Common Conditions
Lower back and pelvis pain
Most Australians at one stage in their lives will experience low back pain.
With over 10 main causes of lower back pain, it can be quite unsettling when you find yourself stuck in certain position, walk gingerly or can't turn in bed without experiencing pain without knowing what to do. Two of the main areas where acute or chronic lower back pain is experienced is in the lower back (lumbar spine) or in the pelvis (sacroiliac joints). What is interesting though is that although each region may be aggravated by different causes, there are times where symptoms of one problem can be similar or even the same as a symptom of another region. For example a spinal condition and pelvic condition can both lead to pain travelling down the leg. So would you treat each issue the same way? The answer is ‘No’. There are so many factors that can lead to each cause of lower back pain, that factors such as age, weight, activity level, level of rheumatism, auto-immune conditions, stress levels and diet need to all be assessed before recommendations of treatment are made.
Whether your back pain is acute or chronic in nature, a strained, prolapsed, bulged or herniated disc, or you are struggling with pelvic instability due to sacroiliac dysfunction or unbalanced supportive pelvic muscles, Chiropractic assessment and treatment to this area of the body has been the first choice for the majority of Australians for a long time. One of the most fundamental skills of the chiropractor is the ability to differentially diagnose lower back pain. This is to identify if your back pain falls into the most common causes ie, disc problems, sacroiliac pain or facet joint dysfunction and the best approach or technique to be used with the clinical information at hand. Chiropractors are trained extensively in what is normal or abnormal alignment and movement in the spine/pelvis with the effects it has on the nervous system. These effects may be represented by localised tenderness, shooting pain, numbness or a burning sensation in either leg down to the knee or even into the toes.
If you want a better understanding of what is causing your pain and want to have a more comprehensive approach to treating and preventing lower back pain through researched and proven treatment techniques, call our office on 9808 5555 and ask us on how we can help you.
Inflammatory biomarkers of low back pain and disc degeneration: a review. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2017 Dec;1410(1):68-84. doi: 10.1111/nyas.13551.
Evidence informed management of chronic low back pain with spinal manipulation and mobilization. Bronfort et al. The Spine Journal 8 213-225 (2008)
Low back pain of mechanical origin: randomised comparison of chiropractic and hospital outpatient treatment. Meade, T.W. et.al (1990) BMJ 300:1431-1437
Short-term effectiveness of spinal manipulation therapy versus functional technique in patients with chronic nonspecific low back pain: a pragmatic randomized controlled trial. Castro-Sanchez, A.M. et al. (2016) The Spine Journal 16: 302-312
