lower back pain
experts estimate that merely eighty-five percent of americans will suffer from
it at some point
though pain in the lower back or lumbar region occurs for many reasons one of
the most common causes is a herniated disc
the low back otherwise known as a lumbar spine is a crucial part of your back because it's a lower
structure that helps support us
when we are sitting or standing throughout the day
the disc
is sandwiched in between two vertebra
the disc is the shock absorber of the spine
it absorbs impact when you jump up and down
it allows you to move and to rotate the reason why it's important to have the disc in between the lumbar spine
is that when a disc degenerates
it can degenerate enough where there is less space available for the nerves so not only do you
get back pain you can also get nerve pain which goes down to the legs
that can create a lot of problems you may have leg pain that leads to weakness or the
inability to do daily activities
ruptured or herniated discs can be the result of overuse injury
or aging
disc degeneration can certainly be caused by genetics a large portion of that
it can also be caused by environmental factors
we found that vibration can create disc degeneration because the constant loading
and unloading of the disc can create an environment where the disc degenerates more easily
even tramatic injuries where falls from height or jumping off of the ski jump
those can create disc degeneration also
even something trivial or small such as a small slip
that may initially cause a herniation or disc bulge
and can create a disc more susceptible to injury down the road
if there's a injury to the disc
it doesn't heal
so injuries are permanent and accumulate
treatment options vary depending on the severity of the tear in the disc
according to doctors about eighty percent of cases can be treated by
conservative or non operative therapies however for those patients who require
surgery
there is an advanced new procedure
called transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion or TLIF
it's a mouthful
which really means that you're doing a fusion of both the front of the spine
and the back of the spine through a very small incision in the center of the spine
what it does is it allows the two vertebral bodies which are moving
painfully together to become one piece of bone so it eliminates the pain
because transforaminal lumbar interbody fusions are minimally invasive
they may present less risk to patients and studies show that TLIF procedures
had the highest fusion success rate three years ago i was able to run and
uh...
as we came to two years i was only able to walk and then as we came to the last
year I was able to do any exercise be physical ski
or even enjoy some of the normal things i'd like to do in life
this procedure that we call the TLIF
is a procedure that heals remarkably well and very quickly normally within
four to six months
you have an absolute solid fusion and you can go out and play golf
you can go back and bungee jump and rollerblade pole vault do all those
other wonderful things you want to do
my recovery has taken about six months four to six months after
two months or so you feel really strong almost feel like a normal person again
and it only gets better from that point forward
the success rate for a TLIF
for back pain
is on the order of about ninety percent
for two-thirds relief of pain
so patients who get this procedure
are normally quite happy once the fusion becomes solid
before undergoing TLIF or any spinal surgery
experts stress the need for thorough diagnostic evaluation and advise back
pain sufferers to consult a spinal specialist we always try to stress
to the patients that we need to find where the pain is coming from
if you don't know where the pain is coming from you can't treat it
and i think the most
significant way to do that is selective injections diagnostic tests such as an
MRI or even a CT scan
and certainly even a good therapy session could be helpful
back pain
had pretty much cut out all my
activity
and i had maxed out on pain pills
seen a physical therapist
have tried acupuncture tried steroid shots
and i still
was at the point where i had pain
most of the time
if lower back pain is keeping you from enjoying an active lifestyle
let the experts at the steadman hawkins clinic help stop your suffering
at the point where my pain
overtook my life i consulted my physician about what were my choices
he suggested steadman hawkins the steadman hawkins clinic provides thorough
diagnostic services and their highly experienced team of physicians will find
the right treatment option for you
we have a very comprehensive range of services that we offer at steadman hawkins
that includes non operative care
injections therapy aquatics even surgical care for the people who need that
my fusion surgery resulted in the fact that i have no pain
whatsoever anymore
and the promise of going back to an extremely active life
specializing in orthopedics and sports medicine the goal of the steadman hawkins
clinic is to help each client reach optimum recovery
by providing the highest level of care and personal attention the clinic is
very accessible and was very easy to get to and
and of course they are world renowned for their successes
orthopedicly
my experience here was exceptional
my hospital care
the surgeons care
the PA's care everything was exceptional
for unparalleled expertise and commitment to care
choose the steadman hawkins clinic