Some common thoughts that people dread when it comes to healthcare, including chiropractic care and back pain, include fear, worry and scariness.
No one wants to hear the word “cancer”, as an example. Now that’s scary. Some other words are not quite as scary but they are still disliked. Most people are not fond of the word “weight” when it comes to their health. And the idea of a “hospital” can remove the joy from any conversation.
The same can be said for “surgery”. A procedure that requires cutting, using a laser on parts of the body, or being “put under” generally doesn’t sound fun. Thankfully, in most instances, an expectation of improvement exists. The benefit of enduring such an invasive treatment will hopefully be a positive outcome.
The exchange involved is the sacrificing and fearing or hoping and expecting. This is experienced and edcured in return for feeling better and getting back to life.
Sometimes, people fear the “crack” or “pop” that comes with a chiropractic adjustment. That side effect of moving the bones and encouraging the joint to work better is normal physiology. It’s not the sound of bones breaking or tendons snapping. Nonetheless, it is kind of scary.
While surgery is outside the scope of chiropractic practice, chiropractors do co-treat and co-manage pre-surgical and post-surgical patients. A team of people is often needed to help support a good outcome. A chiropractor is almost always a good addition when it comes to treatment for back pain, neck pain, and other joint problems in the body.
We do what we can and what we must in order to take care of ourselves. Practitioners do exist that can help us in that process. Each person, specialist, doctor, therapist, etc. can bring something valuable to the table.
Surgery can be an option for back pain. Ideally, it’s a last resort. However, a limitation of matter that can’t be ignored does exist. What that means is that sometimes the changes in the back and how it works include damage to the parts that cannot be easily recovered.
Degenerative joint disorder, degenerative disc disorder, herniated discs, sciatica from compromised nerves (also known as radiculopathy), stenosis (a narrowing of available space for the spinal cord or nerve roots) are among these concerns. Surgery may in fact be the only option after some degree of damage and impact on our quality of life.
Low back pain can be treated in various ways, including chiropractic care, but may require surgery in some cases.
While we strive to treat these conditions in non-invasive ways first (by recovering and retaining as much function in the spine as possible), there may come a time where a person’s best interests lie with making changes on the inside. It should be noted, however, that recovering and retaining function is also important after surgery.
Most of the changes described above that require surgical intervention for back pain result as a product of the back not working properly. The parts of the back are designed to last a lifetime. If they are sitting and moving properly and have access to proper nutrients and other components of a healthy spine environment, they will typically outlast the body they are in.
Due to overuse, misuse, accidents, injuries, and other factors, the parts of the spine may stop sitting and moving properly. This leads to an interruption of getting all the good things they need to stay well. After development is complete somewhere around the age of 20, many parts of the spine (as well as other joints in the body for that matter) are dependent on healthy movement to stay well.
This healthy movement helps to lubricate and nourish the joints by getting wastes out of the tissues and valuable nutrients to the cells. The healing process is supported as is the natural turnover of the tissues thereby adding to their resiliency and longevity.
When things don’t sit or move right, this process is impaired, and complications can often lead to pain and dysfunction. If caught early and proper self care and/or treatment are received, function can be recovered. If not, it can progress to the point that surgery may indeed be the only option.
In the case of sciatica where the nerve is compromised (pinched, pulled, scratched, etc.) by the disc or the bone in the spine, a portion of the bone or disc can be cut away to relieve the nerve. The person in this instance will feel much better. However, it should be noted that little has been done to help recover the function that may have been lost that led to this problem in the first place.
That’s why, whether relief comes by way of surgery, prescription, over the counter medications, stretching, strengthening, or some similar fashion, remember this. It is essential to also consider the overall function of the parts to ensure long term resolution and a return to full use.
Function, in this sense, is not to be confused with fitness. While fitness does help to preserve function to some degree, it can also cause problems in this regard. Function refers to how well the parts are working; fitness refers to how well the function is being used.
As it can be seen, function is valuable. Preserving structure would ultimately be the best goal for all of our body parts, including those in the neck and back. This way, neck pain and back pain are less likely to occur. That’s because structure determines function.
However, even with perfect parts, there can be dysfunction. A healthy structure that has poor function can also lead to problems like neck pain, back pain, and other health problems. We mention these, of course, as they are the mainstay of what chiropractors see in their chiropractic practices each day with respect to chiropractic care and back pain.
A person cannot go wrong with an assessment of their spinal structure and function, whether in pain or not. Keeping the spine sitting and moving well will maintain an active, supported, and protected body for life. Plus, it may just help stave off surgery.