Spine Specialist Near Me in Crystal City, MO

Spine specialist near me in Crystal City, MO. Lower back issues can make everyday tasks like bending over excruciating, and keep us from optimal movement health. For people who play sports, back injuries can keep you from being at peak performance. For workers, it can prevent you from providing for your Crystal City, MO family. For others, it can prevent us from taking the dog for a walk or other physical activities. Physical therapists with a spine specialty can help you get back to what you love doing most. By developing 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 be free from the issues holding you back, schedule an appointment with an Axes Crystal City, MO spine specialist, or get in touch with the Axes location most convenient for you.

Pursuant to Missouri Revised Statute §334.506, a doctor needs to prescribe physical therapy. If you’re recovering from a back or neck injury, or are find that back pain is keeping you from the activities you love, ask your doctor if physical therapy with a spine specialist in Crystal City, MO is right for you. In the meantime, come see us for one of Axes’ free injury screenings.

The Anatomy of the Spine

The spine supports both our physical bodies, and how our bodies communicate. It extends from the base of your brain to your pelvis. There are several different parts of your spine:

Vertebrae

There are 33 vertebrae stacked along the spine, which are small bones that form the backbone. Every vertebra has a hole in the middle to safeguard the spinal cord and its nerves. 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 first 3 regions allow us to move; 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 the stress and shock the body incurs when moving. There is one disc between each vertebra. Discs have a softer center known as the nucleus pulposus, which gives them flexibility and allows them to absorb shock, and an outer ring of tough fibers called the annulus fibrosus that prevent the gel-like center from leaking out.

Spinal Cord

The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular structure, from your brain to your pelvis, where the nerves go into the lower part of your body. The spinal cord is protected by spinal fluid and a membrane called dura mater. The neural foramen are openings in the vertebrae where the nerves to go into other parts of the body. The spinal cord is how our bodies and brains communicate.

Soft Tissue

The spine also has muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Ligaments attach bones together and holds them in the correct structure. Muscles are attached to bones by tendons, and power their movement.

Achieving the lifestyle we want depends on all of these parts working together and functioning properly. A variety of factors can make the spine damaged or unhealthy, which can keep you from the activities you love most. When that happens, a spine specialist in Crystal City, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can get you back to the lifestyle you desire.

What Conditions Can a Spine Specialist in Crystal City, MO Treat Me For?

The American College of Physicians developed guidelines that include certain physical therapy treatments for people living with lower back pain and neck pain. Whether you’re living with chronic pain or recently suffered a work injury, Axes’ Crystal City, MO spine specialists can help you live your best life. Some of the common conditions we provide relief and improved function for in Crystal City, MO include:

• Disc Injuries — Herniated discs and bulging discs can be the result of either acute trauma or general degradation as we get older. They can impinge on a nerve which can cause severe pain along your neck and back and limit strength. 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 originates near your tailbone. It can lead to debilitating pain, weakness, and tingling from your buttocks all the way down to your foot.
• Spinal Stenosis — Stenosis occurs when the spinal cavity becomes too narrow and puts pressure on the spinal cord and nerves. Symptoms include pain, problems with walking or other movements, 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 over-exertion. It can also be caused by autoimmune disorders. There are over 100 types of arthritis, most of which can affect the spine.
• Axial Back Pain — Also known as nonspecific back pain, this refers to pain isn’t brought on by a clear, diagnosable cause. Common causes are 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 Crystal City, MO spine specialists will form a team with you and your doctor to come up with an evidence-backed treatment plan to get you back to the things you love doing most and a pain-free life. While some conditions, like degenerative disc disease, won’t ever fully go away, physical therapy is an effective part of a comprehensive wellness routine that reduces pain and other symptoms and regains optimal mobility.

If you need surgery on your spine, we can work with you in your pre- and post-surgical rehab in Crystal City, MO to help get the best results possible.

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

More and more people are turning to physical therapy as a non-surgical option for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. According to a paper 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 recovery time or risk of adverse side-effects. Early intervention by a licensed Crystal City, MO physical therapist is proven to limit the risk of long-term opioid use.

A spine specialist like those at Axes Physical Therapy will be able to determine what is causing your pain or other issues, and build a treatment plan based on your injures, how old you are, and your desired activity level. Through a variety of exercises and techniques, physical therapy can limit symptoms, improve the function of your spine by improving strength and flexibility, increase range of motion.

Physical Therapy for Spine Problems

Depending on what is causing your back pain or spine dysfunction, your Crystal City, MO spine specialist at Axes may include some of the following in your treatment plan:

• Hands-On Care — Our Crystal City, MO manual therapists are experts at using light manipulations and stretches to alleviate symptoms and improve function caused by muscle or joint dysfunction. Hand-on services we may incorporate into your treatment plan include:
  • Dry needling
  • Soft tissue mobilization
  • Joint mobilization and manipulation
  • Trigger point massage
• Guided Exercise — Safe exercises are crucial for helping you build up strength, flexibility, and balance. Beyond limiting pain now, certain exercises 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’re moving on from an injury, only to suffer another injury in the future. We help you understand your injury and how it affects your body’s function, so you can learn how to be active safely. Injury prevention includes:
  • Patient education
  • Lifting education
  • Activity modification
  • Conditioning

Your treatment plan in Crystal City, MO will be based not on just recovery or pain relief, but on getting you to optimal movement health and keeping you there. However we recommend treating your spine condition or back pain, it will be based on time-tested techniques.

Other services we offer in Crystal City, 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 Crystal City, MO

Don’t let a spine condition keep you from living the life you want. At Axes, our Crystal City, MO spine specialists strive for positive patient outcomes. You didn’t decide to live with this condition, but you can choose to do something about it. For a professional and qualified Crystal City, MO spine specialist to treat you, schedule an evaluation with Axes Physical Therapy today or reach out to the location most convenient for you