Spine Specialist Near Me in Mackenzie, MO

Spine specialist near me in Mackenzie, MO. Lower back issues can make basic tasks like bending over painful, and keep us from optimal movement health. For people who play sports, back issues can prevent you from being at the top of their game. For workers, it can prevent you from providing for your Mackenzie, MO family. For others, it can keep us from taking the dog for a walk or playing with our grandkids as we’d like to. Physical therapists with a spine specialty can help you get back to what you love doing most. By creating a custom treatment plan, based on techniques proven to work, Axes Physical Therapy can help you achieve the lifestyle you desire. If you’re prepared to at long last be free from the issues holding you back, schedule an appointment with an Axes Mackenzie, MO spine specialist, or get in touch with the Axes location nearest you.

Missouri Revised Statute §334.506 mandates that a prescription is required 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 Mackenzie, MO is right for you. You can also come see us for one of Axes’ complimentary 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 begins at the base of your skull and ends at your tailbone. 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 allow us to move; the others are immobile.

Facet Joints

Facet joints connect the vertebrae. They allow your back and neck to perform a variety of movements. They are lined with cartilage and lubricated with synovial fluid, allowing the bones to move without grinding against each other.

Intervertebral Discs

Discs are the flat, round cushions between the vertebrae that absorb the stress and shock the body incurs when moving. Every two vertebrae have one disc between them. Discs have a softer center called the nucleus pulposus, which gives them flexibility and allows them to absorb shock, and a tough, circular exterior called the annulus fibrosus that surrounds and protects the nucleus pulposus.

Spinal Cord

The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular structure, extending from the brain to your lumbar region, where the nerves go into the lower part of your body. The spinal cord is protected by the vertebral column. The nerves branch out to other parts of the body through holes in the vertebrae known as 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 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. Numerous different factors can make the spine damaged or unhealthy, which can keep you from the things you love doing. When that happens, a spine specialist in Mackenzie, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can provide safe and effective relief.

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

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

• Disc Injuries — Herniated discs and bulging discs can be due to either an injury or general degradation from aging. 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 greatly decreases flexibility.
• Sciatica — Sciatica is a general term for irritation of the sciatic nerve, which is the largest nerve in the body and begins near your tailbone. Symptoms include crippling pain, weakness, and tingling through your buttock and leg.
• Spinal Stenosis — Stenosis occurs when the spinal cavity becomes too narrow and puts pressure on the spinal cord and nerves. Symptoms include pain, balance problems, and loss of sensation in your hands or feet.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis is swelling or tenderness in one or more joints. It onsets as the cartilage between the joints wears down over time or from repeated injuries. 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 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 soft tissue injuries such as whiplash.

Whatever condition is currently ailing you, our Mackenzie, MO spine specialists will work with you and your doctor to develop 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 arthritis, can’t be “cured,” physical therapy is an effective 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 Mackenzie, MO to help attain the best results possible.

What a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist Can Do For You in Mackenzie, MO

Physical therapy is becoming an increasingly popular non-invasive treatment plan for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. According to a paper published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, physical therapy can get the same relief and results for some back pain as surgery, without the same recovery time or risk of adverse side-effects. Early intervention by a licensed Mackenzie, 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 create a treatment plan based on your current and previous medical conditions, your age, and the lifestyle you wish to achieve or get back to. Through numerous different exercises and manual manipulations, physical therapy can limit symptoms, help your spine and nervous system function better, increase range of motion.

Physical Therapy for Spine Issues

Depending on your specific condition, your Mackenzie, MO spine specialist at Axes may implement some of the following practices to help get you back to what you love doing most:

• Manual Therapy — Our Mackenzie, MO manual therapists are experts at using light pressures and stretches to alleviate symptoms and improve function due to spinal issues. 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 essential for helping you build up strength, flexibility, and balance. In addition to limiting symptoms now, certain exercises will allow you to maintain a well-functioning spine while going to work or doing the activities you love most. 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 gotten past an injury, only to suffer another injury in the future. We help you understand the musculoskeletal system and how yours is being affected, so you can learn how to be active safely. Our injury prevention program includes:
  • Patient education
  • Lifting education
  • Activity modification
  • Conditioning

Your treatment plan in Mackenzie, MO will be based not on just recovery or pain relief, but on getting you to your best possible function and helping you stay there. Whatever your treatment plan includes, it will designed based on time-tested techniques.

Other services we offer in Mackenzie, MO include:

• Beginner Running Program
• Chronic Pain Treatment
• MCL Injury
• Shoulder Pain
• Injury Prevention
• Mobility
• Knee Injury
• Joint Pain
• Sciatica

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

Don’t allow a spine condition prevent you from the activities you love. At Axes, our Mackenzie, MO spine specialists are dedicated to 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 Mackenzie, MO spine specialist to help you, schedule an evaluation with Axes Physical Therapy now or find the location most convenient for you