Spine Specialist Near Me in Arnold, MO

Spine specialist near me in Arnold, MO. Lower back issues can make everyday activities like laying down excruciating, and disrupt how our bodies function. For athletes, back issues can prevent you from being at peak performance. For breadwinners, it can hinder your ability to provide for your Arnold, MO loved ones. For others, it can keep us from going on bike ride or playing with our children like we love doing. Physical therapists who specialize in the spine can help return to what you love doing most. By developing a custom treatment plan, based on techniques proven to work, Axes Physical Therapy can help you achieve the strength, flexibility, and pain relief your body needs to be at its best, and that you need to live your best life. If you’re prepared to finally be free from a crippling back condition, schedule an evaluation with an Axes Arnold, MO spine specialist, or call the Axes location nearest you.

Missouri law requires a prescription for physical therapy. If you’re dealing with a recent injury or find that back pain is disrupting your daily life, consult with your physician about if physical therapy with a spine specialist in Arnold, MO can be safe and effective for you. You can also visit one of our offices for one of Axes’ free injury screenings.

The Anatomy of the Spine

The spine is our central support structure, and plays a fundamental role in most movements and how the body communicates with itself. It starts at the base of your skull and ends at your pelvis. There are several different parts of your spine:

Vertebrae

There are 33 vertebrae from the top to bottom of the spine, which are small bones that stack on top of each other to form the spinal canal. The spinal cord and nerves run through holes in the middle of each vertebra. There are five vertebral groups. There are:

• 7 vertebrae in the cervical region (your neck)
• 12 vertebrae in the thoracic region (your middle back)
• 5 vertebrae in the lumbar region (your lower back)
• 5 vertebrae in the sacrum region (the triangle shaped bone that connects to the hips)
• 4 vertebrae in the coccyx region (your tailbone)

The 24 vertebrae in the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar regions provide mobility; the others are immobile.

Facet Joints

Each vertebra is connected to two facet joints which connect the bones to each other. They allow your back and neck to extend, bend, twist, and rotate. Between the joints and bones are cartilage and synovial fluid, allowing the bones to move safely.

Intervertebral Discs

Discs are the flat, round cushions between the vertebrae that absorb shock and prevent the vertebrae from grinding against each other. Every two vertebrae have one disc between them. Discs have a “gel-like” middle known as the nucleus pulposus, which gives them flexibility and allows them to absorb shock, and a tough, circular exterior called the annulus fibrosus that prevent the nucleus pulposus from leaking out.

Spinal Cord

The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular collection of nerves, from your brain to your tailbone, where the nerves extend into the lower part of your body. The spinal cord is protected by the vertebrae and other tissue. The nerves extend to other parts of the body through openings in the vertebrae called the neural foramen. The spinal cord is how our bodies and brains communicate.

Soft Tissue

The spine also has muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Ligaments attach bones together, hold them in place, and give them structure. Tendons attach muscles to the vertebrae, and the muscles are what powers the spine’s movement.

A healthy spine needs all of these different structures to to work together to achieve optimal movement health and a pain free life. A variety of factors can interfere with the spine and severely limit your ability to enjoy the activities you love most. If you’re living with back pain or spine issues, a spine specialist in Arnold, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can provide safe and effective relief.

What Conditions Can a Spine Specialist in Arnold, MO Help With?

