
- Cervical Radiculopathy
- Cervicogenic Headache
- Pinched Nerve
- Tension Headache
- Thoracic Outlet Syndrome
- Torticollis
- Whiplash
Spine Conditions/Back Issues and Pain
- Ankylosing Spondylitis
- Arthritis of the Spine – Arthritis of the Spine Free eBook
- Back Pain
- Bulging Disc/Herniated Disc – Video Transcript: The Biggest Myth About Herniated Disc Injuries
- Discogenic Pain
- Kyphosis/Hunchback
- Lower Back Pain
- Lumbar Radiculopathy
- Osteoporosis
- Pinched Nerve
- Piriformis Syndrome
- Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction/SI Joint Pain
- Sciatica
- Scoliosis
- Spinal Stenosis
- Spondylolisthesis/Slipped Disc
- Spondylosis
Rib Issues and Pain
- Costochondritis

References

^ M.D. Ben-Yishay, A. “Understanding Low Back Pain (Lumbago)”, Veritas Health, 25 Apr 2012. Retrieved 29 Mar 2018.
^ Reviewed by M.D. Highsmith, J. “Physical Therapy for Herniated Discs”, SpineUniverse, 28 Dec 2017. Retrieved 27 Mar 2018.
^ Fletcher, J. (Reviewed by DPT, Minnis, G.) “Six sciatica stretches for pain relief”, Medical News Today, 14 Jun 2017. Retrieved 27 Mar 2018.
^ C.P.T. Asher, A. (Reviewed by M.D. Hughes, G.) “Neuroforaminal Stenosis Defined”, verywellhealth, 10 Jun 2017. Retrieved 29 Mar 2018.
^ M.D. LeWine, H. “Physical therapy as good as surgery and less risky for one type of lower back pain”, Harvard Health Publishing, 9 Apr 2015. Retrieved 27 Mar 2018.
^ Delgado, A. & Nall, R. (Reviewed by M.D. Morrison, W.) “Cervical Spondylosis”, Healthline, 11 Jan 2018. Retrieved 27 Mar 2018.
^ Mayo Clinic Staff. “Cervical spondylosis”, Mayo Clinic, 18 Nov 2015. Retrieved 27 Mar 2018.
^ PT., DPT., OCS. Dryden, K. “Physical Therapist’s Guide to Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction”. American Physical Therapy Association. 21 Apr 2014. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
^ Chen, Y., Cohen, S. P., & Neufeld, N. J. “Sacroiliac joint pain: a comprehensive review of epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment”, Expert Rev Neurother, Jan 2013. Retrieved 29 Mar 2018.

DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN SELF-REFER FOR A CONSULTATION?

DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN SELF-REFER FOR A CONSULTATION?

CONTACT US

GOOGLE REVIEW