If you are like many Americans, you are currently experiencing back pain. This pain can be in your lower, middle or upper back. An estimated 32 million Americans are suffering from back pain at this moment and about 80% will experience it at some point in their life. Statistics such as these explain why the United States' number one cause of disability today is back pain. This brings up many questions about back pain causes, prevention, and treatment. The goal of chiropractor in Sterling is to use this article to answer your questions and help alleviate back pain.
BACK PAIN IN Sterling
Lower back pain rarely goes away on its own. Even if the pain dissipates, if the underlying cause isn’t treated, it will likely return.
Medically integrated treatment from Active Lifestyle Medical focuses on finding the source of the pain and providing treatment that will not only help minimize the pain but offer improved overall health for long-term relief. This integrated approach can provide you with a better understanding of the cause and the best treatment to overcome your lower back pain.
Besides physical causes, conditions such as arthritis, obesity, urinary tract infections, and kidney stones can produce signs of lower back pain. With all of the possibilities in mind, it is important to find a doctor who is well versed in the area of pain management as well as all aspects of health, in order to correctly narrow down and find the root of the pain. Luckily, the staff at Active Lifestyle Medical VA are exactly these people. They have many years of experience and education with back pain and can accurately diagnose the problem. If this diagnosis is lacking, the smallest irritation can become overwhelming pain.
TREATMENTS FOR LOWER BACK PAIN
Too often lower back pain is only addressed with medication, which only masks the pain and doesn’t fix the underlying cause. For long-term relief, it’s important to treat the root of the pain. This means every person may receive different treatments for lower back pain, depending on the cause.
Drs. Arndt and Borthakur at Active Lifestyle Medical offer many options for reducing back pain and improving mobility, including:
- Spinal manipulation
- Electrical muscle stimulation
- Therapeutic exercise
- Cold laser therapy
- SpineMED® spinal decompression
- Trigger point injections
Often, the Active Lifestyle Medical specialists combine different treatments to address lower back pain. A computerized X-ray analysis is used to monitor changes in lower back alignment during your treatments, providing visual documentation of improvement.
SUBLUXATIONS
While disc herniations are the most common cause of back pain, subluxations are the most overlooked. A subluxation is the medical term which describes a vertebrae in the spine that is out of place. Resulting from subluxations, normal, fluid movement is impaired and a multitude of other conditions, including pain, can prevail. Subluxations can be caused by almost anything and be almost anywhere on your spinal column.
Subluxations can be an outcome of many events such as stress, physical trauma, and toxins. In the same way that stress partially leads to ulcers in the gut, physiological bodily changes also may occur for the same reasons, displacing a vertebrae. As with most injuries, timing is vital and the chiropractors at Active Lifestyle Medical VA are experienced in locating and fixing the subluxation quickly and effectively.
CAUSES OF LOWER BACK PAIN
Lower back pain is just a symptom, and the cause is harder to pinpoint. In some cases, a particular trauma is responsible, such as a vehicle accident or strain due to heavy lifting. In other patients, degenerative spinal issues could be the source of their lower back pain. Even a sedentary lifestyle can be a factor.
Uncovering the cause of the pain is the first step to finding the right treatment. Some of the main contributors to lower back pain include:
- Sciatica
- Herniated discs
- Disc degeneration
- Muscles strain or spasms
- Spinal stenosis
The practitioners at Active Lifestyle Medical approach all symptoms as just the tip of the iceberg and focus on finding the source of the dysfunction. Once the root of your pain is determined, they begin addressing the particular health condition, as well as providing relief for the symptoms.
STRESS AND BACK PAIN
Constant stresses create a vastly different physiological profile for a person than those who do not encounter these stresses. While your body is stressed, many different hormones are released to try and deal with the situation. These hormones result in increased heart rate, raised blood pressure, a changed immune system and lowered bone density and muscle mass. When these hormones are released in the body, issues with relation to heart and digestive health, obesity, depression, and even back pain are common. When the stress hormones are released, the muscles in your body tense creating “trigger points”. These points are very painful, however, can be treated in Sterling with chiropractic care.
By going after the causes of back pain, rather than the symptoms, the results are much more successful and the treatment becomes easier. One thing all of the conditions listed above have in common is spinal misalignment. Luckily, the expert staff at Active Lifestyle Medical VA is equipped with the knowledge and tools to work towards bettering this issue.
Like with and pain or condition, a non-invasive and conservative yet effective approach is always the first option in treating back pain. If there are any other questions you have about your condition or about back pain as a whole, contact us at Active Lifestyle Medical VA. And if you are ready to take the leap towards health, call today and schedule and appointment.