Back Pain
Back pain is pain located in/around the spine, anywhere between the bottom of your head and your pelvis.
Lower back pain (LBP) is the most common form of back pain and affects nearly 60-80% of people throughout their lifetime. It is also becoming increasingly more common due to peoples lifestyles becoming more sedentary and more time spent on devices. LBP is located in and around your the bottom of your spine (lumbar spine) and can vary from a dull ache to an acute stabbing or shooting pain and can have a wide number of causes. Neck pain is also a common condition affecting the top bit of your spine (cervical spine). Mid back pain is the least common type, affecting the middle section of your spine (thoracic spine).
Back pain is usually categorised into 3 subsections: acute, sub-acute and chronic. These subsections are based on the duration of the symptoms. Acute is an episode of pain for less than 6 weeks, sub-acute is between 6 and 12 weeks and chronic is for 12 weeks or more.
Back pain is typically characterised by a combination of the following symptoms:
– A dull aching in and around your spine
-If it is your lower back, you may feel symptoms that travels down your pelvis, legs, and into your feet
-If it is your neck, you may feel symptoms that travel down your shoulders, arms and into your hands.
-Prolonged sitting typically causes the symptoms to get worse
-Changing positions can typically help to alleviate the discomfort
-Symptoms are typically worse in the morning when waking up and get better after moving around
While back pain is one of the most common complaints, there can be a number of causes, from acute injuries to muscle imbalances. This is why we do a full assessment so we can identify the cause to create the right recovery plan for you.
At Comfort Health a typical physio session involves a detailed assessment of your injury, diagnosis, a bespoke treatment suiting your needs, and a series of comprehensive exercises and advice to help you manage your injury. We also look at your medical history and training habits. These include:
– Previous injuries and related treatments
– Current training patterns and training history
– Any changes in training
– Injury details (eg, what provokes and reduces symptoms, duration of symptoms)
– Medical conditions & prior surgeries
– Medication and supplement use
A typical physio assessment includes, observation, palpation, a neurological exam, range of movement testing, strength testing and functional testing to help us formulate a diagnosis and subsequent treatment plan.
Treatment for back pain will vary depending on the diagnosis, however physiotherapy, acupuncture, massage and a specific rehab programme all are effective means at reducing pain and making a full recovery.
For someone experiencing back pain we would advise booking a physiotherapy appointment so that a full assessment can be done to identify the cause. During the appointment our therapists will look at your range of movement, strength, training history, medical history and more. This information allows them to identify the cause so they can provide the right treatment and rehab programme for you. Treatment will often involve massage and soft tissue release. As well as strengthening and activation exercises to ensure everything is working correctly to prevent pain and overuse.
Massage alone can provide a temporary release and reduction in the symptoms. However, it doesn’t always identify the cause which is why combining it with physiotherapy will give you much better results and prevent the symptoms returning.
At Comfort Health we offer a range of treatments from physiotherapy, sports massage, and acupuncture, along with a variety of other services that can help with back pain.
If you feel like you could benefit from a treatment from one of our practitioners, or you need your back pain being assessed then Click Here and book in today. For an initial appointment we usually recommend an hour appointment. This allows plenty of time to do a full assessment and provide you with the right treatment and rehab programme.