The American College of Physicians recommends numerous physical therapy treatments for people living with lower back pain and neck pain. Whether you’re dealing with pain on a everyday basis or recently suffered a sports injury, Axes’ Arnold, MO spine specialists can help you live your best life. Some of the common conditions we help with in Arnold, MO are:

• Disc Injuries — Herniated discs and bulging discs can be due to either acute trauma or general degradation as we get older. They can impinge on a nerve which can be painful and limit function. Degenerative disc disease occurs as the cushioning in your spine wears away, and greatly decreases flexibility.
• Sciatica — Sciatica refers to a variety of conditions which irritate the sciatic nerve, which is the largest nerve in the body and begins near your tailbone. It can cause to debilitating pain, weakness, and numbness down one side of your body.
• Spinal Stenosis — Stenosis occurs when the space inside your backbone is too small. It can cause pain, balance issues, and numbness or tingling in the extremities.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis describes several different types of joint disease. It occurs as the cushioning between the joints wears down over time or from overuse. Obesity, autoimmune disorders, and other conditions can also lead to arthritis. The term “arthritis” describes over a hundred conditions, most of which can affect the spine.
• Axial Back Pain — Also referred to as nonspecific back pain, this refers to pain that doesn’t have a known, recognizable cause. Nonspecific back pain can be caused by obesity or poor posture.

Physical therapy can also help with muscle strains, whiplash, and other more acute injuries.

Whatever is causing your back pain or injury, our Arnold, MO spine specialists will work with you and your physician to design a treatment plan, based on proven strategies, and aimed at getting you back to the activities you love and a pain-free life. While some conditions, like degenerative disc disease, can’t be “cured,” physical therapy can be part of a holistic wellness routine that reduces pain and other symptoms and achieves optimal mobility.

If your spine condition requires surgery, we offer pre- and post-surgical rehab in Arnold, MO to help your surgery go as well as possible.

What a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist Can Do For Me in Arnold, MO

More and more people are turning to physical therapy as a non-invasive treatment plan for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. According to a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, physical therapy is just as effective as surgery for certain types of back pain, and doesn’t involve the same risk of complications. Early intervention by a licensed Arnold, MO physical therapist is proven to limit long-term opioid dependence.

A spine specialist like those at Axes Physical Therapy will be able to find the root cause of your back problems, and build a treatment plan based on your medical history, how old you are, and the lifestyle you wish to achieve or get back to. Through a variety of exercises and manual manipulations, physical therapy can limit symptoms, help your spine and nervous system function better, enhance range of motion.

Physical Therapy for Spine Conditions

Depending on your specific condition, your Arnold, MO spine specialist at Axes may implement some of the following practices to help return you to the activities you love:

• Hands-On Care — Our Arnold, MO manual therapists are able to use subtle pressures and stretches to alleviate symptoms and improve function caused by muscle or joint dysfunction. Manual therapy we may use to treat you include:
  • Dry needling
  • Soft tissue mobilization
  • Joint mobilization and manipulation
  • Trigger point massage
• Guided Exercise — Safe exercises are essential for helping you build up strength, flexibility, and balance. In addition to limiting pain now, guided exercise will allow you to maintain a healthy spine when you’re on the move. Effective exercises for spine conditions include:
  • Core stabilization
  • Postural retraining
  • Flexibility
  • Cardio conditioning
  • Strength training
  • Home exercise
• Injury Prevention — There’s nothing worse than believing you’ve overcome an injury, only to suffer another injury in the future. We’ll educate you about the musculoskeletal system and how yours is being affected, so you can learn how to be active safely. Injury prevention includes:
  • Patient education
  • Lifting education
  • Activity modification
  • Conditioning

Your treatment plan in Arnold, MO will be based not on just recovery or pain relief, but on getting you to your best possible movement health and helping you stay there. However we recommend treating your spine condition or back pain, it will designed based on peer-reviewed studies that those techniques have been proven to work.

Other conditions we help treat in Arnold, MO include:

• Neck Pain Treatment
• Physical Therapy Clinic
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation

Count on Axes For Your Spine Specialist Near Me in Arnold, MO

Don’t allow a back injury prevent you from living the life you want. At Axes, our Arnold, MO spine specialists strive for positive patient outcomes. You didn’t decide to live with back pain, but you can choose to do something about it. For a licensed and knowledgeable Arnold, MO spine specialist to treat you, schedule an appointment with Axes Physical Therapy today or contact the location nearest you