Low Back Pain

Low back pain is very common and affects up to 80% of people at some point during their life. The majority (95%) of back pain is something minor and manageable with conservative care and is NOT anything serious and does NOT require drugs or surgery. X-rays should be used sparingly and are usually not needed unless there is some type of trauma, like a car accident or a fall. If your chiropractor tells you that you need X-Rays so they can determine how to “adjust” you, you may wish to seek a second opinion. Some of the best therapies for low back pain are active therapies, so we work to get you moving as soon and as safely as possible.

Common Causes:

Disc Herniation: it is estimated that anywhere from 40%-60% of low back pain is a direct result of injury to the disc, a soft tissue structure between each individual spinal bone. These discs are like a jelly donuts, where the jelly (nucleus pulposus) acts as a natural shock absorber, and the donut ring itself (annulus fibrosis) is very tough and is supposed to hold the jelly inside. Often times these tough fibers are overloaded and allow the jelly to seep out, putting pressure on the highly sensitive pain fibers. This is what is called a disc herniation, and can often put excess pressure on nerve roots leading to buttock, leg, or foot pain as well. The good news is the large majority of disc herniations do not require surgery or medication, and can be managed successfully with conservative chiropractic care, active rehabilitation, and activity modification.

Spinal Stenosis of the lumbar spine is a narrowing of the spaces where the spinal cord and spinal nerves are. When this narrowing occurs there is extra pressure placed on these nerves, which will often cause “radicular” pain, which is often experienced as sharp or stabbing pain into the legs or feet. While this can become a serious condition if not managed properly, the large majority of cases can be effectively managed without surgery by using chiropractic, physical rehabilitation, and laser therapy.    

Facet Syndrome is an irritation and/or inflammation of the joint capsule surrounding the joints that hold the back part of the spine together (the facet joints). 

Arthritis: There are different types of arthritis but the most common type affecting the low back is called osteoarthritis (OA) or degenerative joint disease (DJD). This may sound terrible if your doctor has diagnosed you with this, but it is actually a normal process of aging. In fact, many people have this condition and have absolutely no symptoms at all! If it is causing symptoms, however, it can be managed very successfully with activity modification, physical rehabilitation, and chiropractic care.    

Mechanical low back pain is a syndrome in which symptoms can be brought on by specific movements of the spine as well as muscles and other structures surrounding it. One of the most common movements associated with this direction-specific pain is spinal flexion (like bending forward to tie your shoes). Through a proper biomechanical evaluation and treatment, along with simple patient-education for safer movement strategies, this type of pain and injury is quickly reversed without the use of drugs or surgery.