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Back Pain & Disc Problems
Back pain affects
almost everyone at some time, causing restricted movement and
untold misery, stress and discomfort. It also causes millions of
people to take valuable time off work, costing companies enormous
sums in pay and lost production.
What causes back pain?
·
Poor lifting or
incorrect carrying of heavy weights
·
Poor posture
·
Unsuitable seats or
beds
·
Sports or other
injury
·
Stress
·
Pregnancy
·
General wear and
tear
Chiropractic
manipulation has been recognised as highly effective in treating
back pain, and the Royal College of General Practitioners issued
guidelines for GP’s in 1996 that recommended manipulation within
six weeks onset for the relief of acute low back pain.
Chiropractors are
trained to identify and treat the specific cause of your back
pain, and once you have been treated, they may also advise you in
appropriate rehabilitation and maintenance care plan to prevent a
recurrence.
The bones of your spine protect the spinal cord; the nerve roots
lose their normal motion or position, this can irritate the nerve
roots that branch from the spinal cord to the organs and tissues
of your body. Sciatica is a general term describing pain in the
sciatic region, which extends from the base of the spine down the
back and side of the leg. Unless there is a specific injury to
the region, pain here is ‘referred’ from other areas. (The
irritation of the nerve in one area can sometimes lead to pain,
known as ‘referred’ pain, in other parts of the body). The nerves
that supply the sciatic region come from the lower back.
In order for the spine to be flexible, the vertebrae are joined
together by soft tissue structures known as discs and ligaments.
Each disc is made up of two parts – a central soft core and outer
rings of tough cartilage. The disc allows movement and also helps
to absorb shock. A slipped disc is the rather inaccurate term
used to describe the condition, often in the lower back, where
trauma or ‘ wear and tear’ have caused damage to the outer rings
of cartilage, so that the core is squeezed outwards. This can
eventually result in a bulge, which can press on the spinal cord,
the nerve root or the nerve itself. It can cause excruciating
pain, either in the back or referred elsewhere – for example in
the lower leg or foot. Chiropractic treatment can mobilise the
spine to reduce any inflammation around the spinal cord or nerves.
Trigger points
(sometimes referred to as fibrosititis are very common
and related to back pain. They occur in the neck or
shoulders (often caused by bad posture or stress) or sometimes in
the buttocks area at the base of the spine. Painful knots’ form
within the muscles, which have gone into spasm – a reaction which
the body triggers in order to tighten muscles round a problem
area, to prevent further injury. This is why the condition so
often occurs in patients who have had a back problem for some
time.
Your
chiropractor will therefore use manipulation to adjust the
relevant joint, and also deep massage and soft tissue work to
relieve the condition. Since the knots of muscle are often
tender, the soft tissue treatment may be painful at first.
Loss of proper
joint movement may cause irritation of the nerves that come out of
your spine. This, in turn, can lead to pain where the nerves
end. This is known as ‘referred’ pain. You may already know
about sciatica, which is leg pain often caused by nerve irritation
in the lower spine. This is why your neck may be treated when you
have consulted your chiropractor about shoulder and arm problems
including:
·
frozen shoulder
·
tennis elbow
·
tendonitis
·
carpal tunnel
syndrome
Keep your joints moving
properly.
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