Back Pain Explained
Anatomy of the back
What Causes Low Back Pain?
The commonest cause of low back pain is simple tissue failure. The outside layers protecting the spinal nerve are firstly the muscle, beneath that is ligament then the joint and finally the disc and nerve. When we put too much force through our spine these defences can fail one by one until eventually the force finally passes through to the discs and nerves, causing slipped disc, sciatica, trapped nerves etc.
Our backs are supplied by two sets of nerves “fast” and “slow”. The human spine has relatively few slow nerves, compared to fast nerves. This means if we suddenly twist our spine it may hurt immediately; but if we sit slouched over a PC, we would barely notice it until we stand up when our fast nerves would be activated. So, bad posture combined with lack of activity is the antecedence to low back pain. That means sitting long hours a day, with little exercise is bad news.
What Are The Symptoms of Low Back Pain?
The low back spine is in intimate contact with the nerves that travel to the legs, groin and bowel. For this reasons symptoms can be quite diverse. Classic low back pain may therefore include in addition to back pain: pins and needles, numbness, loss of strength in the leg, hot or cold sensations, leg pain (sciatica), calf pain, foot pain, groin pain, tummy pain, and bowel disturbances – constipation or diarrhoea.
Treatment of Low Back Pain at the Living Centre Clinic
Over 90% of mechanical back pain has the following format. The injured part of the spine will typically be over-worked and inflamed. Reciprocally the neighbouring area will show as an under-worked, ie stiff and “lazy”. Treatment is firstly to calm and release the injured area and then, to help prevent the problem happening again, the lazy areas are made mobile again so they can share in the future work load.
Our success at treating sciatica is due to the unique combination of treatments we use to decompress the spine. We are one of the few clinics that have an advanced treatment bed, which is a more effective treatment than manual medicine alone, the bed gently frees back pain by using a soothing rocking motion. We combine this with the application of clinical massage and traction at specific points along the spine to reduce pressure on the spine or trapped nerve.
Our treatments are endorsed by GPs and consultants including orthopaedic surgeons, neurosurgeons and neurologist specialists. We offer insurance approved pain consultants who are registered with leading health insurance providers.The Living Centre Clinic enjoys a good reputation with the medical profession. We can make requests, privately or through your GP, for MRI scans, x-rays blood test etc as needed.
We believe in involving the patient in their recovery. We know if a patient understands what to do and when, they can help speed up recovery and avoid future problems. Advice, tips and exercises always feature in our management. Following recovery, rehabilitative therapy is available with our experienced Pilates instructor, offering continued therapeutic support.
Don't Suffer Anymore
Don't suffer anymore. Call us today we can help many types of back pain conditions, even if you have suffered for years, 02089462331 or fill in our online form (option2). We can give a personal answer to your question.
You may also find the following articles helpful : Back Pain, Sipped disc/Sciatica, Neck Pain, Headache/Migraine, Shoulder Pain, Trapped Nerve
