Low back pain is reported to affect an average of 80 percent of the population at some point during life, suffered by millions of people in the United States at any given time. It is one of the most commonly cited reasons for doctor visits, second only to upper respiratory infections, with a cost of upwards of $50 billion in care each year for diagnostics, treatment, medications, and surgery. This does not include the cost of productivity loss to industry with back pain being among the most common reasons for absenteeism.
The good news is that most causes of back pain aren't the result of a serious condition like arthritis, injury, infection, or cancer. It is often caused by stress that results in muscle tension that leads to pain. It can be caused by sleeping on a bad mattress that doesn't offer proper support. It can be the result of improper posture, spending long hours every day sitting in a chair at work without adequate back support, or even twisting in a certain way to pick up a shoe.
Most back pain subsides within a day or two. If it persists and the cause of it cannot be identified and remedied with a replaced mattress, chair, or stress reduction techniques, a visit to an orthopedic specialist is called for to determine the cause and get the treatment needed to relieve the pain. A large majority of chronic back pain conditions are caused by problems in the spine or muscles, or a combination of both. In the great majority of cases, manual physical therapy and common, over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications offer the most effective treatment according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons.
After a thorough evaluation including medical history, assessments of strength, posture, range of motion, and overall health, the physical therapist designs a treatment program specifically designed for the individual's needs. Treatment typically involves hands-on joint and muscle manipulation and mobilization as well as core exercises to increase the strength of supporting muscles. Manual physical therapy is a safe, proven treatment for musculoskeletal pain and particularly for low back pain, offering significant relief. It is always the preferred treatment option over invasive, surgical intervention.
If you are suffering from low back pain that inhibits your movement and quality of life or requires frequent use of over-the-counter pain medications to control, talk to your doctor or visit an orthopedic specialist to get to the bottom of it. You don't have to live with pain.
Author Resource:-
Advanced Orthopedic Solutions (http://www.aosphysicaltherapy.com/aboutus.html) offers a full complement of manual physical therapy services facilitated by our reliable orthopedic specialist.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.massagebyben.com/articles/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites 