Spine Specialist Near Me in Town and Country, MO

Spine specialist near me in Town and Country, MO. Lower back issues can make everyday tasks like walking up the stairs difficult, and keep us from optimal movement health. For athletes, back injuries can prevent you from being at peak performance. For breadwinners, it can hinder your ability to put food on the table for your Town and Country, MO family. For others, it can keep us from taking walks or playing with our children like we love doing. Physical therapists who specialize in the spine can help return 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 finally move on from a crippling back condition, schedule an appointment with an Axes Town and Country, MO spine specialist, or get in touch with the Axes location nearest you.

Missouri law requires a prescription for 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, consult with your physician about if physical therapy with a spine specialist in Town and Country, MO can be safe and effective for you. You can also come see us for one of our complimentary injury screenings.

The Anatomy of the Spine

The spine supports both our physical bodies, and how our bodies communicate. It starts at the base of your brain and ends at your tailbone. There are several different parts of your spine:

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. 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 allow us to move; the others are fused into place.

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 without grinding against each other.

Intervertebral Discs

Discs are the flat, round cushions between the vertebrae that act as shock absorbers. Every two vertebrae have one disc between them. Discs have a softer middle called the nucleus pulposus, which allows for mobility and absorption, and an outer ring of tough fibers called the annulus fibrosus that surrounds and protects the gel-like center.

Spinal Cord

The spinal cord is made up of of nerves running up the bones in your spine, from your brain to your pelvis, where the nerves continue into your legs. The spinal cord is protected by the vertebrae and other tissue. The neural foramen are openings in the vertebrae that allow 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 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.

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 significantly limit your ability to enjoy the things you love doing. If you’re dealing with back pain or spine issues, a spine specialist in Town and Country, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can provide safe and effective relief.

What Conditions Can a Spine Specialist in Town and Country, MO Help With?

The American College of Physicians developed guidelines that include a variety of physical therapy treatments for lower back pain and neck pain. Whether you’re living with chronic pain or recently sustained a work injury, Axes’ Town and Country, MO spine specialists can help get you feeling great again. Some of the common conditions we help with in Town and Country, 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 put pressure on a nerve which can be painful and limit mobility. 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 our bodies’ longest nerves and originates in the lower spine. Symptoms include debilitating pain, weakness, and tingling down one side of your body.
• Spinal Stenosis — Stenosis occurs when the spinal cavity becomes too narrow and puts pressure on the spinal cord and nerves. It can cause pain, balance problems, and loss of sensation in your hands or feet.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis is the inflammation of the facet 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 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. Common causes are 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 Town and Country, 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 activities you love and a more comfortable life. While some conditions, like degenerative disc disease, won’t ever fully go away, physical therapy is an effective part of a holistic wellness routine that reduces pain and other symptoms and regains optimal mobility.

If your spine condition requires surgery, we offer pre- and post-surgical rehab in Town and Country, MO to help your surgery go as well as possible.

Benefits of Working With a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist in Town and Country, MO

Physical therapy is becoming an increasingly popular non-invasive treatment plan for a variety of issues affecting our musculoskeletal system. According to a study 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 Town and Country, MO physical therapist has been demonstrated to limit the risk of long-term opioid use.

A qualified spine specialist will be able to find the root cause of your back problems, 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, boost flexibility.

Physical Therapy for Spine Conditions

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

• Manual Therapy — Our Town and Country, 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 include in 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 decreasing pain 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 — 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 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 Town and Country, 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 designed based on peer-reviewed studies that those techniques have been proven to work.

Other services we offer in Town and Country, 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 Town and Country, MO

Don’t allow a back injury prevent you from living the life you want. At Axes, our Town and Country, MO spine specialists strive for positive patient outcomes. Your pain may not have been your choice, but you do not have to decide to live with it. For a professional and qualified Town and Country, MO spine specialist to help you, schedule an evaluation with Axes Physical Therapy today or reach out to the location most convenient for you