You’ve Pulled Your Back, Now What?
Something didn’t feel quite right. You were shoveling snow or helping a friend move a heavy couch, and there it went. Your lower back tightens up or seizes up on you. It was hard to move normally, and your back just felt “off.” You “pulled” your back; now what? Let’s first take a brief look at the anatomy of the lower back, then a couple of lower back injuries, followed by what to do next.
Back Pain Quiz: Put Your Knowledge to the Test!
Back pain is one of the most common conditions that physical therapists treat. It can occur from a variety of reasons, and impact each person differently, but one thing is for sure – no one wants it. If left untreated, back pain can get in the way of daily activities such as work, exercising, and spending time with family and friends. How much do you know about back pain? Put your knowledge to the test with the following quiz!
Can Anyone Start Physical Therapy?
Physical therapy (PT) is a great treatment to address aches and pains of varying kinds. It can be utilized for general discomfort or pain associated with surgery. PT is designed to help reduce pain and improve range of motion, strength, and overall function. Whether it’s your knee that has been hurting for decades or your back you tweaked shoveling snow, often, physical therapy can help. Let’s look at injuries physical therapy can treat and who exactly should start physical therapy.
How Shoulders Can Affect the Low Back in Cheerleaders
Cheerleading is a popular sport in high schools and universities, and a competitive all-star sport. All-star teams are comprised of a variety of ages; they can be co-ed and practice multiple days per week for competitions. Cheerleading athletes are more susceptible to certain injuries, including a high incidence of low back pain.
Textbooks to Tablets: How to Prevent Upper Body Pain in an Increasingly Digital Learning Environment
Our digital world is ever expanding, and one may find themselves required to spend more time using technology for work, learning, and leisure. If this applies to you or your family members, it is important to be aware of how we interact to the digital world to prevent injuries that can result from prolonged positions which compromise good posture and ergonomics, resulting in pain.
Heat or Ice for Low Back Pain? Why You Should Choose Movement Instead
Society has trained us that when we get an injury, or have an ache or pain, we should always choose either heat or ice to try and relieve the discomfort. One of the most common questions that physical therapists get is whether someone should use heat or ice to relieve back pain. The issue with both modalities is that they are passive, and one study found the depth of therapeutic levels of tissue temperature change is one cm. Most tissues that individuals are looking to target with their heat or ice are much deeper, so you are not effectively applying the modality to the depth you want. So, what is the best thing that we can do for our low back pain? Movement!
3 Things You Didn’t Know About Men’s Health Specialists
When someone thinks of men’s health, most people’s first thought is a magazine with the newest Avenger on the cover. For others, the definition of men’s health may be a yearly prostate screen. Still, for others, it might be making time for mental and physical health with exercise and self-care. These are certainly important aspects of men’s health, though maybe not the magazine cover.
Why You Should Choose PT First for Low Back Pain
Low back pain is a common disorder that affects 84% of adults at some point in their lives. The good news about this is that most back pain gets better without needing imaging (Xrays, MRIs). In most cases, imaging is an unnecessary intervention, particularly in the first six weeks, that costs a significant amount of money to patients. One study found no long-term difference between patients who underwent surgery and those who only did conservative management (therapy) for sciatica. Also, it was found that low back fusion surgery was not more effective than conservative management (therapy) when treating chronic low back pain in patients with lumbar spine pathologies and leads to greater long-term complications such as instability above and below the level of fusion.
