The human body is a marvel of nature, as only humanity is capable of a lifetime of upright, bipedal movement. Millions of years ago, our ancestors traded their tree-bound, vegetarian lifestyle for a life of running and hunting game, and this called for a new way of moving. The human form was refined to make this possible, especially in the skeleton. The modern human skeleton features an S-shaped spine, an upright and bowl-shaped pelvis, and long and tough leg bones, along with arched feet.
This offers many advantages, but a lifetime of walking upright takes its toll on the human spine and back muscles. Even today, many millions of people around the world suffer from lower back pain and spinal issues, but medicine is ready to help. Serious cases call for surgery, but more minor cases can be remedied with non invasive methods, such as using chiropractic adjusting instruments and physical therapy tools like muscle strength testing equipment or functional assessment equipment. With these chiropractic adjusting instruments, yoga experts, and physical therapists available, a patient may soon have their back pain erased, no surgery needed. These rehab tools and systems can get a lot done from the outside.
Why Back Pain Happens
Many millions of adults across the United States suffer from back pain, and a variety of causes are responsible. This is a larger part of the health industry, and so many surveys and studies are done to track how often back pain happens, and why. Around half of all working Americans admit to having back pain symptoms, and at any given time, nearly 31 million Americans are going through back pain. In fact, one in three women and one in four men are experiencing it, and experts say that 80% of the population may experience back pain at some point in their lives.
Many surveyed Americans blamed ongoing and serious stress for their back pain, and others blame years of hard manual labor on their back issues. Meanwhile, physical injuries such as sports injuries may strain the spine or back muscles, and pregnant women may get back pain later in their pregnancy. Another cause of back pain is simple old age, as many decades of upright movement fighting gravity can take their toll. Many elderly Americans suffer from a collapsed spine, and compressed bones may restrict flexibility, pinch nerves, and strain muscles. Fortunately, back pain such as this can be remedied with guided yoga sessions, chiropractic adjusting instruments, and more if surgery is not needed.
Common Methods for Recovering From Back Pain
A patient may get access to physical therapy during their time in a hospital, and ordinary Americans may consult their doctors to get referrals to back pain experts. In the former case, a patient may have restricted arcs of motion and limited muscle strength, and they may suffer pain during movement. This is when physical therapists will help guide the patient toward recovery with specially-designed exercises, and the whole time, strength testing devices may be used. These may range from large rubber bands to motion tracker cameras that can log the patient’s movements. As a patient recovers, these computer simulations and stretch tests will gauge a patient’s arcs of motion, strength, and more. This helps the therapist determine how fast the patient is recovering, and determine when the therapy is complete.
Someone suffering from back or joint pain doesn’t have to be in a hospital to get access to care, though. Their doctor may refer them to a specialist such as a chiropractor, a doctor who uses chiropractic adjusting instruments and even their bare hands to adjust a patient’s bones and muscles. Such non invasive treatment can relieve pressure on the patient’s nerves, muscles, and joints, relieving pain and restoring full arcs of motion.
Something similar can be done when someone suffering from joint issues signs up for private sessions at a yoga studio. With expert guidance, the patient may bend and stretch their body parts in vigorous and natural ways, which helps relieve pressure on joints, nerves, and muscles alike. Over the course of several sessions, the patient may have their arcs of motion restored, flexibility increased, and pain erased. The elderly, or patients recovering from sports injuries, for example, may try this.
