VCSST_Understand Your Back Pain

Newsletter

Understand Your Back Pain

Research tells us that 80-90% of people in the UnitedStateswillexperiencebackpainatsome point in their lives. Most of the time, it is not a serious problem and will resolve relatively quickly with conservative treatment. On very rare occasions, your back pain may require a little more attention. Most of the time, all you need is the right advice tokeepactive,perhapsminimizecertain movements for a few days while moving more in a different way. Working with a physical therapist is probably the best thing you can do if your back pain doesn’t resolve on its own in a few days. Within a few weeks, you should be able to get back to normal routines and be working towards higher level athletic activity if that is your goal. One thing to remember is that the degree of pain does not necessarily correlate with the severity of the problem. A relatively minor problemcanstillbequitepainful. Unfortunately, many people attempt self-diagnosis using online symptom checkers and fall prey to “cyberchondria,” or unfounded anxiety about their health issues. After receiving well- intentioned but incorrect advice, they often think their problem is worse than it is. Multiple

studies have shown that the more negatively people think about their back pain, the more likely they are to suffer long-term issues, miss more time fromwork, and avoid doing regular, functional activities. Many people erroneously believe that imaging studies (X-rays, MRI’s, etc) are essential before resuming any activity following an episode of back pain. Studies have shown that people who have early imaging done for their back pain are likely to spend nearly $4,000 more on their care without a significant difference in outcome as compared to those who received physical therapy treatment first. Multiple other studies have shown that findings on x-rays and MRIs among people as young as 20 have little to no correlation with symptoms, and are as common in people WITHOUT symptoms as those with symptoms. However, the good news is that the physical therapists at Virginia Center for Spine and Sports Therapy can help determine if your back pain is something serious or not. When symptoms are more localized in the back and even in the hips, that is usually a positive sign. Even if symptoms refer into the legs, which is stillcommon,as longaswedetermine thereare

no signs of progressive neurological change, that is a positive sign as well. Progressive neurological changes include loss of muscle strength in the legs, a loss of sensation in part of the leg or foot, loss of reflexes, and more seriously, a loss of bowel and/or bladder control. In the absence of these, it is most likely that your back pain is nothing serious and that you will be able to resume your normal, active lifestylewith the right helpandguidance.On an evenmorepositivenote, thereare thousandsof patients every year who actually have all these symptoms with an acute back pain episode, but don’t need surgery. They recover fully with Physical Therapy treatment! Another important take-home message is that back pain is a complex multifactorial experience and identifying a single source for your pain is truthfully not always possible, nor necessary. Your pain experience is unique to you and the Physical Therapists at VCSST will work with you to formulate a plan to help get you back to living your best life as fast as possible.

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