Spine Specialist Near Me in Weldon Spring Heights, MO

Spine specialist near me in Weldon Spring Heights, MO. Spine injuries can make basic activities like walking up the stairs 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 breadwinners, it can prevent you from putting food on the table for your Weldon Spring Heights, MO loved ones. For others, it can prevent us from going on bike ride or other physical activities. Physical therapists who specialize in the spine can help you get back to the functional and pain-free life you’re looking for. By developing a custom treatment plan, based on techniques proven to work, Axes Physical Therapy can help you achieve the mobility and pain relief your body needs to function, and that you need to live your best life. If you’re prepared to finally be free from debilitating back pain, request an appointment with an Axes Weldon Spring Heights, MO spine specialist, or call the Axes location nearest you.

Under Missouri law, 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 Weldon Spring Heights, MO is what you need. In the meantime, take advantage of one of Axes’ free 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 brain and ends at your tailbone. The spine consists of:

Vertebrae

The spine consists of 33 vertebrae, which are small bones that form the backbone. 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 cervical, thoracic, and lumbar regions provide mobility; the others are fused when we’re babies.

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. Between the joints and bones are cartilage and synovial fluid, allowing healthy bones and joints to safely glide and slide during movement.

Intervertebral Discs

Discs are the circular cushions between the vertebrae that act as shock absorbers. There is one disc between each vertebra. 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 prevent the gel-like center from leaking out.

Spinal Cord

The spinal cord consists of nerves that travel through the vertebrae, 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 that allow the nerves to go into other parts of the body. The spinal cord carries messages between our brain and other parts of our body.

Soft Tissue

The spine also has various types of soft tissue. Ligaments connect bones together, hold them together, and give them structure. Muscles are connected 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 interfere with the spine and keep you from the activities you love most. When that happens, a spine specialist in Weldon Spring Heights, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can get you back to the lifestyle you desire.

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

The American College of Physicians recommends 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 sports injury, Axes’ Weldon Spring Heights, MO spine specialists can help get you feeling great again. Some of the common conditions we help with in Weldon Spring Heights, MO are:

• Disc Injuries — Herniated discs and bulging discs can be due to either an injury 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 greatly decreases flexibility.
• Sciatica — Sciatica is an umbrella term for irritation of the sciatic nerve, which is our bodies’ longest nerves and begins near your tailbone. Symptoms include crippling pain, weakness, and tingling down one side of your body.
• Spinal Stenosis — Stenosis occurs when the space inside your backbone is too small. Symptoms include pain, problems with walking or other movements, and loss of sensation in the extremities.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis describes several different types of joint disease. It onsets as the cushioning between the joints wears down over time or from overuse. Obesity, autoimmune disorders, and other conditions can also lead to arthritis. The term “arthritis” describes over a hundred conditions, most of which are possible in the spine.
• Axial Back Pain — Also called nonspecific back pain, this refers to pain that doesn’t have a known, recognizable cause. Common causes are obesity or poor posture.

Physical therapy is also an effective treatment option for muscle strains, whiplash, and other more acute injuries.

Whatever condition is currently ailing you, our Weldon Spring Heights, MO spine specialists will work in tandem with you and your doctor to design 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 arthritis, won’t ever fully go away, physical therapy is an effective part of a comprehensive treatment plan that reduces pain and other symptoms and returns optimal mobility.

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

What a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist Can Do For Me in Weldon Spring Heights, MO

Physical therapy is becoming an increasingly popular non-invasive treatment plan for a variety of issues affecting our musculoskeletal system. According to research 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 risk of complications. Early intervention by a licensed Weldon Spring Heights, MO physical therapist is proven to reduce the risk of long-term opioid use.

A professional spine specialist will be able to determine what is causing your pain or other issues, and develop a treatment plan based on your injures, how old you are, and the lifestyle you wish to achieve or get back to. Through numerous different exercises and manual manipulations, physical therapy can reduce pain, improve the function of your spine by improving strength and flexibility, boost range of motion.

Physical Therapy for Spine Issues

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

• Hands-On Care — Our Weldon Spring Heights, MO manual therapists are experts at using light pressures and stretches to alleviate symptoms and improve function caused by muscle or joint dysfunction. Manual therapy we may use to treat you include:
  • Trigger point 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 symptoms now, certain exercises will allow you to maintain a healthy 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’re moving on from an injury, only to aggravate it. We help you understand 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 Weldon Spring Heights, MO will be based not on just recovery or pain relief, but on getting you to your best possible 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 Weldon Spring Heights, MO include:

• 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
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy

Call Axes For Your Spine Specialist Near Me in Weldon Spring Heights, MO

Don’t let a back injury keep you from the activities you love. At Axes, our Weldon Spring Heights, 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 knowledgeable Weldon Spring Heights, MO spine specialist to treat you, schedule an evaluation with Axes Physical Therapy now or contact the location closest to you