Patients visit their doctor for back and neck pain more than any other condition here in the United States. Spine-related pain is a substantial economic burden that is estimated to account for tens of billions of dollars in lost wages, missed time at work and health care costs each year.
Despite public awareness of back and neck pain and its relative common place in our culture, spine pain can be quite impairing. Although there are numerous types of spine pain with many possible causes, most of them are mechanical and easily treated with physical therapy.
If you have back or neck pain and are wondering if you are a candidate for treatment, read below to see if you fit into any of these categories. If you do, there's a high likelihood that therapy will work for you.
The upper neck. The upper cervical spine is one of the most mobile regions in the body and can fall victim to a variety of physical problems. Patients who have problems with their upper cervical spine will have the most trouble turning their head left and right. Patients that have upper neck problems often get referred pain into the head — often called a cervicogenic headache (CGH).
CGH is one of the most painful forms of headache around, and unfortunately, it responds poorly to medication. So if you've tried some over-the-counter medication, or perhaps stronger medication and you've had no luck, you may want to consider the possibility that your headache is coming from your neck. Additionally, patients who have problems with their upper cervical spine may report having nausea and dizziness. In some cases these are the only signs of upper neck dysfunction.
Pain at the base of the neck. The base of the neck is a tough spot on just about everyone. It affects men and women of all ages equally and can have a large impact on your activities of daily living. Patients with lower neck pain will have the most trouble when looking up toward the ceiling and will also likely be unable to hold a phone to their ear without using their hand.
It is common for people to feel radiating pain into their shoulder blade or to feel a thick band of pain across the tops of their shoulders. Occasionally, the lower neck may refer pain into the arm or hand (you'll know that this is the case if your arm pain changes when you move your head). Most cases of base-of-the-neck pain resolve easily with a little manual therapy and postural correction, so don't delay being seen if your neck is bugging you.
Pain between or near the shoulder blades is another popular spot for spine pain. Patients with pain in this area often have trouble straightening out their backs or sitting upright for any length of time. Feelings of stiffness and tightness are usually present in addition to pain, and these pains are usually described more as dull than sharp. True thoracic spine pain is easy to treat because it responds excellently to just a few simple exercises and stretches. So if you have pain in this region, come into therapy for a quick fix.
The low back is responsible for over 60 percent of all spine pain and can be a nasty one to fix if left untreated for too long. Low back pain is obvious to most people and usually worsens when deeply bending forward or when leaning backward. Most lumbar spine pain is disc-related, usually involving some sort of disc breakdown or bulging. If bulged enough, a disc can pinch a nerve and shoot pain into the leg yielding a painful condition called Sciatica.
If caught early enough, patients have a good chance of fully recovering from their back pain without any real long-term consequences.
If you have pain in these regions that fits any of these descriptions, physical therapy will almost certainly work for you - so don't hesitate to pick up the phone and dial that spine pain away.
Joe DiVincenzo is a physical therapist and clinical specialist in manual therapy. He writes "On the Mend" weekly. Questions may be submitted to Joe by e-mail: joedivincenzo@comcast.net.
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