Low Back Pain

Low Back Pain is one of the most common conditions treated at a chiropractic office. There are many causes of low back pain. Some of these causes occur during our activities of daily living. For example, many people notice lower back symptoms after performing a simple activity such as bending over to pick up a young child, brushing their teeth, or loading a dish washer. Moving awkwardly while sleeping, getting up from a seated position too fast, prolonged driving or prolonged sitting at the computer can also aggravate the lower back. Some of the more obvious causes of low back pain may come from lifting heavy boxes, working very long hours, swinging a golf club or shoveling too much snow.
Whether the causes are obvious or not, low back pain usually occurs from repetitive micro traumas to the spine. These micro traumas cause little irritations, that left untreated over a period of time, end up causing significant changes to our spinal structure, and in many cases, chronic low back pain.

Treatment:

A Chiropractic treatment typically consists of a chiropractic adjustment which helps to restore normal spine and nerve function to the affected areas and also helps to eliminate pain. Physical therapy and Physio-Therapy such as stretches, exercises, massages and electric stimulation are also utilized to help reduce muscle spasm and tightness as well as increase strength. Hot moist packs and ultrasound treatment are effective in increasing blood flow to chronic muscle spasms. Also, in acute low back cases, ice therapy (cryotherapy) is used to help reduce swelling and should be applied immediately following an injury. It is important in acute cases to avoid the use of dry heat therapy at home such as a heating pad on the lower back as this can cause increased superficial swelling and possibly additional pain.

If you or someone you know is experiencing low back pain, give our office a call as we have been successfully treating this condition for over 15 years!