Alleviate Back Pain With Spinal Decompressing Therapy

The Mayo Clinic reports that four out of five people in the United States would have low back pain at least once in their lifetime.

Back pain is a really common complaint. It is one of the most common causes for people to miss work or make a trip to the doctor's office.

There is a bright side. Almost all back pain problems are preventable and in treating back pain surgery is rarely needed.

For example, spinal decompression therapy is an effective, safe and non-surgical way to alleviate chronic low back and neck pain.

Causes of back pain

There are several things that could develop that cause back pain to occur or reoccur.

If you acquire to know a little bit more about your back, its components and how they function it might be easier to diagnose what's causing your particular back pain. Once you figure out what's causing your back pain then you would be in a position to take the best course of action on a treatment plan that's best for you.

Muscle spasms could be one cause of severe back pain but most frequently back pain occurs from strained muscles and ligaments. Improper form or lifting heavier than normal weights or quick unnatural movements are among the most frequent causes.

Understanding discs, sciatica and stenosis

The discs in your back serve as cushioning between the verterbrae in your spine. Even though some people who have bulging herniated discs suffer no pain whatsoever there are situations when the soft matter within the disc may burst and push on a nerve. This is what causes the pain.

Sciatica pain results from irritation of the sciatic nerve. The irritation is caused by several factors including infection or injury. The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in our body and it starts at the nerve roots in the lumbar spinal cord in the low back. When the sciatic nerve has inflammation or has been irritated it produces symptoms of sciatica. But sciatica is most commonly a result of a bulging or herniated disk pressing directly on the nerve. Symptoms include numbness, tingling and intense sharp shooting pain traveling down from the lower back area and going down to the back of the thigh to the back of the leg.

The joints most commonly affected by osteoarthritis otherwise known as degenerative joint disease are hips, hands, knees and the lower back. In some cases arthritis in the spine could result to a narrowing of the space around the spinal cord, a condition called spinal stenosis. This narrowing could have an effect on one or more areas of the spine and put pressure on the spinal cord or on the nerves that branch out from the compressed areas.

Spinal stenosis symptoms include pain, cramping or numbness in legs, back, neck, shoulders or arms along with loss of sensation in extremities occurring repeatedly and occasionally problems with bladder or bowel functions. Spinal stenosis is most commonly caused by osteoarthritis-related bone damage. Mild symptoms of spinal stenosis are frequently aided by pain relievers, physical therapy or a supportive brace.

Spinal decompression therapy

Spinal decompression therapy is a slow and therapeutic elongation of the spine which alleviates pressure on compressed vertebrae and discs. During the spinal decompression therapy the patient lies on the spinal decompression table and relaxes while the device applies forces to decompress the injured areas. When required, it comes with a safety switch that allows the patient to immediately stop the decompression forces.

Check with your doctor to check out if spinal decompression therapy is right for you.