Spine Specialist Near Me in Weldon Spring, MO

Spine specialist near me in Weldon Spring, MO. Lower back issues can make normal tasks like sitting up excruciating, and keep us from optimal movement health. For athletes, back injuries can prevent you from being at peak performance. For workers, it can impede your ability to provide for your Weldon Spring, MO loved ones. For others, it can keep us from going on bike ride or playing with our grandkids like we love doing. 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 live your best life. If you’re prepared to finally move on from the issues holding you back, request an evaluation with an Axes Weldon Spring, MO spine specialist, or call the Axes location nearest you.

Under Missouri law, a doctor needs to prescribe 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 Weldon Spring, MO is right for you. In the meantime, visit one of our offices for one of Axes’ free 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 extends from the base of your brain to your pelvis. There are several different parts of your spine:

Vertebrae

The spine consists of 33 vertebrae, which are small bones that form the backbone. Every vertebra has a hole in the middle to safeguard the spinal cord and its nerves. 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 are the only ones that can 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 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 flat, round 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 softer middle known as the nucleus pulposus, which allows for mobility and absorption, and a tough, circular exterior called the annulus fibrosus that surrounds and protects the gel-like center.

Spinal Cord

The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular collection of nerves, 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 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 connect bones together and holds them in the correct 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. A variety of factors can interfere with the spine and greatly limit your ability to enjoy the things you love doing. When that happens, a spine specialist in Weldon Spring, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can provide safe and effective relief.

What Injuries Can a Spine Specialist in Weldon Spring, MO Treat Me For?

The American College of Physicians recommends 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 sports injury, Axes’ Weldon Spring, MO spine specialists can help get you feeling great again. Some of the common conditions we provide relief and improved function for in Weldon Spring, MO include:

• Disc Injuries — Herniated discs and bulging discs can be caused by either an injury or general degradation as we get older. 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 refers to a variety of conditions which irritate the sciatic nerve, which is the largest nerve in the body and begins in the lumbar region. It can cause to crippling pain, weakness, and numbness 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. Symptoms include pain, balance issues, and numbness or tingling in your hands or feet.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis is the inflammation of the facet joints. It onsets as the cushioning 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 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 can also help with muscle strains, whiplash, and other more acute injuries.

Whatever is causing your back pain or injury, our Weldon Spring, MO spine specialists will work with you and your doctor 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 stenosis, won’t ever fully go away, physical therapy can be part of a holistic 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, MO to help you be healthy for surgery and recovery quickly and safely.

Benefits of Working With a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist in Weldon Spring, MO

More and more people are turning to physical therapy as a non-surgical option 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, without the same recovery time or risk of adverse side-effects. Early intervention by a licensed Weldon Spring, MO physical therapist is proven to reduce 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 your desired activity level. Through numerous different exercises and techniques, physical therapy can limit symptoms, improve the function of your spine by improving strength and flexibility, increase range of motion.

Physical Therapy for Spine Conditions

Depending on your specific condition, your Weldon Spring, MO spine specialist at Axes may include some of the following in your treatment plan:

• Manual Therapy — Our Weldon Spring, MO manual therapists are experts at using subtle manipulations and stretches to decrease back pain caused by muscle or joint dysfunction. 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 essential for getting your body stronger and more flexible. In addition to reducing pain now, guided exercise will allow you to maintain a well-functioning spine when you’re on the move. 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 Weldon Spring, MO will be exhaustive and focused on getting you to your best possible movement health and helping you stay there. Whatever your treatment plan includes, it will designed based on time-tested techniques.

Other conditions we help treat in Weldon Spring, MO include:

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

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

Don’t let a back injury keep you from what you love doing most. At Axes, our Weldon Spring, 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 experienced Weldon Spring, MO spine specialist to help you, schedule an appointment with Axes Physical Therapy now or contact the location closest to you