As we discussed in our last blog post, there are a number of reasons that people can experience low back pain. These problems can be acute, meaning they have occurred recently (<1 month), to chronic, meaning they have been present for a longer period of time (>3 months). This post focuses on the physical therapy approach to managing acute low back pain. Proper early management of an episode of acute low back pain can set the stage for a successful long term recovery.
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Are you one of the 80% of people who will experience some form of low back pain within their lifetime? If so, you have many treatment options. It can be confusing to determine where to start. Physical Therapy as a first line intervention for low back pain has been shown to decrease total medical costs by 19% compared to injection first treatment, and by 75% compared to surgery first treatment (3). In fact, those who began Physical Therapy treatment within 15 days of diagnosis incurred lower treatment costs than those who began later (3).
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During a time when people are working from home and distancing in the midst of another New England winter, many are looking for a way to stay more active. A simple way to do this is by beginning a walking program. Walking regularly is easy to start, provides a change of scenery, and has many other benefits. However, if you haven’t been active lately, it’s important to start gradually and to seek advice as needed. If you have concerns more specific than those addressed in this article or are trying to begin walking after an injury, we can provide further advice by appointment.
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Over the course of this pandemic, we have seen an increased number of patients who have complaints of neck, upper back, or lower back pain and wonder how to help themselves throughout their home workday. Here, we want to address some common issues relating to posture and provide some tips to help you relieve pain and stiffness throughout the day.
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Dear Friends,
On April 15, 2019, once again we will be standing on the starting line of the 123rd Boston Marathon, along with over 30,000 other runners. We are honored to be part of the charity team running for Dana Farber Marathon Challenge. The challenge that awaits us in the 26.2 miles is nothing compared to the daily battle brought on by cancer-afflicted children and adults. Beyond the personal satisfaction that comes from accomplishing this difficult task, we are running this race for a more important reason: to raise money to fight cancer. We dedicate our run in honor of all our families, friends, and community members who are bravely fighting the effects of cancer and for all those who have lost the battle.
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Your range of motion is how far you can move a joint in different directions is determined by a few things: starting with the inner workings of the joints. Another determining factor of joint motion is how much tension are in the muscles surrounding the joint, which can be affected by by passive factors such as scarring your posture, or by active factors such as involuntary muscle spasms or purposeful muscle contractions.
Stretching exercises can help you improve your range of motion. To understand how, it helps to know what joints, tendons, and ligaments do:
Welcome to our blog,
This is a photo of Susan and I running the 100 th year anniversary, Boston Marathon, April 15, 1996. It was an amazing day with record crowds and festivities. We finished in 4 hours feeling strong throughout the entire route. Helping us through the course were the supportive fans, especially the children with leukemia along the way thanking us for our support. We were part of the Dana Farber Charity team.