Spine Specialist Near Me in St. Clair, MO

Spine specialist near me in St. Clair, MO. Lower back issues can make normal activities like sitting up painful, and keep us from our best possible movement health. For athletes, back issues can prevent you from being at the top of their game. For workers, it can prevent you from putting food on the table for your St. Clair, MO loved ones. For others, it can keep 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. Through safe and proven exercises and treatment plans, Axes Physical Therapy can help you achieve the lifestyle you desire. If you’re prepared to finally move on from debilitating back pain, schedule an appointment with an Axes St. Clair, MO spine specialist, or get in touch with the Axes location most convenient for you.

According to Missouri law, a doctor needs to prescribe physical therapy. If you’re dealing with a recent injury or find that back pain is disrupting your daily life, ask your doctor if physical therapy with a spine specialist in St. Clair, MO can be safe and effective for you. In the meantime, come see us for one of Axes’ 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 begins at the base of your brain and ends at your pelvis. The spine consists of:

Vertebrae

There are 33 vertebrae stacked along 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 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 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 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 circular 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 called the nucleus pulposus, which allows for mobility and absorption, 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 the vertebrae and other tissue. 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

Surrounding and within the spine are also muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Ligaments connect 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.

Achieving the lifestyle we want depends on all of these parts working together and functioning properly. A variety of conditions can interfere with the spine and greatly limit your ability to enjoy the activities you love most. If you’re living with back pain or spine issues, a spine specialist in St. Clair, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can provide safe and effective relief.

What Conditions Can a Spine Specialist in St. Clair, MO Help With?

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

• Disc Injuries — Herniated discs and bulging discs can be due to either an injury or wear and tear from aging. They put pressure on a nerve which can be painful and limit mobility. Degenerative disc disease occurs as the cushioning in your spine wears away, and can have symptoms similar to herniated discs.
• Sciatica — Sciatica is a general term for irritation of the sciatic nerve, which is the largest nerve in the body and originates near your tailbone. It can lead to immense pain, weakness, and numbness 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, issues with walking or other movements, and loss of sensation in your hands or feet.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis is swelling or tenderness in one or more joints. It occurs as the cartilage between the joints degrades over time or from over-exertion. Obesity, autoimmune disorders, and other conditions can also lead to arthritis. 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. Nonspecific back pain can be caused by 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 St. Clair, MO spine specialists will work in concert with you and your physician to come up with a treatment plan, based on proven strategies, and aimed at getting you back to the things you love doing most and a more comfortable life. While some conditions, like arthritis, 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 your spine condition requires surgery, we can work with you in your pre- and post-surgical rehab in St. Clair, MO to help you be healthy for surgery and recovery quickly and safely.

Benefits of Working With a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist in St. Clair, MO

Physical therapy is becoming an increasingly popular non-invasive treatment plan for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. According to research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, physical therapy can get the same relief and results for some back pain as surgery, and doesn’t involve the same risk of complications. Early intervention by a licensed St. Clair, MO physical therapist has been demonstrated to reduce long-term opioid dependence.

A spine specialist like those at Axes Physical Therapy will be able to determine what is causing your pain or other issues, and develop a treatment plan based on your current and previous medical conditions, your age, and your desired activity level. Through numerous different exercises and manual manipulations, physical therapy can limit symptoms, improve the function of your spine by improving strength and flexibility, enhance flexibility.

Physical Therapy for Spine Issues

Depending on your specific condition, your St. Clair, 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 St. Clair, MO manual therapists are experts at using light manipulations and stretches to alleviate symptoms and improve function due to spinal issues. 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 crucial for helping you build up strength, flexibility, and balance. Beyond managing pain now, certain exercises will also help overall function and improve movement health. Exercises we might assign 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 your injury and how it affects your body’s function, 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 St. Clair, MO will be exhaustive and focused on getting you to your best possible movement health and keeping you there. Whatever your treatment plan includes, it will be based on time-tested techniques.

Other conditions we help treat in St. Clair, 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 St. Clair, MO

Don’t allow a spine condition keep you from living the life you want. At Axes, our St. Clair, MO spine specialists strive for positive patient outcomes. You didn’t decide to live with back pain, but you do not have to decide to live with it. For a licensed and qualified St. Clair, MO spine specialist to help you, request an appointment with Axes Physical Therapy now or contact the location most convenient for you