The majority of people with low back pain will demonstrate altered coordination and communication between the nervous system and muscles. This leads to altered movement patterns which may perpetuate symptoms and lead to more chronic low back pain and muscle imbalances. Primary movers for our movement patterns (example: glutes) may be substituted for weaker, less tolerant...
Source: Karel et al. 2015. European Journal of Internal Medicine
The use of low back injections is often utilized for patients with low back pain and nerve pain (radicular pain) and/or leg numbness, pins and needles, or nerve root weakness (radiculopathy). In an older adult these symptoms may be due to a narrowing of the canals in which the low back nerve roots exit (lumbar...
The vast majority of musculoskeletal conditions and diagnoses are not life threatening or time sensitive and allow for conservative treatments, including Physical Therapy, to be utilized prior to surgery. In our Boulder Physical Therapy practice we commonly see outcomes consistent with the current research on the utilization of Physical Therapy instead of surgery for common...
Low back pain is a common problem and one of the most common areas we treat in our Boulder Physical Therapy practice. In Colorado, patients do not need a referral to seek Physical Therapy services and this pathway (direct access) has continuously been shown in the research to be safe, effective, and save patients health...
Is a picture worth 1000 words? When having low back pain, you may undergo an MRI or CT scan. As our technology continues to improve MRI and CT scanners have become more proficient at finding changes in our low back. This higher imaging quality comes with a cost in that many of these positive findings...
The core is a collective group of spinal musculature critical for range of motion of the spine, stabilization of our trunk, and transmission of forces through the body. Given these functions it is not a surprise to see literature supporting Physical Therapy exercise prescription in order to improve sports performance, as well as, low back...
Strains and irritation to the low back can be very common but extremely frustrating when lasting longer than a few weeks. The low back (Lumbar Spine) is a large and resilient structure that can handle tremendous forces and movement; however the loads of activity can supersede the capacity of the low back tissue can handle....
Did you know the more movies Nicolas Cage makes; the more people drown in pools? Or the worse the rating of M. Night Shyamalan on Rotten Tomatoes; the less total newspaper sales? There is a significant difference between correlation and causation in the world and is especially noted in medicine. As we all deal with...
Lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) is a common diagnosis given to those experiencing low back pain. The gold standard of diagnosing stenosis is using an MRI to determine closure of natural occurring spaces of the lumbar spine. At times the closures can contribute to impingement of nerves or spinal canal which can lead low back pain...