Spine Specialist Near Me in Bismarck, MO

Spine specialist near me in Bismarck, MO. Spinal conditions can make basic tasks like walking up the stairs excruciating, and interrupt how our bodies function. For physically active people, back injuries can keep you from being at peak performance. For breadwinners, it can prevent you from putting food on the table for your Bismarck, MO family. For others, it can prevent us from going on bike ride or other physical activities. Physical therapists with a spine specialty can help return to the functional and pain-free life you’re seeking. By creating a custom treatment plan, based on techniques proven to work, Axes Physical Therapy can help you live your best life. If you’re ready to at long last move on from debilitating back pain, request an evaluation with an Axes Bismarck, MO spine specialist, or get in touch with 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 keeping you from the activities you love, ask your doctor if physical therapy with a spine specialist in Bismarck, MO is right for you. In the meantime, take advantage of one of our complimentary injury screenings.

The Human Spine

The spine supports both our physical bodies, and how our bodies communicate. It extends from the base of your brain to your pelvis. The spine consists of:

Vertebrae

There are 33 vertebrae from the top to bottom of the spine, which are small bones that form the backbone. The spinal cord and nerves run through holes in the middle of each vertebra. The vertebrae are grouped into five regions. 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 fused into place.

Facet Joints

Facet joints are the small joints that connect the bony tips of vertebrae on the back of the spine. They allow your back and neck to extend, bend, twist, and rotate. Between the joints and bones are cartilage and synovial fluid, allowing healthy bones and joints to safely glide and slide during movement.

Intervertebral Discs

Discs are the flat, round cushions between the vertebrae that absorb shock and prevent the vertebrae from grinding against each other. There is one disc between each vertebra. Discs have a “gel-like” center known as the nucleus pulposus, which allows for mobility and absorption, and a tough, circular exterior known as the annulus fibrosus that surrounds and protects the nucleus pulposus.

Spinal Cord

The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular collection of nerves, from your brain to your pelvis, where the nerves extend into the lower part of your body. The spinal cord is protected by the vertebrae and other tissue. The nerves branch out to other parts of the body through holes in the vertebrae called the neural foramen. The spinal cord allows our brain to tell our bodies to move, and our brains to receive sensory information from our body.

Soft Tissue

The spine also has muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Ligaments attach vertebrae, 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 systems to to work together to achieve optimal movement health and a pain free life. A variety of conditions can make the spine damaged or unhealthy, which can keep you from the activities you love most. If you’re dealing with back pain or spine issues, a spine specialist in Bismarck, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can provide safe and effective relief.

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

The American College of Physicians recommends certain physical therapy treatments for lower back pain and neck pain. Whether you’re living with chronic pain or recently sustained a sports injury, Axes’ Bismarck, MO spine specialists can help you live your best life. Some of the common conditions we help with in Bismarck, MO are:

• Disc Injuries — Herniated discs and bulging discs can be due to either an injury or general degradation as we get older. They put pressure on a nerve which can cause severe pain along your neck and back and limit strength. Degenerative disc disease occurs as a natural result of aging, and can have symptoms similar to herniated discs.
• 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 from your buttocks all the way down to your foot.
• Spinal Stenosis — Stenosis occurs when the space inside your backbone is too small. Symptoms include pain, balance issues, and numbness or tingling in the extremities.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis is swelling or tenderness in one or more joints. It occurs as the cushioning between the joints degrades over time or from over-exertion. It can also be caused by autoimmune disorders. There are over 100 types of arthritis, most of which are possible in the spine.
• Axial Back Pain — Also referred to as nonspecific back pain, this refers to pain that doesn’t have a clear, diagnosable cause. Common causes are obesity or poor posture.

Physical therapy is also an effective treatment option for muscle strains, whiplash, and other more acute injuries.

Whatever is causing your back pain or injury, our Bismarck, MO spine specialists will work with you and your physician to develop a treatment plan, based on proven strategies, and aimed at getting you back to the activities you love and a more comfortable life. While some conditions, like stenosis, can’t be “cured,” physical therapy can be part of a comprehensive treatment plan that reduces pain and other symptoms and achieves optimal mobility.

If your spine condition requires surgery, we offer pre- and post-surgical rehab in Bismarck, MO to help get the best results possible.

Benefits of Working With a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist in Bismarck, MO

Physical therapy is becoming an increasingly popular non-surgical option for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. According to research published By the American College of Physicians, physical therapy is just as effective as surgery for certain types of back pain, and doesn’t involve the same recovery time or risk of adverse side-effects. Early intervention by a licensed Bismarck, MO physical therapist is proven to limit long-term opioid dependence.

A knowledgeable and experienced spine specialist will be able to determine what is causing your pain or other issues, and design a treatment plan based on your injures, your age, and the lifestyle you wish to achieve or get back to. Through numerous different exercises and manual therapy, physical therapy can reduce pain, improve the function of your spine by increasing strength and flexibility, enhance flexibility.

Physical Therapy for Spine Issues

Depending on what is causing your back pain or other symptoms, your Bismarck, 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 Bismarck, MO manual therapists are experts at using light pressures and stretches to alleviate symptoms and improve function due to spinal issues. Manual therapy we may incorporate into your treatment plan include:
  • Trigger point 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 decreasing symptoms now, guided exercise will also help overall function and improve movement health. Effective exercises for spine conditions include:
  • Core stabilization
  • Postural retraining
  • Flexibility
  • Cardio conditioning
  • Strength training
  • Home exercise
• Injury Prevention — It’s incredibly frustrating to believe you’ve overcome an injury, only to aggravate it. We help you understand your injury and how it affects your body’s function, so you’ll know how to protect your spine while being active. Injury prevention includes:
  • Patient education
  • Lifting education
  • Activity modification
  • Conditioning

Your treatment plan in Bismarck, MO will be comprehensive and focused on getting you to optimal function and keeping you there. Whatever your treatment plan includes, it will be based on peer-reviewed studies that those techniques have been proven to work.

Other services we offer in Bismarck, 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

Call Axes For Your Spine Specialist Near Me in Bismarck, MO

Don’t allow a back injury keep you from the activities you love. At Axes, our Bismarck, MO spine specialists strive for positive patient outcomes. Your pain may not have been your choice, but you can choose to do something about it. For a licensed and knowledgeable Bismarck, MO spine specialist to treat you, schedule an appointment with Axes Physical Therapy today or reach out to the location closest to you