Spine Specialist Near Me in Maryland Heights, MO

Spine specialist near me in Maryland Heights, MO. Lower back issues can make normal tasks like bending over excruciating, and keep us from our best possible movement health. For physically active people, back problems can prevent you from being at the top of their game. For breadwinners, it can impede your ability to provide for your Maryland Heights, MO family. For others, it can keep us from taking the dog for a walk or playing with our children as we’d like to. Physical therapists with a spine specialty can help return to what you love doing most. Through safe and proven exercises and treatment plans, Axes Physical Therapy can help you live your best life. If you’re prepared to at long last be free from the issues holding you back, schedule an evaluation with an Axes Maryland Heights, MO spine specialist, or get in touch with the Axes location most convenient for you.

According to Missouri Revised Statute §334.506, a doctor needs to prescribe 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 Maryland Heights, MO can be safe and effective for you. You can also take advantage of one of our no-obligation injury screenings.

The Human 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. The spine is made up of:

Vertebrae

The spine has 33 vertebrae, 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 are the only ones that can 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 perform a variety of movements. They are lined with cartilage and lubricated with 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. Every two vertebrae have one disc between them. Discs have a softer middle called 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 made up of of nerves running up the bones in your spine, extending from the brain to your lumbar region, where the nerves continue into your lower extremities. The spinal cord is protected by the vertebral column. The nerves extend to other parts of the body through openings 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

Surrounding and within the spine are also various types of soft tissue. Ligaments attach vertebrae, hold them together, and give them structure. Tendons attach muscles to the vertebrae, and the muscles are what powers the spine’s movement.

A healthy spine relies on all of these different structures to function properly and in unison to achieve optimal movement health and a pain free life. A variety of factors can make the spine damaged or unhealthy, which can severely limit your ability to enjoy the activities you love most. If you’re dealing with back pain or spine issues, a spine specialist in Maryland Heights, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can get you back to doing what you love most.

What Injuries Can a Spine Specialist in Maryland Heights, MO Help With?

The American College of Physicians developed guidelines that include 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’ Maryland Heights, MO spine specialists can help get you feeling great again. Some of the common conditions we help with in Maryland Heights, MO include:

• Disc Injuries — Herniated discs and bulging discs can be the result of either acute trauma or wear and tear as we get older. They can impinge on a nerve which can be painful and limit mobility. Degenerative disc disease occurs as a natural result of aging, and can have symptoms similar to herniated discs.
• Sciatica — Sciatica is a general term for irritation of the sciatic nerve, which is our bodies’ longest nerves and originates near your tailbone. It can cause to 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, problems with walking or other movements, and loss of sensation in the extremities.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis is swelling or tenderness in one or more joints. It onsets as the cushioning between the joints degrades over time or from repeated injuries. Obesity, autoimmune disorders, and other conditions can also lead to arthritis. There are over 100 types of arthritis, most of which can affect the facet joints of the spine.
• Axial Back Pain — Also known as nonspecific back pain, this refers to pain that doesn’t have a clear, diagnosable cause. Nonspecific back pain can be caused by obesity or poor posture.

Physical therapy is also an effective treatment option for soft tissue injuries such as whiplash.

Whatever condition is currently ailing you, our Maryland Heights, MO spine specialists will work in concert with you and your doctor 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 arthritis, can’t be “cured,” physical therapy can be part of a holistic treatment plan that eases symptoms and regains optimal mobility.

If your spine condition requires surgery, we can work with you in your pre- and post-surgical rehab in Maryland Heights, MO to help your surgery go as well as possible.

Benefits of Working With a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist in Maryland Heights, 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 paper published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, physical therapy is just as effective as surgery for certain types of back pain, without the same recovery time or risk of adverse side-effects. Early intervention by a licensed Maryland Heights, MO physical therapist is proven to limit the risk of long-term opioid use.

A qualified spine specialist will be able to determine what is causing your pain or other issues, and develop 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 techniques, physical therapy can reduce pain, improve the function of your spine by increasing strength and flexibility, boost flexibility.

Physical Therapy for Spine Problems

Depending on what is causing your back pain or spine dysfunction, your Maryland Heights, 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 Maryland Heights, MO manual therapists are able to use light pressures and stretches to alleviate symptoms and improve function due to spinal issues. Manual therapy we may use to help you 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. In addition to reducing symptoms now, certain exercises 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 — There’s nothing worse than believing you’ve gotten past 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’ll know how to stay healthy in the future. Injury prevention includes:
  • Patient education
  • Lifting education
  • Activity modification
  • Conditioning

Your treatment plan in Maryland Heights, MO will be comprehensive and focused on getting you to optimal movement health and helping you stay there. Whatever your treatment plan includes, it will be based on peer-reviewed studies that those techniques have been proven to work.

Other conditions we help treat in Maryland Heights, MO include:

• Stroke Rehabilitation
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy
• Workers Comp' Physical Therapy
• Migraine Relief
• Sprain and Strain Treatment
• Geriatric Physical Therapy
• Injury Rehabilitation
• Pain Management Services
• TMJ Treatment
• Herniated Disc Treatment

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

Don’t let a spine condition prevent you from what you love doing most. At Axes, our Maryland Heights, 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 professional and experienced Maryland Heights, MO spine specialist to treat you, schedule an evaluation with Axes Physical Therapy today or contact the location most convenient for you