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Lower Back Pain Treatment: Helping the Lower Back move with Minimal Pain and Maximum Functionality againLower Back Pain Treatment is based upon the Pain Assessment test results. If you are experiencing chronic Lumbago or Lumbar Back Pain, make sure to ask a lot of questions about your condition and try to take the most conservative approach to treatment as much as possible, based upon the Pain Assessment results.Lower Back Pain Treatment includes one or more of the following:
Quadratus Lumborum Medical Massage Imaging Diagnostics tell a story. Many if not most Physicians base their treatment plan on X-Rays or MRI’s or Cat Scans that might help to reveal some causes of Lower back pain especially Lumbar Vertebrae and other spinal locations and if there are any other associated problems. But it is also possible that the imaging diagnostics might not reveal anything either.Is the Spine moving freely, or is movement restricted and if so, how? That is an important question that needs to be answered not only for the Lumbar Spine, but the Thoracic Spine and SI Joints as well. The ROM testing results of the Lower Back Pain Assessment would have shown us how movements are restricted. Joint mobility testing of the Lumbar Vertebrae and each Sacroiliac Joint would have revealed if and how the joints were restricted, because some joints may be restricted while others may not be restricted.Body structures work together synergistically. Remember that the surrounding tendons, ligaments, soft tissue and musculature work together complimentary, interactively and synergistically with bone, joints, and discs, so either could be the culprit that is causing pain. The Palpation results would have indicated restrictions in soft tissue that need to be released as well as Trigger Points that need deactivation.Cause and effect helps to determine appropriate and effective treatment. One thing can lead to another, so apply treatment with the root of the problem in mind. Bad Posture can exacerbate pain and anterior or posterior Hip Rotation. Hip Rotation can cause joint compression. Joint compression contributes to joint pain and can cause referred pain to the Lower back.There could be more than one problem. Armed with the understanding of cause and effect, we must understand that our pain could be caused by more than one problem. It is possible that we have a joint problem exacerbating a soft tissue problem, or a soft tissue problem exacerbating a joint problem.
Clinical Massage helps tremendously, but choose your therapist carefully. Clinical Massage has a huge advantage in providing lasting Lower back pain relief. Armed with the Back Pain Assessment information, the skilled Clinical Massage Therapist will apply specialized back massage techniques to address and treat joint compression, hypertonic muscles, Myofascial pain, and Trigger Points to provide you with the maximum possible amount of Lower Back pain relief within their scope of practice. If the spinal musculature or soft tissue is splinting the Lower Back, the therapist will able to apply soft tissue techniques to help the joint to move freely again. The skilled therapist will be able to recognize anterior or posterior hip rotation, and refrain from releasing wrong muscles that would make the problem worse.Multidimensional clinical massage skills are required for Lower Back Treatment In addition to specialized back massage techniques for lower back pain, the Clinical Massage Therapist that is seasoned and highly skilled in Back Pain Therapy for Lower Back pain will also know how to reduce inflammation, apply Hydrotherapy, apply Lower Back Pain exercises and supply you with Home back pain Exercises as part of a comprehensive Back Pain Management Treatment Plan.Choose your Chiropractor carefully. If for some reason the Clinical Massage Therapist cannot restore Lower Back mobility, the therapist can make a referral to a Chiropractor whom is also able to conduct a Lower Back Pain Assessment and would be able to perform the appropriate Chiropractic Adjustments of the spine which could restore joint mobility once again.Pain Medicine Drawbacks NSAIDS are pain medicine that should be taken with care to avoid stomach upset and gastrointestinal distress such as IBS-Irritable Bowel Syndrome. They should be avoided altogether under circumstances such as stomach ulcers, and might only “take the edge off” if the pain is intense. Narcotic Medication affects the Nervous system, and is addictive. Some people experience constipation when using Opioids, so that is something else to consider.Nerve Pain Medicine Radiculopathy is radiating nerve pain from a nerve root, and a form of Neuropathy, which is Neuropathic Pain that affects the Peripheral Nervous system. Radiculitis is Radicular pain, radiating nerve pain along the nerve’s sensory distribution (Dermatome) not necessarily from the nerve root. If your Lower Back Pain Symptoms and/or Diagnostic Imaging results indicate the presence of Radicular pain either from Radiculopathy or Radiculitis, your doctor might also prescribe Gabapentin or Pregabalin for Lower Back Pain treatment, which are drugs that are used to treat Neuropathic Pain.What is Hydrotherapy? Water Therapy is Hydrotherapy - the use of water to decrease pain. That water can be lukewarm, or hot, or cold or ice.There are contraindications to using heat or cold or ice that should be followed!
