Spine Specialist Near Me in Wilbur Park, MO

Spine specialist near me in Wilbur Park, MO. Lower back pain can make everyday tasks like bending over difficult, and keep us from our best possible movement health. For physically active people, back issues can keep you from being at the top of their game. For workers, it can prevent you from providing for your Wilbur Park, MO loved ones. For others, it can prevent us from taking walks or playing with our children like we love doing. Physical therapists with a spine specialty can help return to what you love doing most. By creating a personalized treatment plan, based on techniques proven to work, Axes Physical Therapy can help you achieve the strength, flexibility, and pain relief your body needs to function, and that you need to live your best life. If you’re ready to at long last be free from the issues holding you back, request an evaluation with an Axes Wilbur Park, MO spine specialist, or reach out to 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, consult with your physician about if physical therapy with a spine specialist in Wilbur Park, MO is what you need. In the meantime, take advantage of one of Axes’ complimentary injury screenings.

The Human Spine

The spine supports both our physical bodies, and how our bodies communicate. It begins at the base of your brain and ends at your tailbone. The spine is made up 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. 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 provide mobility; the others are immobile.

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 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 circular cushions between the vertebrae that absorb the stress and shock the body is put under when moving. Every two vertebrae have one disc between them. Discs have a “gel-like” center called the nucleus pulposus, which gives them flexibility and allows them to absorb shock, and an outer ring of tough fibers known as the annulus fibrosus that surrounds and protects the nucleus pulposus.

Spinal Cord

The spinal cord consists of nerves running up the bones in your spine, from your brain to your tailbone, where the nerves go into the lower part of your body. The spinal cord is protected by the vertebral column. The nerves branch out to other parts of the body through holes in the vertebrae called 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 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.

Living the lifestyle we want depends on all of these parts working together and functioning properly. Numerous different conditions can make the spine damaged or unhealthy, which can significantly limit your ability to enjoy the things you love doing. If you’re living with back pain or spine issues, a spine specialist in Wilbur Park, MO like Axes’ physical therapists can get you back to the lifestyle you desire.

What Conditions Can a Spine Specialist in Wilbur Park, 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 dealing with pain on a daily basis or recently sustained a work injury, Axes’ Wilbur Park, MO spine specialists can help you live your best life. Some of the common conditions we provide relief and improved function for in Wilbur Park, 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 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 originates in the lower spine. It can cause to immense 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. It can cause pain, problems with walking or other movements, and numbness or tingling in the extremities.
• Spinal Arthritis — Arthritis describes several different types of joint disease. It occurs as the cushioning between the joints wears down over time or from overuse. 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 referred to as nonspecific back pain, this refers to pain that doesn’t have a known, recognizable cause. Axial back pain can be caused by obesity or poor posture.

Physical therapy can also help with soft tissue injuries such as muscle strains.

Whatever is causing your back pain or injury, our Wilbur Park, MO spine specialists will work in tandem 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 more comfortable life. While some conditions, like degenerative disc disease, won’t ever fully go away, physical therapy can be part of a comprehensive wellness routine that eases symptoms and returns optimal mobility.

If what’s ailing you requires surgery, we offer pre- and post-surgical rehab in Wilbur Park, MO to help get the best results possible.

What a Physical Therapy Spine Specialist Can Do For Me in Wilbur Park, MO

Physical therapy is becoming an increasingly popular non-surgical option for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. According to research published By the American College of Physicians, 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 Wilbur Park, MO physical therapist is proven to limit the risk of long-term opioid use.

A licensed spine specialist will be able to find the root cause of your back problems, and create a treatment plan based on your medical history, how old you are, and the lifestyle you wish to achieve or get back to. Through a variety of exercises and manual manipulations, physical therapy can limit symptoms, improve the function of your spine by increasing strength and flexibility, enhance range of motion.

Physical Therapy for Spine Conditions

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

• Hands-On Care — Our Wilbur Park, 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:
  • 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 decreasing symptoms now, guided exercise 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 gotten past an injury, only to aggravate it. We’ll educate you about the musculoskeletal system and how yours is being affected, so you’ll know how to protect your spine while being active. Our injury prevention program includes:
  • Patient education
  • Lifting education
  • Activity modification
  • Conditioning

Your treatment plan in Wilbur Park, MO will be holistic 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 peer-reviewed studies that those techniques have been proven to work.

Other conditions we help treat in Wilbur Park, 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 Wilbur Park, MO

Don’t allow a spine condition prevent you from the activities you love. At Axes, our Wilbur Park, MO spine specialists are dedicated to 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 qualified Wilbur Park, MO spine specialist to help you, request an appointment with Axes Physical Therapy now or reach out to the location nearest you