How should Heat be applied? Heat should be used carefully, because if there is a high level of inflammation, heat will make the problem worse. Palpate the affected areas or tape a thermometer to the affected areas to try to get an idea if inflammation is present by the amount of heat in the area. If the likelihood of inflammation is low, Heat therapy with some type of heating pad can be applied to the affected areas to relax tight muscles and reduce muscular hypertonicity. The application of Heat should never exceed 105 degrees Fahrenheit and there are contraindications to heat therapy that should be adhered to.How can Activity Modification help? Activity behavior modification will help by avoiding the activities that exacerbate and aggravate Lower Back Pain. By altering some of our activities, we hope to reduce any kind of nerve inflammation we might have, which hopefully in turn will reduce the nerve impingement.TENS-Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation TENS-Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation for Neuropathic Pain is the application of an electrical current to the nerves of a chronic pain location in order to activate nervous system opiod receptors, reduce pain receptor (Nociceptor) activity, and increase GABA (neurotransmitter) release, thereby causing a reduction in Pain. The stimulation of nerves causes a continual cyclic contraction and relaxation of the associated musculature.
Ultrasound Ultrasound is the therapeutic application of inaudible high frequency sound waves to human tissue. The application of high frequency sound causes tissue molecules to vibrate off of each other at high speeds. This process causes an increase in temperature and inflammatory response resulting in tissue repair. The application can be pulsed or continous for limited periods of time and number of sessions. Ultrasound must be used with care to avoid causing excessive inflammation and/or burning internal tissue.
Spinal Decompression or Spinal Traction The purpose and theory of Spinal Decompression or Spinal Traction is to reduce spinal compressive forces on the Facet Joints of Lumbar Vertebrae or reducing the pressure on a lumbar disc that could be pressing on a nerve by stretching or pulling the spine apart. The spinal decompression or spinal traction is used performed on an inversion table or with a machine that pulls the spine apart.Be careful with Steroids! The application of Steroids is a controversial form of treatment. The goal of steroid application is inflammation reduction. The steroid can be injected via epidural steroid injection or delivered transdermally (thru the skin) via Ultrasound (Phonophoresis), or electrical current (Iontophoresis). It can have outstanding results in some situations, but if used excessively, it has been linked to Avascular Necrosis-reduced bone circulation resulting in death of bone tissue.What are Trigger Points? Lower Back pain can create Trigger Points, which are extremely irritable knots in taut bands of muscle and connective tissue that transmit referred pain into different parts of the body. Trigger points in the glutes have been known to transmit referred pain into lower back. Skilled Clinical Massage Therapists can apply effective Trigger Point deactivation techniques to reduce and eliminate this source of Myofascial pain or Myofascial Pain Syndrome.How can a Topical Analgesic help me? The use of a Topical Analgesic might provide some kind of symptomatic Lower Back Pain Relief, but is only a temporary reprieve. There are a number of topical analgesics on the market that help to provide some degree of pain relief. Most of them do not work very well, but there is one in particular that does a magnificent job of not only reducing pain, but inflammation as well for short periods of time up to two hours, but it is accomplished none the less.Standing Psoas Stretch Exercises for Lower Back Pain Relief. Hypertonic muscles or bad posture can cause shortened musculature and hip misalignment, which in turn can cause Lower Back Pain. Lower Back Stretches, strengthening exercises, and posture exercises for specific muscle groups to reduce pain and improve posture and correct posture will be required. If Lordosis is the cause of lower back pain, the lordotic curve must first be defined, then reverse-curvature exercises performed. An experienced Clinical Massage Therapist can assess and formulate the correct and effective exercise treatment plan.Lumbar Laminectomy Surgery when all else fails? The Spinal Surgery that is performed will depend upon the problem, and the Surgeon’s experience, skill, and abilities. The Spine Surgery could be one or more of the following:
Surgery is an invasive procedure that has risks, so if possible should be used as a last resort. Surgical outcomes are often irreversible. Carefully consider surgical risks and complications, such as increased rather than decreased pain, paralysis, medicinal side effects, and recovery problems. If you decide upon surgery, do your research not only on the proposed surgical procedure, but on the surgeon and surgical facility as well. Lower Back Pain Assessment – A step by step precursor to Effective Back Pain Treatment Lower Back Pain – Understanding the causes and symptoms of Lumbago - the most common chronic pain syndrome Return to Home - Chronic Pain Management for a Higher Quality of Life |
